Ramsey County
Formed on October 27, 1848, Ramsey County became an urbanized county in 1990. It is the smallest county by area in Minnesota and its county seat is Saint Paul; the twin city of Minneapolis. It encompasses an area of 170 square miles. Ramsey County has a population of over 536,075 (the second most populous county) and was named in honor of Alexander Ramsey, the first governor of Minnesota.
The Ramsey County court system revolves around a District Court. This District Court has 4 branches. Three in Saint Paul and another in Maplewood. The District Courts help shape the legal landscape of the county. The second judicial District Court has general jurisdiction over all types of cases including criminal and civil cases.
The Special Court Division houses the Family and Juvenile Courts. Here, cases such as child custody, child visitation, domestic abuse, annulment, child maltreatment, and juvenile offenses (truancies, nuisances, and unruly behaviors) are handled by a judge in the District Court. The Criminal Court deals with misdemeanors and felonies. The Traffic Court handles parking violations, hit and run, expired licenses, and unlicensed driving cases. The Civil Division houses the Conciliation Court, Housing Court, Probate Court, and Civil Commitment Court. Landlord-tenant disputes, the administration of estates, contract disputes, and property damage cases are effectively resolved in this division.
Unabridged and accurate records of court activities detailing how litigation matters were initiated and disposed of are in the custody of the District Court Clerk. Public court records are readily available for public view without restrictions. This is because the Minnesota Rules of Public Access to Court Records govern them. Court records are stored in indexes which contain case file numbers and case filing dates.
Without much ado, the public can access the following non-sensitive court records:
- Family
- Criminal
- Probate
- Mental Health Commitment
- Civil
The public can search court records at the Minnesota State Law Library and on the computer terminals in the District Courthouse (complete access). The District Court also offers in-person counter access to locally stored public case records. Judgment dockets can be viewed on the Minnesota Court Records Online page which allows you to search using date of birth, court location, and active or inactive case status criteria.
