Tarrant County Court Records Search

Independent website notice: Public-Court-Records.us is an independent educational website. It is not Tarrant County, the Tarrant County District Clerk, Tarrant County Clerk, a Justice Court, Texas Judicial Branch, PACER, a law firm, law-enforcement agency, background-check company, or government agency. This guide explains official record-search routes and cannot certify, seal, expunge, change, or remove an official record.

Tarrant County court records are split between two clerks—and choosing the wrong one can stop your search

The most important thing to know about Tarrant County court records is that there is not one clerk holding every case. District Clerk Thomas A. Wilder maintains District Court records such as district civil, family, tax, and felony cases. County Clerk Mary Louise Nicholson maintains County Courts at Law civil records, probate matters, County Criminal Court misdemeanor records, and related county-level files.

There is also a separate public Tarrant County Records Search for County Courts at Law, Probate Courts, and the county’s eight Justice Courts, while District Clerk case-file access uses different tools—including free onsite public terminals, public docket searches, and a separate subscription-based Web Access system.

Systems reviewed: August 30, 2026 District Clerk: Thomas A. Wilder County Clerk: Mary Louise Nicholson Tarrant County, Texas

Which office actually holds the Tarrant County record?

Tarrant County Court Record Route Finder

Select what you are trying to find

This tool does not search a database or collect names, birth dates, case numbers, or other personal information. It only identifies the correct Tarrant County record route.

District civil Divorce / family Felony Misdemeanor County civil Probate Justice Court Certified copy State appeal Federal case

Use the Tarrant County District Clerk.

District civil records are maintained by the District Clerk. For current settings, use the District Courts civil dockets. For full case-file research, use a public-access terminal or the District Clerk’s Web Based Access service.

District Clerk Official Page

Use the District Clerk Family Law Division.

Divorce and District Court family records are handled at the Family Law Center. For disposed Family Law records, the current District Clerk contact is 817-884-1265.

Official Family Law Records Information

Use the District Clerk—not the County Clerk.

Tarrant County felony records are District Court records. A free Criminal Docket Search can locate current settings using name/CID/court/date fields, while copies and felony research are handled through the District Clerk Criminal Section.

Official Criminal Docket Search

Use the County Clerk Criminal Division.

The County Clerk is the keeper of Class A and B misdemeanor records in the ten County Criminal Courts. For case information or copies, call 817-884-1066.

Use the public Tarrant County Records Search.

County Courts at Law case records and calendars are available through Tarrant County’s Odyssey Public Access system.

Official Tarrant County Records Search

Use Tarrant County Records Search → Probate.

Probate case information is searchable online. For copies of probate documents, the County Clerk currently directs users to call 817-884-1069.

First identify the correct Justice Court precinct.

Tarrant County has eight Justice Courts. Case records and calendars are available through the County Records Search, but the correct precinct matters.

Official Tarrant Justice Courts

First identify the clerk.

District Clerk and County Clerk copy procedures are different. District records use the District Clerk copy schedule; County Court at Law and Probate copies are coordinated through the County Clerk.

Use the Texas Second Court of Appeals.

Tarrant County is one of the twelve counties served by the Second Court of Appeals in Fort Worth.

Official Second Court of Appeals

Use PACER and the Northern District of Texas.

Tarrant County is assigned to the Fort Worth Division of the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Texas.

Official PACER

The biggest Tarrant County search mistake: confusing District Clerk records with County Clerk records

Tarrant County’s court-record system makes much more sense when you divide it into two custodians.

Public Tarrant County Records Search: what it actually covers

The County Clerk’s current online-search pages specifically direct users to the Tarrant County Records Search for case records and calendars involving:

• County Courts at Law
• Probate Courts
• Justice of the Peace Courts

How to search the Odyssey/Tarrant County Records Search

1. Open the official Records Search from a Tarrant County government page. The county links directly to the Odyssey Public Access system.
2. Select the relevant court location or search category. Justice Court users should pay particular attention to precinct/location.
3. Select Case Records Search or Criminal Case Records where available for that location.
4. Search using the available party name or complete case number.
5. If searching a Justice Court case, use the full JP case number when you have it.
6. Open the candidate result and confirm court location.
7. Check party names and roles.
8. Review case events and calendar information.
9. For an official copy, contact the custodian rather than relying only on a screen print.

Tarrant Justice Courts: eight precincts and a different level of jurisdiction

Tarrant County has eight Justice Courts. The county describes Justice Court as a trial court handling civil cases with a current jurisdictional limit of $20,000 plus various misdemeanor criminal matters and administrative hearings.

This makes Justice Court especially relevant to searches involving:

If you do not know the Justice Court

1. Open Tarrant County’s Justice of the Peace Courts page.
2. Select What is my precinct or the precinct map.
3. Identify the court location.
4. Use Court Case Lookup.
5. Select the correct court location inside the record system.
6. Search by party or full case number.

County Courts at Law: civil records use the County Clerk

Tarrant County currently has three County Courts at Law. The County Clerk states that these courts handle civil cases with a jurisdictional limit up to $250,000, including matters such as debt, breach of contract, garnishment, temporary restraining orders, injunctions, automotive or personal-injury disputes, eminent domain and related post-judgment actions.

How to find a County Court at Law case

1. Open Tarrant County Records Search.
2. Search the party or case number.
3. Confirm that the case is assigned to a County Court at Law.
4. Open the case record and review current events/calendar information.
5. Write down the complete case number.
6. For copies, call the County Clerk at 817-884-1069.
7. After copy details and page count are confirmed, use the County Clerk’s online copy-payment process if instructed.

Tarrant probate records use the same public county search—but a different records counter

The Tarrant County Clerk maintains two Probate Courts handling estates, guardianships, mental-health matters, wills and related probate proceedings.

1. Open Tarrant County Records Search.
2. Search the decedent, ward, party, or known case number using the portal’s available fields.
3. Confirm that the result is a Probate Court case.
4. Review public case information.
5. Do not assume every guardianship, mental-health or protected probate document is publicly viewable.
6. For copies, call 817-884-1069.
7. For filing/probate-operation questions, call 817-884-1770.

Tarrant misdemeanor records are not felony records

The County Clerk Criminal Division is the keeper of records for Tarrant County’s ten County Criminal Courts, where Class A and B misdemeanor cases are filed.

The Clerk’s current criminal FAQ says its misdemeanor records date back to 1976.

How to check a misdemeanor case

1. Identify whether the matter is actually a misdemeanor rather than a felony.
2. Contact the County Clerk Criminal Division.
3. Provide the party/case information you already know.
4. Ask for the case number, assigned court or current court date if needed.
5. If you need a judgment, dismissal or other document, specify the exact document.
6. For copies, call 817-884-1066.

Felony cases: Tarrant provides a free docket search even though full remote case files use a separate service

The District Clerk’s free Criminal Docket Search is especially useful when your intent is to locate a felony setting or identify the court before requesting documents.

Fields in the current Tarrant Criminal Docket Search

The search also uses a CAPTCHA. This is a docket/settings tool, not a substitute for obtaining the actual felony case file or certified disposition.

Tarrant District Clerk public terminals vs paid Web Based Access

District Court records have an access model that is materially different from the County Clerk’s public Odyssey search.

Paid District Clerk Web Based Access

The current District Clerk Web Based Access page describes remote access to District Court Civil, Delinquent Tax, Family and criminal records, including imaged court documents.

As of the 2026 subscription page, new subscribers are told of:

• a $50 non-refundable processing fee;
• two months of service at setup; and
• a $35 monthly fee for 1–5 users, with additional-user pricing handled separately.

Free onsite District Clerk record lookup: three useful downtown locations

Current District Clerk location pages list normal hours as Monday–Friday, 8:00 a.m.–5:00 p.m. Verify county holidays before making a special trip.

How to request Tarrant District Clerk copies

The District Clerk is the custodian of District Court records. Its current copy instructions say that having the case number avoids a separate research fee.

1. Identify whether the case is District Civil, Family, Tax or Felony.
2. Find the complete case number.
3. Identify the exact document needed: judgment, decree, sentence, dismissal, order, pleading or another filing.
4. Select paper or electronic format.
5. Decide whether certification is required.
6. Contact the appropriate District Clerk location.
7. For a mailed certified-copy request, include the requested mailing materials specified by the Clerk.
8. Do not send a personal check; the District Clerk states personal checks are not accepted.

Current District Clerk copy fees

District Clerk copy fees checked August 30, 2026. The published copy page itself was last modified in 2022, while the same fee amounts continue to appear on more recently updated District Clerk pages. Verify before a large or formal order.

Divorce decree copies have a specific Tarrant route

A divorce case is a Family District Court matter, so the record belongs with the District Clerk Family Law Division, not the County Clerk’s vital-record or marriage-license division.

1. Locate the divorce case number if possible.
2. Confirm the case was filed in Tarrant County.
3. Contact the Family Law Division at 817-884-1265.
4. Specify that you need the divorce decree rather than a general case search.
5. State whether you need a certified or non-certified copy.
6. For email inquiries concerning records, the current Family Law page lists TCDCRecords@tarrantcountytx.gov and asks users to include party names.

Unfiled felony documents: Tarrant has a separate pre-case record route

This is a Tarrant-specific detail that generic court-record articles often miss.

Since January 1, 2021, the District Clerk records section has access to certain unfiled criminal documents from the magistration process before a felony case is formally filed.

Examples listed by the District Clerk include:

• probable-cause affidavit;
• probable-cause determination;
• arrest warrant and affidavit;
• magistrate warning;
• conditions of bail;
• personal bond;
• emergency-protection order;
• firearm warning; and
• other records designated by a magistrate, subject to sealing or confidentiality.

Tarrant felony background search is a county-only clerk service—not a nationwide background report

The District Clerk currently offers a $5 Tarrant County felony background check at the Tim Curry Justice Center. The office asks for a full name and date of birth.

That service covers Tarrant County felony cases only. It is not equivalent to:

• a Texas DPS fingerprint-based criminal-history search;
• a nationwide criminal-history search;
• a federal PACER search;
• a search of every misdemeanor court; or
• an FCRA consumer report.

How to find a current court date in Tarrant County

The correct calendar depends on which court has the case.

How to verify the person before relying on a Tarrant search result

• Compare full first and last name.
• Check middle name or initial.
• Confirm whether the case belongs to District Clerk or County Clerk jurisdiction.
• Confirm the court number or Justice precinct.
• Confirm the complete case number.
• Compare filing year.
• Check party role.
• Review attorney information where available.
• Use DOB information only when lawfully displayed and needed.
• Do not claim a match if identity remains uncertain.

Tarrant criminal record decoder: arrest, filing and disposition are different

For misdemeanor outcomes, Tarrant’s criminal-court guidance directs users to the County Clerk. For felony outcomes, it directs users to the District Clerk.

Court records vs jail, deeds and other Tarrant records

Historical Tarrant court records can go back much further than online case systems

Tarrant’s historical record ecosystem extends well beyond modern court portals. The Tarrant County Archives describes a County Clerk collection dated from 1874 to 2021, with court and District Attorney series dating from 1877 to 1974.

The county’s historical finding aid says these materials include:

• court-case records;
• petitions for pardons and bond releases;
• juror lists;
• court financial material; and
• legal forms filed with county and district courts.

Older-case workflow

1. Identify whether the matter was District Court, County Court, Probate or Justice Court.
2. Estimate the filing year.
3. Search the modern applicable system first.
4. Save the case number or index information.
5. Contact the correct clerk.
6. Ask whether the record is active, disposed, imaged, paper, microfilm, off-site or archival.
7. If the clerk identifies an archival transfer, follow that specific archive route.
8. Do not infer that a missing online file was destroyed.

Second Court of Appeals: state appeals from Tarrant County

Tarrant County is one of the twelve counties served by the Texas Second Court of Appeals in Fort Worth.

The court handles civil appeals and most criminal appeals from district and county courts in its service area. Death-penalty cases follow a different appellate route to the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals.

How to locate a Tarrant appeal

1. Start with the Tarrant trial-court case number.
2. Determine whether a notice of appeal was filed.
3. Open Texas appellate Case Search.
4. Select the Second Court of Appeals where appropriate.
5. Search by appellate case number, style, trial-court number or available fields.
6. Confirm that the trial-court county is Tarrant.
7. Review appellate documents and docket activity.
8. For access to the appellate record itself, note that public website document access can differ from access to the clerk’s and reporter’s records.

Federal cases involving Tarrant County: use the Northern District of Texas

Tarrant County is assigned to the Fort Worth Division of the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Texas.

Federal civil, federal criminal and federal bankruptcy cases do not belong in the Tarrant County Clerk or District Clerk case systems.

What to do when Tarrant County search returns no result

1. Confirm the clerk. District Court and County Court records are not interchangeable.
2. Confirm felony vs misdemeanor. Felony goes to District Clerk; Class A/B misdemeanor goes to County Clerk.
3. Check whether it is a Justice Court case. There are eight precincts.
4. Try the full case number.
5. Check spelling and middle-name variation.
6. Check filing year.
7. For felony settings, use the Criminal Docket Search.
8. For County Court at Law, Probate or JP records, use Tarrant County Records Search.
9. For an unfiled recent felony event, ask whether a magistration document exists.
10. For older cases, ask about disposed records or Archives.
11. For a Texas state appeal, search the Second Court of Appeals.
12. For federal matters, search PACER.

Scam warning: verify a claimed Tarrant civil case yourself

Tarrant County’s County Clerk Civil Courts page currently warns about a phone scam in which callers tell people they are being sued and owe money.

The County Clerk states that its civil offices will not call to discuss pending civil court cases. If someone calls demanding money because you supposedly have a civil case:

1. Do not give the caller payment-card information.
2. Do not use a link sent by the caller.
3. Search the official Tarrant County record system yourself.
4. For County Court at Law matters, contact the County Clerk Civil Department at 817-884-1101.
5. For District Court civil matters, contact the District Clerk Civil/Tax Division at 817-884-1240.

Quick Tarrant County record-contact matrix

Official sources reviewed for this Tarrant County guide

• Tarrant County District Clerk — District Court custodian, services, current contact information and public-access routes.
• District Clerk Web Based Access Service — current subscriber access and pricing information.
• District Clerk Court Document Lookup — onsite terminals, records searches and document-lookup locations.
• District Clerk Copies — paper/electronic/certification fees and mailing procedure.
• District Clerk Family Law — divorce/family copy procedures and current contact information.
• District Clerk Felony Research — Tarrant felony research service and copy fees.
• District Clerk Unfiled Criminal Documents — magistration records available before formal filing.
• Tarrant Criminal Docket Search — current public search fields for criminal settings.
• Tarrant County Clerk — County Courts at Law, Probate and County Criminal custodianship.
• County Clerk Online Searches — official link to Tarrant County Records Search.
• County Courts at Law — civil clerk location, copy workflow and current jurisdiction information.
• Probate Courts — probate case search, copy information and court contact details.
• County Criminal Courts — misdemeanor custodian, hours and contact information.
• County Clerk Criminal FAQs — misdemeanor record coverage and felony/County Clerk distinction.
• Tarrant Justice of the Peace Courts — eight-court structure, jurisdiction and case lookup tools.
• Tarrant District Civil Dockets — court-specific civil calendar information.
• Texas Second Court of Appeals — appellate jurisdiction including Tarrant County.
• Northern District of Texas — Tarrant County Venue — confirms Tarrant belongs to the Fort Worth Division.
• U.S. District Court Fort Worth Division — federal courthouse location, phone and hours.

Research review date: August 30, 2026. Court dockets, hearing settings, access rules, contact details and fees can change. Recheck a current official source when a deadline, appearance, payment or certified document depends on the information.

Frequently asked questions about Tarrant County court records

1. What is the official Tarrant County court records search?

Tarrant County’s public Records Search, hosted through Odyssey Public Access, is the official online search linked by the County Clerk for County Courts at Law, Probate Courts and Justice of the Peace Courts. District Court Civil, Family and Felony records use separate Tarrant District Clerk services.

2. Does one Tarrant County website contain every court case?

No. Tarrant County splits record custody between the District Clerk, County Clerk and Justice Courts. The public County Records Search does not replace the District Clerk’s separate access system for District Court Civil, Family and Felony case files.

3. Where do I search a Tarrant County felony case?

Felony cases are District Court records maintained by the Tarrant County District Clerk. The District Clerk provides a public Criminal Docket Search for settings and separate public-terminal, copy, felony-research and Web Based Access services for case-file information.

4. Where do I search a Tarrant County misdemeanor?

The Tarrant County Clerk Criminal Division maintains Class A and B misdemeanor records filed in the County Criminal Courts. Current County Clerk guidance directs users to call 817-884-1066 for misdemeanor case information and copies. The Clerk states that these records date back to 1976.

5. Where do I get a Tarrant County divorce decree?

Divorce and Family District Court records are maintained by the Tarrant County District Clerk Family Law Division at the Family Law Center, 200 E. Weatherford Street, Fort Worth. The current records phone is 817-884-1265.

6. How much does the Tarrant District Clerk charge for a certified court record?

The current published District Clerk fee is $1 per page plus a $5 certification/seal fee for certified paper copies. Certified electronic copies are $1 for the first 1–10 pages, 10 cents per page for 11 or more pages, plus the $5 certification/seal fee. Verify the fee before ordering.

7. Can I view Tarrant District Court documents for free?

The District Clerk provides free self-service document lookup at designated onsite public-access terminals for qualifying Civil, Family and Felony records. Remote full case-file access uses a separate subscription-based Web Based Access service, while free public docket tools are available for some court settings.

8. Where do I search a Tarrant County Justice Court case?

Tarrant County has eight Justice Courts. Use the official Justice Courts page to identify the correct precinct, then use the County Records Search/Court Case Lookup. Justice Court handles civil cases within its jurisdictional limit and various misdemeanor matters.

9. Where do I search an appeal or federal Tarrant County case?

Texas state appeals from Tarrant County generally go through the Second Court of Appeals in Fort Worth. Federal Tarrant County matters are assigned to the Fort Worth Division of the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Texas and are searched through PACER.

10. Can this Tarrant County court-record guide be used for employment or tenant screening?

No. Public-Court-Records.us is not a Consumer Reporting Agency and should not be treated as an FCRA consumer-reporting service for employment, tenant, credit, insurance or similar eligibility decisions. Court-record name matches can also be incomplete, outdated or belong to another person.