How to Find New York Court Records (2026)

In person. Go to the County Clerk for Supreme and County Court civil filings, or to the specific court's own clerk for Family Court, Surrogate's Court, or (in New York City) Criminal Court and Civil Court records. Bring the index or docket number if you have it; if not, the party names and an approximate filing year. Most clerks' offices have a public search terminal at no charge.

By mail. Write to the clerk that holds the file with:

• the index, docket, or indictment number, or the full names of the parties and the year filed;
• exactly which documents you need;
• whether you need plain or certified copies; and
• a check or money order for the fee, or a request for a fee quote.

Call first to confirm the current per-page copy fee, since it can differ by county and by whether the copy needs to be certified under CPLR 8021.

Online. If the case was e-filed, NYSCEF may let you view or download documents once you register; eCourts (WebCivil Supreme, WebCrims, WebFamily) shows case index information for participating courts without registration. Certified copies almost always require a request to the clerk.

Records predating online systems. Many county indexes only go back reliably to the 1980s or 1990s. Older files may be with the clerk's archives division or the county historian, and locating them can take longer and cost a search fee.

New York court records are generally open, but several categories are restricted or sealed by statute:

• Favorable criminal dispositions. Under Criminal Procedure Law 160.50, an arrest that ends in dismissal, acquittal, or another termination in the accused's favor is sealed automatically; the arrest is treated as if it did not occur for most purposes.
• Certain misdemeanor and violation convictions. CPL 160.55 seals some non-criminal and violation dispositions.
• Post-conviction sealing. CPL 160.59 lets a person with up to two eligible convictions apply to seal them ten years after sentencing or release, and the state's Clean Slate Act (effective November 2024) automatically seals many older eligible convictions after a set waiting period without an application.
• Family Court and juvenile records. Confidential under the Family Court Act, with access limited to the parties, their attorneys, and specified agencies.
• Matrimonial action records. Domestic Relations Law 235 closes the papers in a divorce or other matrimonial action to public inspection except by court order or to the parties.
• Adoption records. Sealed under the Domestic Relations Law and Surrogate's Court Procedure Act.

Clerks release copies of unsealed records under Judiciary Law 255, and the Uniform Rules of the Trial Courts (22 NYCRR Part 216) govern how a party requests sealing and how sealed records are handled by court staff. A sealed case will not appear in eCourts, WebCrims, or NYSCEF search results.