Missouri Court Records

Missouri Court Record Lookup

Missouri MO court records serve many purposes: individuals from Missouri may need them to collect court-ordered judgements, as proof that probation has been served, to establish custody, to clear a driving record, and more. They can be found by conducting a Missouri court records search online. MO court records include information about Missouri criminal records, civil and traffic cases, warrants and more.

Limited jurisdiction courts

Traffic tickets and violations of municipal ordinances are handled by municipal courts.

Specialized divisions of circuit courts have specific jurisdiction for drug offenses, family issues, juvenile cases, mental health cases, and teen/truancy issues. Limitations to public release of court records are outlined by confidentiality laws that restrict documents naming juveniles or victims of certain crimes.

Trial courts

There are 115 circuit courts across the state, one located in each county. These Missouri courthouses are the general trial courts for the state, handling cases from misdemeanors to criminal felonies, civil lawsuits, such as Missouri child support and custody cases and probate cases, which can be viewed via Missouri court case lookup. 

Over 350,000 cases were filed in circuit courts in a recent year, of them almost 47,000 felonies, over 118,000 traffic issues, and 103,000 domestic relations.

Appellate courts

An intermediate court of appeals hears disputes over lower court decisions in three regional circuits.

The state supreme court is the court of last resort with ultimate authority over lower court rulings as well as the following specific charges: the validity of a U.S. or state statute, state tax laws, the validity of an elected official, and the death penalty. In recent year the supreme court received 74 appeals and disposed of 57.

Federal courts

There is at least one federal district court in each state that is responsible for bankruptcy filings, class action lawsuits, violations of federal law, multi-state lawsuits, and more. Anyone can obtain Missouri court records online via Missouri court record lookup.

Missouri Notable Court Cases

Perhaps the most notable case to originate from Missouri's court system was that of Dred Scott v. Irene Emerson, in which a legally owned slave sued his owner for freedom in a Missouri court in 1846. Scott claimed he should be freed because he resided in a slave-free state. Emerson, his owner at the time, argued that under federal law Scott should remain a slave because he was born to slaves. Scott eventually lost the case due to a technicality, though Missouri was known for its sympathetic rulings in cases of slaves seeking freedom.

Later in 1847, Scott was granted a new trial, but due to continuances, health epidemics and appeals it did not start until 1850. The court eventually ruled against Scott, stating that he was still legally a slave. This led to the federal Dred Scott v. Sanford case, in which the U.S. Supreme Court made a decision that has been called "'the court's worst decision ever," stating that Scott and his family could not be American citizens or sue in a federal court.