Lookup DeKalb County Circuit Court

DeKalb County Circuit Court Records

The State Court Structure Map resolves Circuit Court as DeKalb County's primary trial court page. The official local court site places DeKalb County in Alabama's 9th Judicial Circuit with Cherokee County and brands the local system as the Ninth Circuit Court of Alabama. The DeKalb County Courthouse in Fort Payne is the main location for Circuit Court judges, the Circuit Clerk, Circuit Civil, Circuit Criminal, Domestic Relations, and related trial-court records.

The DeKalb Circuit Court page describes Circuit Court as the highest court in the county and the court where jury trials take place. It hears civil and criminal matters, has appellate authority over certain lower-court cases, and exercises general superintendence over district, municipal, and probate courts. The Circuit Clerk, Todd Greeson, is the record custodian and business manager for DeKalb Circuit Court proceedings.

Alabama Code Section 12-11-30 is cited on the official Circuit Court page for jurisdiction. Under that local description, Circuit Court has exclusive original civil jurisdiction when the amount in controversy exceeds $20,000 and concurrent jurisdiction with District Court when the amount exceeds $6,000. It also has exclusive original jurisdiction over felony prosecutions and certain felony-related misdemeanor or ordinance charges.

DeKalb County Circuit Judges

The official research lists three Circuit Court judges for DeKalb County. Judge Jeremy S. Taylor is the Presiding Circuit Judge. Judge Shaunathan C. Bell and Judge Andrew J. Hairston are also listed as Circuit Judges. Each judge office is in the DeKalb County Courthouse, but court records and certified copies still route through the Circuit Clerk rather than a judge's chambers.

DeKalb County's Circuit Court information is organized by judge and courthouse suite rather than by separate numbered trial courts.

DeKalb Circuit Court Jurisdiction

DeKalb County Circuit Court is the trial court for felony cases and larger civil claims. It also hears domestic relations cases, including divorce, and appeals from District Court and municipal ordinance prosecutions by trial de novo when no direct appellate route applies. Trial de novo means the Circuit Court hears the case as a new trial rather than simply reviewing the lower-court record.

Felony criminal files in Circuit Court can include indictments, pleas, motions, hearings, verdicts, sentencing orders, probation conditions, restitution, and appeals. Civil Circuit Court files can include complaints, answers, motions, subpoenas, judgments, garnishments, executions, counterclaims, and appeals. Domestic Relations is a Circuit Court division, so DeKalb divorce case files and divorce decrees route through Circuit Court and the Circuit Clerk.

Circuit Court vs Lower Courts

DeKalb County court records must be routed by court level. Circuit Court is the general-jurisdiction trial court. District Court is a lower trial court for misdemeanors, preliminary felony proceedings, lower civil cases, evictions, small claims, and county traffic. Probate Court is a separate office for estates, guardianships, conservatorships, marriage certificate recording, land and lien recording, plats, and UCC filings. Fort Payne Municipal Court handles Fort Payne Police traffic, parking, ordinance, and municipal misdemeanor matters.

DeKalb Circuit Case Flow

A Circuit Court record usually contains more than a single charge or filing. It shows the path of the case through pleadings, hearings, orders, and final disposition. Criminal felony cases may have a District Court preliminary stage, but the Circuit Court file becomes the central record once the case is indicted, transferred, or otherwise opened in Circuit Court. Civil cases begin with a complaint and continue through service, answer, motion practice, judgment, and possible appeal.

Criminal flow: Arrest or complaint › District Court preliminary stage where applicable › indictment or felony filing path › arraignment › pretrial motions › plea or jury trial › disposition › sentencing › appeal.

Civil flow: Complaint › service › answer or default › motions › hearing or jury trial › judgment › collection process or appeal.

Domestic flow: Divorce filing › service or waiver › waiting period in uncontested cases › judge review › decree if paperwork is in order, or assignment and trial setting in contested cases.

Search DeKalb Circuit Court Records

The first online access channel for DeKalb County Circuit Court records is Alacourt ACCESS and Just One Look, which provide paid access to Alabama state trial court information for Civil, Domestic, Criminal, and Traffic records. The DeKalb Circuit Clerk page tells users that most trial-court information may be obtained through the state system and that fees apply.

For copies, certifications, older records, archived or microfilmed searches, or records that need clerk examination, the DeKalb Circuit Clerk's request form is the local fallback. The form asks for specific information requested, case numbers if known, identifying information such as date of birth or aliases, whether certification is required, requester name and mailing address, telephone number, and total amount due. It says to allow two weeks and states that payment does not guarantee results.

1. Search Alacourt or Just One Look when an online case or docket lookup is enough.
2. Use the Circuit Clerk request form when certified copies, older files, or staff search work are needed.
3. Mail the request to Todd Greeson, Circuit Clerk, P.O. Box 681149, Fort Payne, Alabama 35968.
4. Include a self-addressed stamped envelope and payment by an accepted method. Personal checks are not accepted.
5. Use the Probate Judge, Fort Payne Municipal Court, Sheriff, ADPH, ADOC, ALEA, or PACER when the record is outside Circuit Court.

DeKalb Circuit Court Fees

Circuit Court record users may encounter filing fees, copy fees, certification fees, and search fees. The Circuit Clerk request form lists copy and search fees for court records, while Circuit Civil and Domestic Relations pages list filing fees for new civil and divorce matters. Fee questions should be tied to the exact action because searching a case record is not the same as filing a new lawsuit or appeal.

Note: The clerk's record request form states that no refund will be made if a paid search does not locate a result.

Circuit Civil Criminal Domestic

DeKalb Circuit Court records divide into practical clerk divisions. Circuit Civil covers higher civil filings and related appeals. Circuit Criminal covers felony prosecutions, felony guilty pleas where permitted, sentencing, and appeals. Domestic Relations handles divorce files and related domestic case records. Juvenile and child support are also listed among clerk responsibilities, but juvenile records are restricted by Alabama confidentiality law.

Domestic Relations research names Melinda Whitten as Domestic Relations Clerk with the main phone route through option 3 and an official email address. The official domestic page says uncontested divorces have a 30-day waiting period before a judge can sign the decree if paperwork is in order. Contested divorces are randomly assigned to a judge and set for trial. The clerk does not have fill-in-the-blank pleadings for many divorce filings and cannot give legal advice.

Circuit Criminal research names Kim Hamlin for the Circuit Criminal division. Criminal records may show charges, pleas, motions, hearings, verdicts, dispositions, sentences, restitution, probation terms, and appeal filings. The 9th Judicial Circuit District Attorney prosecutes state criminal cases for DeKalb and Cherokee Counties, while indigent defendants request appointed counsel through the court handling the case if they cannot afford an attorney.

DeKalb Circuit Court Visits

The main courthouse for DeKalb County Circuit Court is at 300 Grand Avenue South or SW in Fort Payne, Alabama. The Circuit Clerk suite is listed as Suite 200, and Circuit Court judge suites are listed at the same courthouse. The clerk's public hours are 8:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. Monday through Friday. Visitors should use the physical courthouse address for navigation rather than the clerk's P.O. Box.

Parking is free around the courthouse, including a newer lot across the street on the east side in front of the Sheriff's Department. Visitors pass through a metal detector. The official jury page says no weapons are allowed, no smoking is allowed inside, and cell phones with camera features are not allowed in the courtroom.

DeKalb Circuit Record Limits

Public access to DeKalb County Circuit Court records is broad but not absolute. Juvenile records are restricted under Alabama Code Section 12-15-133. Expunged records under Alabama's expungement chapter are removed from ordinary public access when a qualifying order is entered. Sealed records, personal identifying information, minor names, victim data, financial account information, and medical details may be withheld or redacted.

Circuit Court also is not the custodian for every record that looks court related. Probate Court handles estates, adoptions, guardianships, conservatorships, marriage certificate recording, land records, and UCC filings. District Court handles lower trial-court matters. Fort Payne Municipal Court handles city citations and municipal misdemeanor cases. Federal civil, criminal, and bankruptcy records route to federal courts and PACER, not the Fort Payne courthouse.