Virginia Court Records

What is Included in Virginia Public Court Records

Criminal Court Cases

Assault & Battery, Domestic Violence, Parole Violation, Probation Violation, Sexual Assault, Robbery, Manslaughter, Murder, Drug Offenses, And More...

Civil Court Cases

Bankruptcies, Legal Judgments, Lawsuits, Tax & Property Liens, Contract Disputes, Probates, Family Law, Small Claims, Evictions, And More...

Traffic Court Cases

Driving Under Influence, Driving While Intoxicated, Speeding Tickets, Traffic Citations, Reckless Driving, Driving Without a License, License Suspensions, Criminal Driving Violations, Accidents, And More...

Virginia Court Record Lookup

A judge’s decision frequently takes much effort to enforce, particularly when it means collecting money, enforcing child custody, reclaiming a suspended driver’s license, or enacting an adoption. To follow through on a judge’s orders Virginia VA court records are often necessary. Court records are public documents that can be requested by anyone by performing Virginia court records search.

Limited jurisdiction courts

Magistrate’s courts are located in 8 regions. These Virginia courthouses review complaints filed, conduct hearings, and issue search warrants and subpoenas.

District courts

Juvenile and domestic relations are a division of district courts that handle divorces, Virginia child support cases, custody, delinquency, and crimes committed by minors. These courts are located in each county of Virginia.

District courts are located in 32 regions with jurisdiction over violations of municipal ordinances and criminal misdemeanor cases. Records from these courtrooms are available to obtain via performing Virginia court case lookup.

Trial courts

The general trial courts of Virginia are circuit courts, located in 120 places throughout the state’s 31 judicial circuits. These courts are responsible for general criminal and civil cases as well as hearing appeals of lower court decisions.

Records of court proceedings for most circuits are searchable online as well as Viginia criminal records. Using basic case information it is possible to request official documents from the clerk of the court where the case was heard. Some Virginia court records are inaccessible to the public due to confidentiality laws, including juvenile cases and those that name victim of certain crimes.

Appeals courts

The state’s intermediate court of appeals has jurisdiction over most disputed civil and criminal cases decided in lower courts, as well as judgments from state agencies such as the worker’s compensation commission. Judges sit in panels of three to hear cases.

Virginia’s state supreme court automatically hears appeals of death sentence cases, oversees the state bar and complaints against attorneys and judges, and may take selected appeals from lower courts. Seven justices occupy the bench.

The state supreme court receives about 1,800 case filings per year, a decrease from past years. Anyone can obtain Virginia court records online via conducting Virginia court record lookup.

U.S. District Courts

Federal courts are located in every state, with jurisdiction over violations of federal law, bankruptcy petitions, multi-state lawsuits, and the like. Records of federal cases may be searched online and requests for documents submitted to the appropriate clerk’s office.

Virginia Notable Court Cases

In 2016, the Virginia Supreme Court blocked Governor Terry McAuliffe's move to give more than 200,000 felons in the state their voting rights back. The high court stated in its decision to block the effort that it violated the state's constitution and legal limits of the governor's powers. Although the governor can reinstate voting rights to felons on an individual basis, he cannot grant them as a group and essentially rewrite the current laws on the matter. Bystanders assume this action was to help restore rights to minority groups during an election year to help voter turnout, knowing that minority groups such as African Americans are largely a Democrat-member group. Dissenting justices on the court stated that nowhere in the constitution does it state that the governor cannot reinstate voting rights to felons as a blanket order.

In 2006, Ricky Gray was convicted of murdering seven people on New Year's Day. He was sentenced to death, with an execution scheduled for March 16. His attorney filed for an appeal, allowing for a stay of his execution. They have petitioned the U.S. Supreme Court to hear alleged violations of Gray's constitutional rights and inadequate state court reviews. Virginia's Attorney General is asking the court to deny his request for a hearing, stating that Gray's claims have no basis.

Virginia Civil Case Statistics

Civil Caseload
Civil Caseload 518,165
Caseloads per 100.000 Population
Caseloads per 100.000 Population 6,160
Clearance Rate
Clearance Rate 99%

Civil Caseloads for Virginia, the sum of all civil cases reported by the state, account for 1,032,835 total cases at the year end of 2016, which makes it 6,160 cases per 100.000 population.

The clearance rate for the state is about 99% which makes up by dividing the outgoing to incoming civil cases and expressing the result in a percentage.

Find Virginia Courthouses

LEE SCOTT WISE DICKEN-SON BUCHANAN RUSSELL WASH-INGTON TAZEWELL SMYTH BLAND WYTHE GRAYSON CARROLL PULASKI GILES MONT-GOMERY FLOYD PATRICK FRANKLINCO. HENRY PITTSYLVANIA BEDFORD HALIFAX MECKLEN-BURG LUNEN-BURG BRUNS-WICK NOTTO-WAY DINWID-DIE AMELIA CHESTERFIELD HEN-RICO NEWKENT KING WILLIAM KING AND QUEEN ESSEX JAMESCITY CHARLESCITY PRINCEGEORGE SUSSEX SOUTH-AMPTON SURRY ISLE OFWIGHT NORTH-AMPTON ACCOMACK PRINCEEDWARD CUMBERLAND FLUVANNA ALBEM-ARLE ROCKIN-GHAM SHENAN-DOAH FREDERICK WARREN CLARKE LOUDOUN FAUQUIER RAPPA-HANNOCK PAGE MADISON GREENE CUL-PEPER STAF-FORD PRINCEWILLIAM SPOT-SYLVANIA ORANGE LOUISA CAROLINE HANOVER GOOCHLAND POWHATAN CHAR-LOTTE CAMPBELL ROCK-BRIDGE BATH BOTETOURT HIGH-LAND AUGUSTA AMHERST NELSON APPO-MATTOX BUCKIN-GHAM CRAIG ALLEGHANY ROANOKE CO. GREENSVILLE FAIRFAX CO. ARLINGTON KING GEORGE WESTMORELAND RICHMOND CO. NORTHUMBERLAND LANCASTER MIDDLE-SEX MATH-EWS GLOU-CESTER YORK 1. ALEXANDRIA 1 11. FALLS CHURCH 11 10. FAIRFAX 10 20. MANASSAS 20 16. HARRISONBURG 16 33. STAUNTON 33 18. LEXINGTON 18 3. BUENA VISTA 3 36. WAYNESBORO 36 4. CHARLOTTESVILLE 4 30. RICHMOND 30 26. PETERSBURG 26 9. EMPORIA 9 12. FRANKLIN 12 24. NORFOLK 24 15. HAMPTON 15 19. LYNCHBURG 19 8. DANVILLE 8 22. MARTINSVILLE 22 31. ROANOKE 31 32. SALEM 32 7. COVINGTON 7 14. GALAX 14 29. RADFORD 29 25. NORTON 25 2. BRISTOL 2 27. POQUOSON 27 37. WILLIAMSBURG 37 23. NEWPORT NEWS 23 13. FREDERICKSBURG 13 6. COLONIAL HEIGHTS 6 17. HOPEWELL 17 21. MANASSAS PARK 21 38. WINCHESTER 38 35. VIRGINIA BEACH 35 34. SUFFOLK 34 5. CHESAPEAKE 5 28. PORTSMOUTH 28 INDEPENDENT CITIES

State Court Holidays

Holiday: Date:
New Year's DayMonday, January 1, 2018
Lee-Jackson DayFriday, January 12, 2018
Martin Luther King Jr. BirthdayFriday, January 12, 2018
President's DayMonday, February 19, 2018
Memorial DayMonday, May 28, 2018
Independence DayWednesday, July 4, 2018
Labor Day Monday, September 3, 2018
Columbus DayMonday, October 8, 2018
Veterans Day (Observed)Monday, Nov 12, 2018
Thanksgiving DayThursday, November 22, 2018
Thanksgiving Day FridayFriday, November 23, 2018
Christmas DayTuesday, December 25, 2018

Court of Appeals Caseloads