Monterey County Court Records Search

How to Access Monterey County Court Records?

Monterey County is located in the State of California, and it has over 400,00 residents. The City of Salinas, which is the county’s largest city, serves as the seat of government.

Courts in Monterey County

The Monterey County Superior Court is the primary court of general jurisdiction. Different divisions of the Superior Court are authorized to handle legal matters in the county.

The Monterey County Superior Court in the county. The Superior Court’s Criminal Division handles adult criminal proceedings of infractions, misdemeanors, and felonies that were committed within county limits.

Civil actions, including lawsuits for property damages, evictions, abuse and harassment, personal injuries, or breaches of contract, are filed at the Civil Division of the Superior Court. The Superior Court also offers an alternative dispute resolution option for parties involved in civil cases through its Civil Mediation Division. The Small Claims Court in Monterey County deals with civil disputes involving claims up to $10,000 or less. However, corporations, partnerships, public entities, and other businesses are limited to claims of $5,000.

Family law matters in Monterey County involving marriage, child custody, visitation, and child support are brought before the Family Law Court. This division handles cases such as dissolution of marriage, legal separation, marriage annulment, domestic violence, paternity, guardianship of minors, adoption, termination of parental rights, and emancipation.

The Juvenile Court Division of the Monterey County Superior Court handles legal matters involving individuals who are under the age of 18. It exercises jurisdiction over juvenile delinquency, truancy, dependency, and traffic violations. The Probate Court Division handles the administration of decedent estates, guardianships, conservatorships, trusts, and other probate matters.

Lastly, the Traffic Court is a division of the Superior Court that exclusively handles adult and juvenile traffic-related offenses, such as DUIs or driving above the speed limit. It also hears cases involving violations of county or city ordinances and animal control laws.

Where to Find Public Court Records in Monterey County

The Clerks of the various divisions of the Superior Court in Monterey Court are responsible for keeping public court records of the cases that are filed in their divisions. Finding public court records in Monterey County is possible by searching the needed records online. Individuals can also search for such records at the Clerk’s office or by using the public computers at the courthouses. In addition, the Superior Court Clerks process requests for copies of court documents in person or by mail.

Types of Public Court Records in Monterey County

Unless confidential, the Superior Court makes the following types of public court records in Monterey County available to anyone:

  • Civil case records
  • Criminal case records
  • Traffic violation records
  • Probate court records
  • Family law case records

Confidential Court Records in Monterey County

While many court records in Monterey County are publicly accessible, certain records are sealed or confidential to protect the privacy and rights of the individuals involved. Confidential records differ from public records in that access to these records is provided to only authorized individuals, such as the parties involved and their attorneys. Examples of confidential records in California include:

  • Juvenile records
  • Adoption records
  • Mental health records
  • Sealed court records
  • Medical records

Monterey County is located in the state of California with a total of 437,907 residents and was established in 1850.

Monterey county court records are public documents that are available in most cases to the anyone upon request. Some Monterey local judicial offices are very busy with many different types of cases, and others have few cases. It depends on the court structure and the number of natives. Many counties have court records posted online on their website for easy access in California. However, in some cases, you will have to visit a few different online tools to find California court records.

Public court documents for Monterey County will include criminal cases (both felonies and misdemeanors), civil cases (like personal and business lawsuits), bankruptcies, marriages and divorces, liens, tax issues, small claims, traffic court cases, evictions, family law cases and more.

Since 2012, a total of 505,252 were filed in the county. As of 2018, 80% of the cases were criminal cases. The busiest courts in the county were Superior Court.

Finding Monterey County court records is possible using the California court system website at https://www.courts.ca.gov/, and even easier through Monterey County court records search tools like Infotracer. With just a name search, the user can review hundreds of available court records and cases from any Monterey County court.

Monterey County Court Caseload Data and Trends

Depending on the local authorities practices, and political and economic climates, court case tallies will vary from year to year in specific areas of Monterey County, CA.

The Monterey County court system consists of 1 court type, Superior Court. In 2018, Superior Court recorded 56,059 filings, which indicates a decrease of 8% from 60,636 in 2017. Review the table below for number of cases in the county.

Courts Type Number of filings in 2018
Superior Court56,059

Most Popular Court Cases

You can tell a lot about an area by the types of legal issues that appear in county courts.

Monterey County court records data dates back to 2012. Some may date back further, but they started formally recording them since 2012. There was a total of 56,059 cases filed in the county for the year 2018. The most popular type of court case is criminal comprising 80% of the total filings. The next most popular types of court cases are civil and family law cases. Check out the table below to review the filing information for a specific court case type in county.

There are various solutions to find for a Monterey County court case using someone’s name, the court type, the courthouse or county name, and other information.

Cases Type Number of filings in 2018
Criminal45,047
Civil5,806
Family Law3,728
Delinquency745
Probate520
Dependency213

Monterey County is located in the State of California, and it has over 400,00 residents. The City of Salinas, which is the county’s largest city, serves as the seat of government.

Courts in Monterey County

The Monterey County Superior Court is the primary court of general jurisdiction. Different divisions of the Superior Court are authorized to handle legal matters in the county.

The Monterey County Superior Court in the county. The Superior Court’s Criminal Division handles adult criminal proceedings of infractions, misdemeanors, and felonies that were committed within county limits.

Civil actions, including lawsuits for property damages, evictions, abuse and harassment, personal injuries, or breaches of contract, are filed at the Civil Division of the Superior Court. The Superior Court also offers an alternative dispute resolution option for parties involved in civil cases through its Civil Mediation Division. The Small Claims Court in Monterey County deals with civil disputes involving claims up to $10,000 or less. However, corporations, partnerships, public entities, and other businesses are limited to claims of $5,000.

Family law matters in Monterey County involving marriage, child custody, visitation, and child support are brought before the Family Law Court. This division handles cases such as dissolution of marriage, legal separation, marriage annulment, domestic violence, paternity, guardianship of minors, adoption, termination of parental rights, and emancipation.

The Juvenile Court Division of the Monterey County Superior Court handles legal matters involving individuals who are under the age of 18. It exercises jurisdiction over juvenile delinquency, truancy, dependency, and traffic violations. The Probate Court Division handles the administration of decedent estates, guardianships, conservatorships, trusts, and other probate matters.

Lastly, the Traffic Court is a division of the Superior Court that exclusively handles adult and juvenile traffic-related offenses, such as DUIs or driving above the speed limit. It also hears cases involving violations of county or city ordinances and animal control laws.

Where to Find Public Court Records in Monterey County

The Clerks of the various divisions of the Superior Court in Monterey Court are responsible for keeping public court records of the cases that are filed in their divisions. Finding public court records in Monterey County is possible by searching the needed records online. Individuals can also search for such records at the Clerk’s office or by using the public computers at the courthouses. In addition, the Superior Court Clerks process requests for copies of court documents in person or by mail.

Types of Public Court Records in Monterey County

Unless confidential, the Superior Court makes the following types of public court records in Monterey County available to anyone:

  • Civil case records
  • Criminal case records
  • Traffic violation records
  • Probate court records
  • Family law case records

Confidential Court Records in Monterey County

While many court records in Monterey County are publicly accessible, certain records are sealed or confidential to protect the privacy and rights of the individuals involved. Confidential records differ from public records in that access to these records is provided to only authorized individuals, such as the parties involved and their attorneys. Examples of confidential records in California include:

  • Juvenile records
  • Adoption records
  • Mental health records
  • Sealed court records
  • Medical records

Juvenile Delinquency in Monterey, CA

Unfortunately, in many areas of the Monterey County, juvenile delinquency offenses are on the rise. There are many reasons for the inflation in youth offenders. The juvenile sentence in California often depends on the severity of the crime, the number of charges, and other family matters.

In 2017, a total of 781 juvenile cases were reported for every 100,000 people age 10 to adulthood in the jurisdiction of Monterey County. Of that total, 75% of those proceedings were delinquencies which equaled 588 court cases. Another 25% were dependency cases that accounted for 193 of the juvenile cases.

A lot of counties, including, Monterey County, are focusing on family counseling and relationships rather than punishment for juvenile crimes. Future Monterey County juvenile delinquency tallies will show whether or not this approach is working.

Juvenile Cases Number of cases
Delinquency8,144
Dependency1,973
Status580

Government of Monterey County, CA

County Seat: Salinas
Government Type: County
Authority: Dillon's Rule
Year Organized: 1850
Total Square Miles: 3,771
2019 Population: 437,907
Persons/Square Mile: 0.01
County Contact: 168 W Alisal St
County Government Center
Salinas , CA 93901-2487
http://www.co.monterey.ca.us

Monterey County, CA Courts