Franklin County
Created from Bute County's southern half in 1779, Franklin County is situated in the Research Triangle region of North Carolina. Named for Benjamin Franklin, it has a population of 77,001 people, and Louisburg is its county seat.
Franklin County has a two-tier trial court system encompassing a superior court and a district court. The Franklin County Superior Court exercises general jurisdiction over all civil and criminal cases in the county. It hears felonies, lesser offenses, general civil claims above $25,000, and misdemeanors and infraction appeals from the District Court. It also oversees other cases with no financial caps, such as select types of requests for constitutional rights, declaratory relief, adoptions, agency decisions, injunctions, eminent domain, and complicated business issues. The Superior Court also has the only jurisdiction over probate proceedings and the maintenance of decedents' estates, in addition to the original jurisdiction managing most guardianship cases.
The Franklin County District Court has jurisdiction over civil, criminal, juvenile, and magistrate cases. Typical District Court cases include non-jury misdemeanors and infractions, civil claims below $25,000, divorce, municipal ordinance violations, child custody/support, juvenile delinquency, and child abuse/neglect. Small claims for amounts up to $10,000, landlord eviction cases, personal property recovery suits, initial felony hearings, involuntary mental health commitments, and protection for domestic violence cases are also within the District Court's purview.
Franklin County court records are various documentation, which can exist in digital or paper format, about case trials in the county. They generally contain legal information, including case parties' names, docket entries, court orders, audio/video recordings of proceedings, and court judgments, among others. Court records in Franklin County ensure judicial transparency and accountability and typical examples are:
- Civil records
- Criminal records
- Probate records
- Juvenile records
- Domestic records
The Franklin County Clerk of the Superior Court manages the court record repository for the District Court and the Superior Court. Per North Carolina Public Records Law, individuals have the legal right to inspect and copy public records, including non-exempt court records. Record seekers can view and obtain physical copies of their desired court records at the Superior Court Clerk's Office at:
102 S Main St.
Louisburg, NC 27549
Phone: (919) 497-4200
Free online access to Franklin County court records is also available to requesters through the public computer terminals at the Clerk of Court's Office during business hours. In addition, the eCourts portal, which is the state-sponsored case search service, offers requesters online access to Franklin County court records. Requesters may, however, be required to pay certain fees for inspecting and copying these records.
