Lawrence County Court Docket Search
Lawrence County court docket records are kept by the Circuit Clerk's office in Walnut Ridge, Arkansas. The docket covers all civil, criminal, domestic relations, probate, and juvenile cases filed in the county's Circuit Court. This page explains how to search docket records, get copies of court documents, and use the state's online case lookup tools to find Lawrence County case filings.
Lawrence County Court Records Overview
Lawrence County Circuit Clerk Office
The Lawrence County Circuit Clerk is Michelle Evans. The office is at 315 W. Main St., Suite 7, Walnut Ridge, AR 72476. You can also use the mailing address P.O. Box 581, Walnut Ridge, AR 72476. The phone number is (870) 886-1112 and the fax is (870) 886-1128. Office hours are typically Monday through Friday during normal business hours, though it is best to call ahead before making a trip to confirm current hours.
The Circuit Clerk serves as the official clerk of the Circuit Court and as the county's recorder of real property. For court docket purposes, the clerk's main job is filing, indexing, and maintaining all legal documents for civil, criminal, juvenile, and domestic relations cases. The clerk's office also issues summonses, subpoenas, and court orders, collects court costs and fines, receives child support payments directed through the court, and maintains the official court dockets and case records for all case types.
You can visit the Lawrence County Circuit Clerk website for more information about the office, services offered, and any updates to hours or procedures. The site may also have forms or instructions for common requests.
Note: For real estate documents such as deeds, mortgages, or liens, contact the same Circuit Clerk's office since the clerk also serves as the recorder of real property for Lawrence County.
Search Lawrence County Court Dockets Online
Lawrence County Circuit Court records are available through the Arkansas CourtConnect system. This free public tool lets you search for case records by party name, case number, or filing date. The results show basic docket information including case type, filing date, parties involved, the assigned judge, and a list of docket entries. You can search at the ARCourts public case search portal.
CourtConnect shows full participation for Lawrence County Circuit Court, which means more complete docket data is available online compared to some other counties. This includes docket sheets for civil, criminal, domestic relations, and probate cases. Older case files that predate the online system may not appear in search results and will need to be requested from the clerk's office directly. The CourtConnect overview page has more detail on how the system works and what you can access.
The Circuit Court handles felony criminal cases, civil matters with amounts over $25,000, domestic relations cases including divorce and custody, probate proceedings, and appeals from District Court. All of these case types should appear in the CourtConnect search for Lawrence County. If you are looking for a misdemeanor case or a traffic matter, check the District Court records instead.
Lawrence County District Court Records
Lawrence County also has a District Court based in Walnut Ridge. This court handles lower-level civil and criminal matters. Specifically, the District Court deals with misdemeanor criminal charges, traffic citations, and civil disputes where the dollar amount is $25,000 or less. Small claims cases are filed here as well. If you need a record of a minor traffic stop, a misdemeanor conviction, or a small claims judgment in Lawrence County, the District Court is the right place to check.
District Court records in Lawrence County include citations issued by law enforcement throughout the county, the outcomes of misdemeanor cases, and records of small claims proceedings. These records are separate from the Circuit Court docket. To get a copy of a District Court record, contact the Lawrence County District Court in Walnut Ridge. The clerk can confirm whether your case is on file and what the process is to get a copy.
Note: Some District Court records for Lawrence County may not appear in the CourtConnect online system, so a direct contact with the court is often the most reliable approach for finding older records or less common case types.
Requesting Copies of Lawrence County Court Records
Copies of Lawrence County court docket records cost $0.50 per page. Certified copies are $5.00 each and carry the clerk's official stamp. Certified copies are required for many legal uses, such as presenting a judgment in another court or verifying a case outcome. The fee to file a new case is $165, a summons costs $2.50, and writs are $20. These fees are set by Arkansas law and apply across all county circuit clerks in the state.
To request copies, you can visit the Lawrence County Circuit Clerk's office in Walnut Ridge in person. For mail requests, send a written request to the clerk at P.O. Box 581, Walnut Ridge, AR 72476. Include the case name or number, the documents you need, and a check or money order for the estimated copy fees. Add a self-addressed stamped envelope so the clerk can send the documents back to you. Allow several business days for the office to process your request.
The Circuit Clerk's legal authority comes from the Arkansas Constitution, Article 7, Sections 19-21, and Arkansas Code Annotated Sections 16-20-101 through 16-20-115. These statutes define the clerk's duties and give the public the right to access court records maintained by the office.
Other Ways to Find Lawrence County Docket Information
Beyond CourtConnect, Arkansas provides several other tools for accessing court records. The Arkansas eFiling portal lets attorneys and some self-represented filers submit documents electronically to courts across the state. The Arkansas Court Kiosk is a public terminal available at many courthouses that lets you look up cases and print documents. Both of these tools can be useful when trying to track down Lawrence County court docket information without making a trip to Walnut Ridge.
The Arkansas Courts online services page gives a full list of digital tools and services available to the public. It is a good starting point before contacting any specific clerk's office. For federal cases involving Lawrence County residents, the Eastern District of Arkansas federal court handles records for the federal system.
Arkansas law gives every person the right to inspect and copy public records, including court docket records, under the Freedom of Information Act. The state requires government agencies to respond to FOIA requests within three business days. You can learn more about this process through the Arkansas FOIA guide.