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How to Find Alabama Court Records (2026)

Where Alabama court records are kept, which official portals to use, what they cost, and how to request copies.

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Alabama court records at a glance
Statewide case search Alacourt.com
Criminal history check ALEA Alabama Background Check Program
Appellate opinions Alabama Appellate Courts Public Portal
Federal cases PACER (3 districts)
Plain copy fee Probate records: $1.00 per page (Code of Alabama § 12-19-90). Circuit/district clerk copies: set by directive of the Administrative Director of Courts under Rule 30, Alabama Rules of Judicial Administration; confirm with the clerk
Certified copy fee Probate records: $3.00 per document (certificate with seal) in addition to the per-page copy charge. Circuit/district clerk certification: confirm with the clerk
Who keeps trial records Clerk of the Supreme Court of Alabama; Clerk of the Court of Civil Appeals

Alabama keeps trial-court records at the county level, but unlike most states it does not split the job between two separate clerks in every county. The Circuit Clerk is the record keeper for both the circuit court (felonies, larger civil suits, divorce and other domestic-relations cases) and the district court (misdemeanors, small claims, and civil cases up to $10,000) in the same county. A separate elected official, the Judge of Probate, keeps wills, estates, guardianships, adoptions, and land and marriage records. With 67 counties, that is still 67 circuit clerks and 67 probate judges, each running its own office and, in a few large counties such as Jefferson, more than one courthouse division.

Alabama's statewide case management system is Alacourt. Alacourt.com is the subscription product built for attorneys, law firms, and other business subscribers, priced through monthly or per-image packages. The Alabama Administrative Office of Courts also runs a public-facing companion, marketed as Alacourt ACCESS or Just One Look, at pa.alacourt.com: registration is free, but each name or case search costs $9.99 and includes one case detail report. Neither system is a substitute for the clerk's own office — document images are not complete for every case, and juvenile, adoption, and other confidential case types never appear in a public search.

The most common mistake is searching the wrong record custodian. A will or an estate is at the Probate Court, not the Circuit Clerk. A criminal history check on another person is not available through the court system at all — Alabama only lets a person request their own official record, through the Alabama Law Enforcement Agency, not the courts.

How Alabama courts are organized

Which court heard a case decides who keeps the file. Use this table to pick the right clerk before you search, and see the guides to criminal, civil, family, and probate records for what each court's file contains.

Court Handles Who holds the records
Supreme Court of Alabama
  • Civil appeals of last resort
  • Discretionary review (certiorari) of Court of Criminal Appeals decisions
  • Attorney discipline and admission
  • Rulemaking for all Alabama courts
 Clerk of the Supreme Court of Alabama

Sits in Montgomery; does not hear criminal appeals directly except by certiorari.
Court of Civil Appeals
  • Civil appeals from circuit court
  • Domestic relations and juvenile appeals
  • Workers' compensation appeals
  • Appeals involving $50,000 or less in controversy
 Clerk of the Court of Civil Appeals

One of two intermediate appellate courts; the other hears criminal matters.
Court of Criminal Appeals
  • Criminal appeals from circuit and district court
  • Post-conviction petitions
  • Death-penalty direct appeals
 Clerk of the Court of Criminal Appeals
Circuit Courts (41 judicial circuits)
  • Felony criminal cases
  • Divorce, custody, and other domestic-relations cases
  • Civil cases exceeding $10,000 (and $3,000–$10,000 by discretion)
  • Appeals from district, municipal, and probate court
 Circuit Clerk of the county

The circuit clerk's office also keeps the county's district-court records; Alabama does not use a separate district clerk.
District Courts
  • Misdemeanor criminal cases and preliminary felony hearings
  • Civil cases between $3,000 and $10,000
  • Small claims up to $6,000
  • Traffic citations outside city limits
 Circuit Clerk of the county

District court has no jury trials; a case can be appealed to circuit court for a trial de novo.
Probate Courts
  • Wills and estate administration
  • Guardianships and conservatorships
  • Adoptions
  • Marriage licenses and real-property recording
 Judge of Probate of the county

In some counties the probate judge's office also handles vehicle titles and voter registration, which are administrative rather than court functions.
Municipal Courts
  • Municipal ordinance violations
  • Traffic tickets issued within city limits
  • Class C misdemeanors when tried by the city
 Municipal court clerk for that city

Not covered by the county circuit clerk or Alacourt; contact the city.

Statewide case search

Alacourt.com

Official Paid Account required
Cost
Subscription plans priced by usage; document-image packages start at $5.00 for the first 20 pages per county per day, then $0.50/page without a package
Coverage
Case data and document images from Alabama circuit and district courts statewide, built primarily for attorneys, law firms, and other business subscribers
Records
Civil, Criminal, Family, Probate, Traffic

This is the professional subscription product. Casual or one-time searchers should use Alacourt ACCESS ("Just One Look") instead.

Statewide case search

Alacourt ACCESS ("Just One Look")

Official Paid Account required
Cost
Free to register; $9.99 per name or case-number search (includes one case detail report); document images $5.00 for the first 20 pages, then $0.50/page; case monitoring $19.99–$29.99
Coverage
On-demand, pay-per-search access to Alabama circuit and district court case information statewide, one case at a time
Records
Civil, Criminal, Family, Traffic

Run by the Alabama Administrative Office of Courts. Confidential case types (juvenile, some domestic and adoption filings) are excluded from public search regardless of payment.

Criminal history (convictions)

ALEA Alabama Background Check Program

Official Paid Account required
Cost
$25.00 per request (money order or cashier's check only), plus $5.00 per additional copy; employer subscriptions priced separately
Coverage
Official Alabama criminal history record information maintained by the Alabama Law Enforcement Agency
Records
Criminal

A member of the public can only request their own official record, and must submit a fingerprint card taken by a law-enforcement agency along with the application, in person or by mail to ALEA in Montgomery. Employers can subscribe to the separate online Alabama Background Check (ABC) system to screen applicants with consent; this is not a self-service public name search.

Appellate courts

Alabama Appellate Courts Public Portal

Official Free search
Cost
Free
Coverage
Case tracking, filings, and decisions for the Supreme Court of Alabama, Court of Civil Appeals, and Court of Criminal Appeals issued after May 19, 2023
Records
Appeals

Earlier opinions are posted separately on the Alabama Judicial System's civil- and criminal-decisions pages.

Federal court records in Alabama

Federal cases (bankruptcy, federal crimes, lawsuits under federal law) are not in state portals. They live in PACER, organized by district. Alabama has 3 federal judicial districts.

DistrictMain courthouseCourt website
Northern District of Alabama Birmingham www.alnd.uscourts.gov
Middle District of Alabama Montgomery www.almd.uscourts.gov
Southern District of Alabama Mobile www.alsd.uscourts.gov

Read our PACER guide for registration, the per-page fee, and the quarterly fee waiver.

Alabama county court records

Trial-court records are kept by the clerk in the county where the case was filed. These are the largest counties in Alabama; each guide covers the circuit clerk and other court offices, their addresses, and what is searchable online.

Request records in person or by mail

In person. Go to the Circuit Clerk's office in the county where the case was filed for circuit- or district-court files, or the Judge of Probate's office for wills, estates, and guardianships. Bring the case number if you have it; otherwise the party names and an approximate filing year. Most clerks let you search the public index at a courthouse terminal at no charge, with copies paid at the counter.

By mail. Write to the circuit clerk or probate judge with:

  • the case number, or the full names of the parties and the year filed;
  • exactly which document you need (for example, "the final judgment of divorce");
  • whether you need a plain or certified copy; and
  • payment, or a request for a fee quote, plus a self-addressed stamped envelope if you want the copy mailed back.

Call the office first to confirm the current per-page fee, since Alabama's 67 circuit clerks set their own office procedures within state law.

Online. Alacourt ACCESS ("Just One Look") lets anyone search circuit and district court case information statewide for $9.99 per search, without visiting the courthouse; Alacourt.com is the subscription version built for attorneys and businesses with recurring access needs. Probate records (recorded documents, some estate filings) are increasingly online through each county's own probate website, but coverage and cost vary by county.

Records older than the online index. Alacourt's coverage generally does not reach back before the 1990s in most counties. Older circuit and district court files are on paper or microfilm at the clerk's office or in county archives.

Fees

ItemTypical cost
Plain copyProbate records: $1.00 per page (Code of Alabama § 12-19-90). Circuit/district clerk copies: set by directive of the Administrative Director of Courts under Rule 30, Alabama Rules of Judicial Administration; confirm with the clerk
Certified copyProbate records: $3.00 per document (certificate with seal) in addition to the per-page copy charge. Circuit/district clerk certification: confirm with the clerk

Probate judges charge the statutory schedule in Code of Alabama § 12-19-90 — $1.00 per page for a copy of an instrument and $3.00 for each certificate with seal — which county probate offices such as Shelby, Lee, and Tuscaloosa reproduce on their posted fee sheets. Circuit clerks are governed instead by Rule 30 of the Alabama Rules of Judicial Administration, which says copy costs "shall be established by directive of the Administrative Director of Courts" and lets clerks charge for record searches; no statewide amount is published online, and court files remain free to inspect at the clerk's office. Parties and their attorneys may receive copies free at the clerk's discretion.

Need a copy an agency will accept? See how to get certified copies of court records.

Sealed, expunged, and restricted records

Alabama court records are presumed open under the state's public-records law, Code of Alabama § 36-12-40, but several categories are restricted or excluded from any public search:

  • The Alabama Rules of Court-Record Privacy and Confidentiality, effective January 1, 2025, govern what appears in the public case index and on Alacourt, and set the standard for sealing a record: a court must hold a hearing and find by clear and convincing evidence that sealing is justified (for example, a trade secret, a national-security matter, or a serious risk of harassment).
  • Expunged records. Under Code of Alabama Title 15, Chapter 27, a person may petition the circuit court to expunge certain misdemeanor, violation, traffic, and municipal-ordinance records after a dismissal, no-bill, acquittal, or (for some convictions) a waiting period following completion of sentence. An expunged case is removed from the public index.
  • Juvenile records. Juvenile court proceedings are confidential by statute, with narrow exceptions for certain serious offenses.
  • Adoption records. Adoption case files are sealed by the probate or circuit court.
  • Domestic-relations and family matters. Divorce and custody files are generally public, but sensitive identifying information is subject to redaction under the 2025 privacy rules.

Requests to seal or unseal a record are made to the court that holds the file, not through a general public-records request, and the clerk cannot release a sealed or expunged record to the public once the order is entered.

To remove your own record from public view, read how to expunge or seal a criminal record.

Frequently asked questions

Are Alabama court records public?

Yes, under Code of Alabama § 36-12-40 court records are presumed open. Exceptions include expunged records, juvenile cases, adoptions, and records sealed under the Alabama Rules of Court-Record Privacy and Confidentiality that took effect January 1, 2025.

Is there a free statewide search for Alabama court records?

Not entirely free. Alacourt ACCESS ("Just One Look") is free to register for but charges $9.99 per name or case search, and the subscription version, Alacourt.com, is built for attorneys and businesses with recurring needs. For a specific county's files, the circuit clerk's own index search, where one exists, may be free.

Who keeps Alabama circuit and district court records?

The Circuit Clerk of the county keeps both circuit-court and district-court records; Alabama does not have a separate district clerk's office like some states. Probate matters — wills, estates, adoptions, guardianships — are kept separately by the county's Judge of Probate.

How do I check someone's criminal history in Alabama?

There is no public name-based lookup of another person's official criminal history in Alabama. You can request your own record from the Alabama Law Enforcement Agency for $25 with fingerprints, or search individual case information (not a full history) through Alacourt ACCESS at $9.99 per search.

Which office has my Alabama divorce record?

The Circuit Clerk in the county where the divorce was filed. Domestic-relations cases, including divorce and custody, are heard in circuit court, and the circuit clerk keeps the case file.

How do I get a certified copy of an Alabama court record?

Request it from the circuit clerk or probate judge that holds the file, in person or by mail. Certified copies cost more than plain copies and fees are set by the individual clerk's office, so call ahead to confirm the current amount.

Sources

  1. Alabama Administrative Office of Courts — https://www.alacourt.gov/
  2. Alabama Judicial System — Judicial System Chart — https://judicial.alabama.gov/Appellate/JudicialSystemChart
  3. Alacourt ACCESS ("Just One Look") — https://pa.alacourt.com/
  4. Alacourt.com 2.0 (subscription service) — https://v2.alacourt.com/
  5. ALEA Alabama Background Check Program — https://www.alea.gov/sbi/criminal-justice-services/criminal-records/alabama-background-check
  6. Alabama Appellate Courts Public Portal — https://publicportal.alappeals.gov/
  7. Alabama Rules of Court-Record Privacy and Confidentiality — https://judicial.alabama.gov/docs/library/rules/RulesPrivacyConfidentiality.pdf
  8. Code of Alabama, Title 15, Chapter 27 — Expungement — https://law.justia.com/codes/alabama/title-15/chapter-27/section-15-27-1/
  9. Code of Alabama, Title 36, Chapter 12, Article 3 — Public Writings — https://law.justia.com/codes/alabama/title-36/chapter-12/article-3/section-36-12-40/
  10. Code of Alabama, Title 12, Chapter 19 — Court Finances — https://law.justia.com/codes/alabama/title-12/chapter-19/article-3/division-2/section-12-19-71/
  11. Alabama Rules of Judicial Administration, Rule 30 — Copies, certified copies; cost for copies — https://judicial.alabama.gov/docs/library/rules/ja30.pdf
  12. Shelby County Probate — Public Fee Schedule (Code of Alabama § 12-19-90) — https://www.shelbyal.com/DocumentCenter/View/892/Probate-Public-Fees
  13. Lee County Probate Recording — Fees — https://www.leeco.us/government/probate_judge/recording/fees.php

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