Shelby County Court Records
Shelby County court records bear information about cases heard within the court system. Per Rule 34 of the Tennessee Supreme Court Rules, court records include case, administrative, and judicial records.
- Case records are created and maintained by courts as a part of the official court file relating to a particular case.
- Administrative records are created and maintained by courts from activities involving the courts' administration. These do not pertain to any case proceeding.
- Judicial records are neither case nor administrative and cover other court records.
Like other counties in Tennessee, a court clerk's office maintains Shelby County court records.
Court records are part of Shelby County Public Records and can be reviewed by attorneys, judges, researchers, case parties, or anyone interested in a particular case. The records provide interested individuals with details about a case, such as filed documents, hearing locations and times, and rulings. For instance, an attorney in an appeal proceeding may examine a trial court record to present a strong argument for their client.
Are Court Records Public in Shelby County?
Yes, court records are public in Shelby County. Under the Tennessee Public Records Act (TPRA), all county records (including court records) are open for inspection, and records custodians cannot refuse access unless permitted by law.
Accordingly, certain court records are treated as confidential. They include:
- Unpublished drafts of judicial orders and opinions
- Copies of motions, briefs, and other similar documents filed with a court clerk that have been furnished to a judge for their personal use
- Documents protected from disclosure by court order or rule
- Documents expressly barred from inspection under the Public Records Act or other state law
- Most internal case management information
- Information maintained by individual judges regarding their recusal from specific cases unless intentionally filed as part of the case record or subject to disclosure by law
What Do Shelby County Court Records Contain?
Generally, a Shelby County court record contains an overview of a legal proceeding. Details in these records may include:
- Case party information, such as a name, residential address, and date of birth
- Case information, including case number, court, judge's name, filing date, case type, and case status
- Case events and hearings
- Warrants
- Judgments and orders (e.g., a protection order)
- Expenses incurred during litigation
- Bail and charge information (in criminal cases)
Where to Conduct a Shelby County Case Lookup
A Shelby County case lookup can be conducted as follows:
- At the clerk's office in the courthouse where a case was heard
- Via case management portals provided on the court clerk's websites
- At the Register of Deeds/Archives office (for older court records)
How to Conduct a Shelby County Case Records Search
Before conducting a court case records search in Shelby County, a requester must know the type of case they seek (juvenile, civil, criminal, probate, family, traffic). This information can help them determine the clerk who maintains the file and the courthouse to visit if they require physical copies. Below are some court clerk's offices in Shelby County:
- The Shelby County Circuit Court Clerk
- The Shelby County Criminal Court Clerk
- The Shelby County Juvenile Court Clerk
- The Shelby County Probate Court Clerk
- The Shelby County General Sessions Clerk
- The Clerk of the Shelby County Chancery Court
- A municipal court clerk's office. For example, the Memphis City Municipal and Traffic Court Clerk's Office.
Generally, a case records search in Shelby County can be performed in person, online, by mail, or via other means provided by a court. To search records in person, an individual must visit the relevant clerk's office during normal working hours (publicly accessible computers are available to search public electronic court records at no charge). Alternatively, individuals can send a written request by mail to the court clerk's office.
Online case records searches, on the other hand, can be conducted by accessing a court's case management portal, which can usually be found on a court clerk's website. For example, individuals can access the Shelby County Criminal Justice System Portal to search general sessions and criminal court cases. At the same time, one can access the Case Inquiries portal to search the general sessions civil court's cases or the Circuit Court Case Search to find circuit court cases. Note that records obtained online (or in person through public access terminals) are unofficial.
One commonality among the county's case search portals (as well as with in-person and mail requests) is that a requester must have certain details to retrieve court case details. This information is typically a case number or party (plaintiff/defendant) name.
Note that inspecting a record at a courthouse or online carries no fee. However, a fee applies to obtain a copy of a case record. Typically, a requester is charged $5 for certified copies and $0.50 per printed page for plain copies. Still, it is a good idea to contact the relevant clerk's office to learn the court's public request policy. Contact information can be obtained from a clerk's official website.
Lastly, earlier Shelby County court records, including chancery and circuit court records, are maintained at the county archives. Individuals can visit the address below or contact the Shelby County Register of Deeds to obtain such records.
1075 Mullins Station Road
Building W3
Suite W165
Memphis, TN 38134
Phone: (901) 222-8100
The Shelby County Register of Deeds/Archives also provides an online database to retrieve some older case information, including probate court loose paper and circuit court indexes.
Shelby County Civil Court Case Records
Civil court case records carry details about proceedings in which two or more parties litigated a non-criminal dispute.
In Shelby County, civil cases can be filed in the chancery, probate, circuit, or general sessions civil court, depending on the court having jurisdiction. The clerks of these courts are responsible for maintaining records from these cases. Interested persons can visit, mail, or contact a clerk's office to learn how to find court records in person or using other methods.
Shelby County Criminal Court Case Records
Criminal court case records include all filings, documents, warrants, judgments, and other materials created or maintained because of a criminal court proceeding.
Shelby County's criminal courts include the criminal court (handles felony and misdemeanor cases) and general sessions criminal court (handles misdemeanor cases).
Interested parties may visit the relevant clerk's office to obtain copies of criminal court case records. An individual can also send a written request by mail or contact the clerk's office for other ordering procedures.
How to Get Court Records Online for Free
To obtain copies of court records in Shelby County, a person must visit the courthouse where a case was filed or request copies by mail (or email if provided) from the court clerk's office. Individuals who prefer an online approach to obtaining Shelby County court records can usually only get some information within the court file for free, not the official or certified court record (which costs a fee to retrieve).
Admittedly, several third-party aggregate websites also furnish court records to users. However, a fee may be required to obtain detailed information.
Courts in Shelby County, Tennessee
Shelby County Circuit Court
140 Adams Avenue
Room 324
Memphis, TN 38103
Phone: (901) 222-3800
Fax: (901) 222-3818
Shelby County Chancery Court
140 Adams Avenue
Room 308
Memphis, TN 38103
Phone: (901) 222-3900
Fax: (901) 222-3909
Shelby County Criminal Court
201 Poplar Avenue
Suite 3034
Memphis, TN 38103
Phone: (901) 222-3200
Shelby County General Sessions Court - Civil
140 Adams Avenue
Room 106
Memphis, TN 38103-2093
Phone: (901) 222-3400
Fax: (901) 222-3413
Shelby County General Sessions Court - Criminal
201 Poplar Avenue
Suite LL-81
Memphis, TN 38103-2093
Phone: (901) 222-3500
Shelby County Juvenile Court
616 Adams Avenue
Memphis, TN 38105
Phone: (901) 222-0800
Shelby County Probate Court
140 Adams Avenue
Room 124
Memphis, TN 38103
Phone: (901) 222-3750
Fax: (901) 222-3756
Bartlett City Court
3730 Appling Road
Bartlett, TN 38133
Phone: (901) 385-5580
Fax: (901) 385-6455
Collierville Municipal Court
101 Walnut Street
Collierville, TN 38017
Phone: (901) 457-2580
Germantown Municipal Court
City Hall
1930 South Germantown Road
Germantown, TN 38138
Phone: (901) 757-7212
Memphis City Municipal and Traffic Court
201 Poplar Avenue
Suite LL-80
Memphis, TN 38103
Phone: (901) 636-3400
Millington City Court
7950 Memphis Avenue
Suite 2
Millington, TN 38053
Phone: (901) 873-5850
