How to Access Contra Costa County Court Records?
Contra Costa is a suburban county in the East Bay region of San Franciso, California. As of 2023, the United States Census Bureau pegged the county’s population at 1,165,930 people. Contra Costa has about 480,500 households and a per capita income of $59,083.
Courts in Contra Costa County
Contra Costa’s court system consists of only Superior Courts. The county has seven Superior Courthouse locations with jurisdiction over different legal cases ranging from Civil to Criminal, Small Claims, Family, Probate, Juvenile, and Traffic. The Wakefield Taylor courthouse, for instance, has jurisdiction over civil, criminal, and probate cases. The AF Bray Courthouse, on the other hand, holds jurisdiction over criminal cases. These include cases of felony, homicide, drug offenses, and domestic violence, among others.
Both the Richmond Superior Court and the Pittsburg Superior Court have jurisdiction over civil, small claims, traffic, and criminal cases. The courts have designated times for sitting on traffic cases.
As the name suggests, the Spineta Family Law Center handles family law matters. Typically, these include divorce, child custody, visitation, alimony, and paternity/maternity fraud cases.
The Walnut Creek Superior Court attends to traffic and juvenile cases. Therefore, aside from regular traffic arraignments and hearings, the court attends to cases involving minors and juvenile delinquency.
Where to Find Public Court Records in Contra Costa County
To get publicly available court records, interested persons can visit the Court Records Office in person and file a request. Interested individuals can also send requests by filling out an online form that is delivered as mail to the court record office. Typically, the requesting party would send a self-addressed stamp alongside the mail for return mailing.
Contra Costa County also has an online court case portal through which interested parties can digitally access public court records. Requests for paper copies of court records are granted at a fee specified by the county court.
Type of Public Court Records in Collin County
The following types of court records are available to the public in Contra Costa County:
- Civil Court Records
- Limited Civil Records
- Family Court Records
- Adoption Court Records
- Probate Court Records
Confidential Court Records in Collin County
Some court records are considered confidential and are therefore not publicly available. These confidential court records can only be accessed by the parties involved in the case or their attorneys. Most importantly, confidential court records can only be obtained with a court order and valid means of identification. Examples of court records deemed confidential in Contra Costa County include
- Criminal Court Records
- Domestic Violence Protective Orders
- Juvenile Records
- Adoption Records
- Mental Health Records
- Medical Records
Contra Costa County is located in the state of California with a total of 1,147,439 residents and was established in 1850.
Contra Costa county court records are public records that are available in most cases to the everyone. Some Contra Costa courts are very busy with many different types of cases, and others see very few. It depends on the court structure and the number of residents. 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 websites to find California court records.
Public court records for Contra Costa 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 1,036,086 were filed in the county. As of 2018, 75% of the cases were criminal cases. The busiest courts in the county were Superior Court.
Finding Contra Costa County court records is possible using the California court system website at https://www.courts.ca.gov/, and even easier through Contra Costa 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 Contra Costa County court.
Contra Costa County Court Caseload Data and Trends
Depending on the law enforcement practices, and political and economic climates, court case statistics will vary from year to year in specific areas of Contra Costa County, CA.
The Contra Costa County court system consists of 1 court type, Superior Court. In 2018, Superior Court recorded 112,943 filings, which indicates a decrease of 7% from 121,118 in 2017. Review the table below for number of cases in the county.
| Courts Type | Number of filings in 2018 |
|---|---|
| Superior Court | 112,943 |
Most Popular Court Cases
You can tell a lot about an area by the types of court cases that appear in county courts.
Contra Costa 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 112,943 cases filed in the county for the year 2018. The most popular type of court case is criminal comprising 75% 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 options to search for a Contra Costa 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 |
|---|---|
| Criminal | 84,703 |
| Civil | 15,815 |
| Family Law | 8,956 |
| Probate | 1,713 |
| Dependency | 889 |
| Delinquency | 867 |
Contra Costa is a suburban county in the East Bay region of San Franciso, California. As of 2023, the United States Census Bureau pegged the county’s population at 1,165,930 people. Contra Costa has about 480,500 households and a per capita income of $59,083.
Courts in Contra Costa County
Contra Costa’s court system consists of only Superior Courts. The county has seven Superior Courthouse locations with jurisdiction over different legal cases ranging from Civil to Criminal, Small Claims, Family, Probate, Juvenile, and Traffic. The Wakefield Taylor courthouse, for instance, has jurisdiction over civil, criminal, and probate cases. The AF Bray Courthouse, on the other hand, holds jurisdiction over criminal cases. These include cases of felony, homicide, drug offenses, and domestic violence, among others.
Both the Richmond Superior Court and the Pittsburg Superior Court have jurisdiction over civil, small claims, traffic, and criminal cases. The courts have designated times for sitting on traffic cases.
As the name suggests, the Spineta Family Law Center handles family law matters. Typically, these include divorce, child custody, visitation, alimony, and paternity/maternity fraud cases.
The Walnut Creek Superior Court attends to traffic and juvenile cases. Therefore, aside from regular traffic arraignments and hearings, the court attends to cases involving minors and juvenile delinquency.
Where to Find Public Court Records in Contra Costa County
To get publicly available court records, interested persons can visit the Court Records Office in person and file a request. Interested individuals can also send requests by filling out an online form that is delivered as mail to the court record office. Typically, the requesting party would send a self-addressed stamp alongside the mail for return mailing.
Contra Costa County also has an online court case portal through which interested parties can digitally access public court records. Requests for paper copies of court records are granted at a fee specified by the county court.
Type of Public Court Records in Collin County
The following types of court records are available to the public in Contra Costa County:
- Civil Court Records
- Limited Civil Records
- Family Court Records
- Adoption Court Records
- Probate Court Records
Confidential Court Records in Collin County
Some court records are considered confidential and are therefore not publicly available. These confidential court records can only be accessed by the parties involved in the case or their attorneys. Most importantly, confidential court records can only be obtained with a court order and valid means of identification. Examples of court records deemed confidential in Contra Costa County include
- Criminal Court Records
- Domestic Violence Protective Orders
- Juvenile Records
- Adoption Records
- Mental Health Records
- Medical Records
Juvenile Delinquency in Contra Costa, CA
Unfortunately, in many areas of the Contra Costa County, juvenile delinquency crimes are on the rise. There are many reasons for the increase in youth offenders. The juvenile sentence in California often depends on the severity of the crime, the number of offenses, and other family matters.
A lot of counties, including, Contra Costa County, are focusing on family health and relationships rather than punishment for juvenile crimes. Future Contra Costa County juvenile delinquency statistics will show whether or not this approach is working.
| Juvenile Cases | Number of cases |
|---|---|
| Delinquency | 391 |
| Dependency | 2,004 |
| Status | 3,042 |
Government of Contra Costa County, CA
| County Seat: | Martinez |
| Government Type: | County |
| Authority: | Dillon's Rule |
| Year Organized: | 1850 |
| Total Square Miles: | 804 |
| 2019 Population: | 1,147,439 |
| Persons/Square Mile: | 0.00 |
Contra Costa County, CA Courts
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Contra Costa County Superior Court
Address: 725 Court Street, Martinez, CA 94553
Phone: 925-608-1000