Maryland Court Records

Maryland Court Records Search

Maryland Court cases in any state of the United States can be a great source of biographical and genealogical data. The official online search for Maryland court records lets users type in their name if they are a party to the case and be able to find their case in a jiffy. If you want to access an online search database, all you have to do is click on the checkbox to agree to all the terms of use and then you can click on the button that says Continue. The screen that you will be led to is where you have to input the name of your ancestor. This database has court records from cases as old as the ones from 1970s; however the majority of case records found here are from the 1990s. Maryland court records may include criminal records, traffic violations, civil records, vital records, sentencing records and more.

Maryland Court Records In Person

The best way to find Maryland court records of yours or your ancestors is to get in touch with the courthouse specific to the area of the case proceedings. Maryland Circuit courts have most case records regarding community dispute, civil matters, guardianship, and divorce. You can always call or email the court clerk and learn about the records that are available for specific courthouses and counties.

Maryland Court Records Archives

Maryland Archives host all indexes and original records of the chancery, general, and the provincial courts. They also have archives of the court of appeals, district courts, and county courts. You will also find several records published in the public records archives. The state archives have been a collection of miscellaneous court papers between the years 1729 and 1904. This collection holds documents involving voting, bonds, depositions, mortgages, manumissions, county cases, and naturalizations.

Residents of the Maryland state courts can request records in their original microfilm form via an interlibrary loan.

Maryland Public Court Records

Court records are usually open to the general public, however there are a few exceptions like adoption, income tax returns, emergency mental health evaluations, adoption, juvenile delinquency, CINA, marriage license information, financial statements, reports filed by a guardian regarding the property of a disabled adult, and termination of parental rights.

Maryland Background Checks

If you are searching through court records for background checks on people, you can always look through the Maryland Criminal Justice Information System. This is maintained by the Department of Public Safety and Correctional Services who keep a fingerprint supported identification records of criminal history information.

Maryland Family History Library

You will find court records in microform at the Maryland Family History Library including the General Court judgments that took place between 1777 and 1805, provincial court judgments that took place between 1679 and 1778, and court of appeals judgments and decrees that occurred between 1788 and 1891.