Mississippi State Courts

The judicial system in the state of Mississippi has two federal courts attached to it, as well as a number of trial courts. Some of these trial courts have limited jurisdiction and deal with subject-matter cases. Other trial courts in Mississippi have general jurisdiction, and feed into an appeals court as well as a supreme court for the state should cases need to be escalated.

The two federal courts in the area are the origin point for a number of federal cases. The two courts are:

• United States District Court for the Northern District of Mississippi
• United States District Court for the Southern District of Mississippi

Among the circuit courts with limited jurisdiction include two bankruptcy courts, which are arranged geographically.

• United States bankruptcy court, Northern District of Mississippi
• United States bankruptcy court, Southern District of Mississippi

The state has circuit courts. These hear cases relating to felonies and civil issues. They may also hear some appeals that have come from county courts and even other courts lower down the hierarchy.

There are chancery courts, trial courts which deal with domestic matters. These are an example of subject-matter courts which do not have general jurisdiction. These are also the courts for land issues and land records. 

County courts (divided by the counties of the state) have jurisdiction over domain proceedings and also deal with juvenile cases. Not all counties in Mississippi have a county court, but there are 20 of them around the state.

Justice courts form another part of the judicial system. They deal with small claims such as civil cases, parking tickets and such. They also can deal with offenses of up to $3,500 in value throughout the state. There are 82 such courts in Mississippi.

The final type of circuit courts are the Municipal Courts. These deal primarily with misdemeanors, but may also hear bond hearings or preliminary criminal hearings.

https://www.ms.gov/

Court Name:	Mississippi Supreme Court
Address:	Gartin Justice Building 450 High Street Jackson, MS 39201
Phone:	(601) 359-3694
Website URL:	https://courts.ms.gov/appellatecourts/sc/sc.php

Intermediate and Supreme Courts

The Court of Appeals for the state ensures that not all appeals need to go to the Supreme Court. The court was only created in the 1990s in order to relieve some of the pressure on the supreme court. It can hear appeals from lower down the hierarchy of courts, such as trial courts.

The Supreme Court dates back to the 1800s and it is the state's court of last resort. It deals with capital punishment, death penalties and bond issues as well as overseeing any discipline or new regulations for attorneys and other legal professionals.

Types of Courts in Mississippi

How to Find Mississippi Court Records Online

You can use our records search tool to find details of cases to pass through the courts in Mississippi. The Public Records Act of the 1940s means that access to government public records is a right of the citizens of the state. You can access mugshots, plea and sentencing details and any other public records made available.

Mississippi Counties