Clark County Court Information and Location

The state Constitution and the statutes of the General Assembly have laid down the objectives and operational rules of the judicial branch of Ohio. The Supreme Court is the apex judicial body in Ohio. Apart from it, a number of courts have thus been set up in various counties–the Court of Claims, Courts of Common Pleas, Domestic Relations, Juvenile and Probate divisions, and Municipal and County courts–to ensure that justice is dispensed widely and fairly. The Clark County Court in Ohio and its various trial divisions stand true to this motive.

Clark County Courts

The Court of Common Pleas is the only trial court that came into being by an act of the Constitution. There is one in every county of Ohio, including in Clark County. As per the guidelines of the General Assembly, the Clark County Court of Common Pleas is divided into general, juvenile, domestic relations, and probate divisions.

General Division

The general division possesses original jurisdiction rights over all criminal felony cases and all kinds of civil cases where the amount of controversy exceeds $15,000. The division is also empowered to hear appeals from some state administrative agencies. The contact information for the judges in this court can be found at http://www.clarkcountyohio.gov/courts/common/index.htm.

Domestic Relations

The domestic relations division of the Clark County Court of Common Pleas hears all proceedings that involve divorces, legal separation, dissolution or annulment of marriages, spousal support claims, and allocation of parental rights and child care responsibilities.

Juvenile Division

The juvenile division deals with all cases where charges, considered of criminal nature in cases concerning adults, have been pressed against persons less than 18 years of age.  The court also presides over cases involving dependent and neglected children. Juvenile courts also possess judicial rights in adult cases involving paternity suits, child abuse, non-support, failure to send children to school, and contributing to the delinquency of minors. You may look for relevant phone numbers of the judges in this court at http://www.clarkcountyohio.gov/courts/juvenile/index.htm.

Probate Division

As per the rules laid down by an act of the Constitution, the probate division of the Clark County Court of Common Pleas deals with the probate of wills, supervising administration of estates and guardianships, overseeing trusts including testamentary trusts, and verifying the sanity and mental competency of allegedly mentally ill or retarded persons. The court also has the right to exercise judicial powers over issuing marriage licenses and birth certificates, finalizing adoption procedures, and some specific eminent domain proceedings.

You may view information on the court cases that have been filed at the Probate Court here: http://www.probate.clarkcountyohio.gov/search.shtml.  The office of the Clark County Probate Court is in Springfield and the contact number is (937) 521-1845.

Municipal and County Courts

The Clark County Municipal and County Courts possess almost identical judicial rights. They are empowered to conduct preliminary hearings in cases of felonies, traffic and non-traffic misdemeanors. These courts possess restricted civil jurisdiction and only hear cases where the amount of the claim is not more than $15,000. They can also preside over cases involving eviction, landlord-tenant disputes, and appeals of state license suspension.

Records of court cases originating in the Clark County Municipal Court are well-documented and may be accessed at http://clerkofcourts.municipal.co.clark.oh.us/web.nsf/CaseSearch?OpenForm. Dockets results are obtained at http://clerkofcourts.municipal.co.clark.oh.us/web.nsf/DailyScheduleSearch?OpenForm.