Santa Fe County
Santa Fe County was established by Mexico in 1844 and reestablished as one of the first counties in the New Mexico Territory in 1852. As of July 2023, Santa Fe had an estimated population of 155,956, making it New Mexico's third-most populous county. The county has a total area of 1,911 square miles, 99.2% of which is land.
Santa Fe County's trial system consists of District, Magistrate, Probate, and Municipal Courts. The District Court is the county's general jurisdiction court and holds jury trials. This court typically hears cases involving criminal offenses, juvenile matters, torts, contract disputes, real property rights, estate matters, domestic relations, and mental health, as well as appeals from administrative agencies and the lower courts. The Magistrate Court also holds jury trials and typically handles civil matters that do not involve more than $10,000, misdemeanors, felony primary hearings, DWI/DUI offenses, and other traffic violations.
The Probate Court is a non-jury court that hears informal probate and uncontested estate cases, while the Municipal Courts handle petty misdemeanors, DWI/DUI offenses, traffic violations, and other local ordinance violations within their respective municipalities (also without a jury trial). Santa Fe County also operates Adult Drug and Adult Treatment Courts that offer certain defendants intensive, court-monitored programs as an alternative to traditional incarceration.
Santa Fe County public court records refer to all documented information relating to court proceedings in the county. These typically include sworn affidavits, witness testimonies, motions and court orders, subpoenas, judgments, verdicts, and trial transcripts. The Office of the Clerk of the First District Court is the record custodian for Santa Fe County court records and ensures that they are properly maintained and accessible to the public upon request.
You can view Santa Fe County public court records online through the New Mexico Case Lookup portal (for District, Magistrate, and Municipal Court records) and the county's Probate Case Lookup portal (for Probate Court Records). Be aware that juvenile criminal cases and order of protection information are not available online. You can request access to this information (and case information unavailable online) or obtain official copies of Santa Fe County court records by contacting the respective court where the matter was filed or submitting an IPRA Online Request Form. Note that you may be charged a fee to obtain copies of these records.
