How to Access Riverside County Court Records?

Riverside County is the fourth-largest county in California. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, it has a land area of 7,209.27 square miles and a population of 2,418,185 as of 2020. The City of Riverside, the county’s seat, is also its most populous city.  

Courts in Riverside County

Riverside County is home to a branch of the California Superior Court which adjudicates cases arising from the county. Cases brought before the Superior Court are handled by the appropriate division of the court. The divisions include Civil, Criminal, Family, Probate, Juvenile, Traffic, and Small Claims.

The Criminal division hears all cases involving crimes in the county, excluding those within the authority of the juvenile division. The authority of the Juvenile division covers matters relating to juvenile delinquency, child abuse, and dependency. 

Meanwhile, the Civil division hears cases that are not criminal in nature, such as claims over money or property, contractual obligations, and personal injury. The jurisdiction of the civil division can be limited or unlimited. In limited civil cases, the court can only entertain claims of $35,000 or less. There is no monetary limit to the jurisdiction of the court in unlimited civil claims. 

The Small Claims Division is also a civil court, except that its procedures are simpler and informal. Also, the monetary limit of the small claims division depends on the party suing. An individual or sole proprietor can sue for up to $12,500, while a corporation or business can only sue for $6,250 or less.

The Probate Division is responsible for cases relating to wills, administration of a deceased estate, trusts, guardianship proceedings, and other probate matters. However, matters relating to divorce, paternity, custody and visitation, domestic violence, and child support fall within the jurisdiction of the family law division.

Finally, traffic-related matters fall within the jurisdiction of the traffic division.

Where to Find Public Court Records in Riverside County

Records of all divisions of the Riverside County Superior Court are available on the court’s Public Access Portal. To access documents on the portal, interested persons must first register on the website and obtain search credits. Users can also purchase copies of court records through the portal. The five pages of a record cost $1 each, while additional pages cost 50 cents each. The law limits the total cost of court records to a maximum fee of $50 per document.

Types of Public Court Records in Riverside County

The following court records are publicly accessible in Riverside County unless sealed by court order.

• Civil case records, including small claims
• Family and probate case records
• Criminal case records, including traffic cases

Confidential Court Records in Riverside County

Confidential court records are case documents that are not generally accessible to the public. Certain court records have been declared confidential and protected from public view by statute. They include:

• Juvenile records 
• Probation and diagnostic reports are usually provided before sentencing in criminal cases.
• Records of Marsden Hearing: A Marsden motion is a request by a defendant that the judge appoint another attorney
• Defense request for expert funds
• Pitchess Motion: motion for disclosure of the record of complaints of misconduct made against an officer
• Unlawful detainer cases are confidential for the first 60 days

The court may also order the sealing of a record for the protection of the parties in certain cases, such as in:

• Employment disputes
• Cases involving proprietary information or trade secrets
• Cases involving private  personal relationships

Riverside County is located in the state of California with a total of 2,423,266 residents and was established in 1893.

Riverside county court records are public documents that are available in most cases to the anyone upon request. Some Riverside 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 Riverside 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 2,990,038 were filed in the county. As of 2018, 77% of the cases were criminal cases. The busiest courts in the county were Superior Court.

Finding Riverside County court records is possible using the California court system website at https://www.courts.ca.gov/, and even easier through Riverside 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 Riverside County court.

Riverside 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 Riverside County, CA.

The Riverside County court system consists of 1 court type, Superior Court. In 2018, Superior Court recorded 349,508 filings, which indicates a decrease of 21% from 424,049 in 2017. Review the table below for number of cases in the county.

Most Popular Court Cases

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

Riverside 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 349,508 cases filed in the county for the year 2018. The most popular type of court case is criminal comprising 77% 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 Riverside County court case using someone’s name, the court type, the courthouse or county name, and other information.

Riverside County is the fourth-largest county in California. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, it has a land area of 7,209.27 square miles and a population of 2,418,185 as of 2020. The City of Riverside, the county’s seat, is also its most populous city.  

Courts in Riverside County

Riverside County is home to a branch of the California Superior Court which adjudicates cases arising from the county. Cases brought before the Superior Court are handled by the appropriate division of the court. The divisions include Civil, Criminal, Family, Probate, Juvenile, Traffic, and Small Claims.

The Criminal division hears all cases involving crimes in the county, excluding those within the authority of the juvenile division. The authority of the Juvenile division covers matters relating to juvenile delinquency, child abuse, and dependency. 

Meanwhile, the Civil division hears cases that are not criminal in nature, such as claims over money or property, contractual obligations, and personal injury. The jurisdiction of the civil division can be limited or unlimited. In limited civil cases, the court can only entertain claims of $35,000 or less. There is no monetary limit to the jurisdiction of the court in unlimited civil claims. 

The Small Claims Division is also a civil court, except that its procedures are simpler and informal. Also, the monetary limit of the small claims division depends on the party suing. An individual or sole proprietor can sue for up to $12,500, while a corporation or business can only sue for $6,250 or less.

The Probate Division is responsible for cases relating to wills, administration of a deceased estate, trusts, guardianship proceedings, and other probate matters. However, matters relating to divorce, paternity, custody and visitation, domestic violence, and child support fall within the jurisdiction of the family law division.

Finally, traffic-related matters fall within the jurisdiction of the traffic division.

Where to Find Public Court Records in Riverside County

Records of all divisions of the Riverside County Superior Court are available on the court’s Public Access Portal. To access documents on the portal, interested persons must first register on the website and obtain search credits. Users can also purchase copies of court records through the portal. The five pages of a record cost $1 each, while additional pages cost 50 cents each. The law limits the total cost of court records to a maximum fee of $50 per document.

Types of Public Court Records in Riverside County

The following court records are publicly accessible in Riverside County unless sealed by court order.

• Civil case records, including small claims
• Family and probate case records
• Criminal case records, including traffic cases

Confidential Court Records in Riverside County

Confidential court records are case documents that are not generally accessible to the public. Certain court records have been declared confidential and protected from public view by statute. They include:

• Juvenile records 
• Probation and diagnostic reports are usually provided before sentencing in criminal cases.
• Records of Marsden Hearing: A Marsden motion is a request by a defendant that the judge appoint another attorney
• Defense request for expert funds
• Pitchess Motion: motion for disclosure of the record of complaints of misconduct made against an officer
• Unlawful detainer cases are confidential for the first 60 days

The court may also order the sealing of a record for the protection of the parties in certain cases, such as in:

• Employment disputes
• Cases involving proprietary information or trade secrets
• Cases involving private  personal relationships

Juvenile Delinquency in Riverside, CA

Unfortunately, in many areas of the Riverside 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 3 juvenile cases were reported for every 100,000 people age 10 to adulthood in the jurisdiction of Riverside County. Of that total, 67% of those proceedings were delinquencies which equaled 2 court cases. Another 33% were dependency cases that accounted for 1 of the juvenile cases.

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

Government of Riverside County, CA

https://www.ca.gov/

County Seat:	Riverside
Government Type:	County
Authority:	Dillon's Rule
Year Organized:	1893
Total Square Miles:	7,303
2019 Population:	2,423,266
Persons/Square Mile:	0.00
County Contact:	4080 Lemon St County Administrative Center Riverside , CA 92501-3609 http://www.countyofriverside.us/

Riverside County, CA Courts