Cumberland County
Cumberland County was created in 1750 from territories owned by Lancaster County, Pennsylvania. The county covers about 546 square miles of land in south-central Pennsylvania and has a population of 261,269 residents. Its county seat is Carlisle Borough.
Cumberland County has three courts, including the Court of Common Pleas, Magisterial District Courts, and Orphans' Court. The Court of Common Pleas exercises original jurisdiction over civil and criminal proceedings outside the scope of other courts in Cumberland County. Felony-related cases and civil actions involving personal injury, contract breach, and other monetary disputes are exclusive to the Common Pleas Court. The apex court also resolves appeals from the Magisterial District Courts. Cumberland County has an Orphans' Court, a division of the Court of Common Pleas, which presides over probate matters such as estate administrations, adoptions, and guardianship issues. The Magisterial District Courts in Cumberland County have limited jurisdiction over minor criminal and civil cases. These courts conduct pretrial hearings and handle misdemeanor trials, landlord-tenant disputes, DUI cases, and civil violations.
Cumberland County public court records consist of official documents filed at the local courthouses during judicial processes. These documents contain affidavits, court orders, transcripts, case filings, court calendars, and court dockets. Examples of court records, classified by case types, include the following:
- Criminal court records
- Probate court records
- Civil records
- Juvenile records
- Estate records
- Family law records
- Adoption court records
In Cumberland County, the Clerk of Courts keeps and maintains criminal court records, while the Prothonotary stores non-criminal court records. Requesters can obtain public court documents by contacting any of the record custodians via mail or phone. They can also make in-person requests by visiting the courthouse at:
Cumberland County Courthouse
1 Courthouse Square
Carlisle, PA 17013
Phone (Clerk of Courts): (717) 240-6250
Phone (Prothonotary's Office): (717) 240-6195
Note that sealed and other confidential court records containing juvenile and adoption cases are not publicly accessible. Also, obtaining copies of court records in Cumberland County costs $0.50 per page and $6 per certified copy. Anyone can access Cumberland County court records online free of charge via the Pennsylvania Case Search portal. Remote users can search the portal by providing docket numbers, dates of filings, citation numbers, complaint numbers, or attorneys' names.
