Minnesota State Courts

The judicial system in Minnesota is relatively simplistic compared to a lot of the courts. There is one federal court, and both trial and appeal courts that operate on a statewide basis. Many of the trial courts have general jurisdiction though there are examples of limited jurisdiction courts in Minnesota, too.

The one federal court situated within Minnesota is the United States District Court for the District of Minnesota.

The District Court System in the state divides among the 87 different counties. Each of these counties is then further divided into 10 different districts. The District Courts form a huge part of the system, with original jurisdiction over many civil and criminal cases as well as family-related issues.

Cases to pass through these courts range from small misdemeaners to murder trials, so they have a huge scope to deal with a number of the legal challenges in the state.

There is a federal bankruptcy court in the state, with jurisdiction over solely bankruptcy-related cases. This court is the United States bankruptcy court, District of Minnesota.

https://mn.gov/

Court Name:	Minnesota Supreme Court
Address:	25 Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd. St. Paul, MN 55155
Phone:	(651) 297-7650
Website URL:	http://www.mncourts.gov/SupremeCourt.aspx

Intermediate and Supreme Courts

The main intermediate court is the Minnesota Court of Appeals. This is the first port of call for appeals, so that the Supreme Court doesn’t deal with all cases referred from the district courts.

This court has only been around since the 1980s. 95% of the appeals that are filed in the region go through the Court of Appeals. Only issues relating to taxation, statewide elections and some murder cases will be referred directly to the Supreme Court.

The Supreme Court is the court of last resort for Minnesota, like so many other states. Issues can either bypass the Minnesota Court of Appeals (like first-degree murder cases) or be further appealed after the decision of the Appeals Court, and therefore dealt with by the Supreme Court. Seven judges sit within this court.

Types of Courts in Minnesota

How to Find Minnesota Court Records Online

Use our online tool to search through millions of court records online if you are a citizen of Minnesota. The Minnesota Data Practices Act was put in place in the 1990s and this means that state residents are entitled to access and even copy the local or the state government records.

You can access everything from mugshots to plea and sentencing details, sentencing and both police and court records, as long as not otherwise prevented by law. 

Minnesota Counties