Stafford County
Stafford County is located in northern Virginia and covers around 269.2 square miles. It is part of the Northern Virginia Region and the DC Area. Stafford County has a population of about 157,606 residents, with Stafford Courthouse, a Census-Designated Place, serving as the county seat. The judicial system consists of the Circuit Court, General District Court, and Juvenile and Domestic Relations Court.
Stafford Circuit Court has general jurisdiction over all civil and criminal cases, including civil claims for more than $25,000, divorce cases, adoptions, property disputes, the probate of wills, and emergency protective orders. It also oversees all felony trials, lesser-included offenses, and misdemeanors charged by a grand jury indictment. The General District Court deals with certain civil and criminal cases, such as misdemeanors, ordinance violations, traffic infractions, small claims under $5,000, and civil claims not exceeding $25,000. On the other hand, the Juvenile and Domestic Relations Court addresses cases related to minors, such as delinquency, judicial consent to medical procedures for a child, emancipation, and child neglect, along with family matters like child custody, domestic violence, and termination of parental rights.
Public court records in Stafford County are created through legal proceedings and are generally accessible to the public under Virginia's Freedom of Information Act. These records include:
- Criminal records
- Civil records
- Traffic records
- Probate records
- Family law records
Court records are maintained by the Stafford County Circuit Court Clerk, who files, indexes, and provides public access to these records. Individuals can access Stafford County court records through Virginia's online portal for Circuit and General District Court case information. Certain records, especially those from the Juvenile and Domestic Relations Court, are restricted due to their sensitive nature and are only available to the involved parties or their legal representatives.
The Circuit Court Clerk's office can also be contacted for record requests at the Stafford County Courthouse:
1300 Courthouse Road
Stafford, VA 22554
Phone: (540) 658-8750
