How to Obtain Copies of Court Documents | District of Utah (2024)

FAQs

How to Obtain Copies of Court Documents | District of Utah? ›

Federal case files are maintained electronically and are available through the internet-based Public Access to Court Electronic Records (PACER) service. PACER allows anyone with an account to search and locate appellate, district, and bankruptcy court case and docket information. Register for a PACER account.

Federal case files are maintained electronically and are available through the internet-based Public Access to Court Electronic Records (PACER) service. PACER allows anyone with an account to search and locate appellate, district, and bankruptcy court case and docket information. Register for a PACER account.

PACER can be used to retrieve most federal court dockets and filings, and anyone is able to register for an account. Users who download documents from PACER pay a per-page download charge of ten cents per page.

Utah's district, juvenile and appellate courts are courts of record. Hearings are recorded either by court reporters or electronically. Copies of hearings recorded electronically are available from each court. Case Filings Reports, Case Disposition Reports, and Judgement Reports.

To obtain access to those records, researchers must contact the appropriate federal court. Online access to case and docket information is provided for a fee by the Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts through PACER.

Most documents in federal courts – appellate, district, and bankruptcy – are filed electronically, using a system called Case Management/Electronic Case Files (CM/ECF). The media and public may view most filings found in this system via the Public Access to Court Electronic Records service, better known as PACER.

All Federal court records are available online at PACER.gov, an electronic public access service that is overseen by the Administrative Office of the United States Courts. This includes all Federal civil court cases, criminal charges, as well as bankruptcies. In all, there are over 500 million documents on PACER.

In operation for more than 30 years, PACER is an online portal that provides access to virtually all documents filed since 1999 by a judge or parties to litigation in all U.S. courts of appeals, district courts, and bankruptcy courts.

How to get court documents in Utah? ›

You can submit a Request for Court Record form and the courts will follow a process similar to the process in the Government Records Access and Management Act (GRAMA).

Anyone can request public records and a statement of purpose is not required. There are no restrictions on the use of public records under the Utah Government Records Access and Management Act and the act requires that responses be made within at least 10 business days.

Under the Utah Court Record Rule (4–202.02), criminal court records not sealed or expunged are public records, and can be viewed, inspected, and copied by citizens pertinent to their rights.

The United States District Court for the District of Utah (in case citations, D. Utah) is the federal district court whose jurisdiction is the state of Utah. The court is based in Salt Lake City with another courtroom leased in the state courthouse in St. George.

Most court records can be viewed by anyone. However, starting April 1, 2012, divorce records are private.

You cannot serve the papers in your own case. Papers can be served by a sheriff, a constable, a U.S. Marshal, or by any person 18 or older who is: not a party in the case or a lawyer for a party in the case, not been convicted of a felony violation of a sex offense listed in Utah Code section 77-41-102(16), or.

Anonymous Public/Case Search users may view all court records except those that are expunged or sealed, automatically confidential under rule 2.420(d)(1), Fla, R. Gen. Prac & Jud. Admin., or made confidential by court order, without having to register.

You can access various court records through legal databases like Lexis, Westlaw, and Fastcase. State Law Library patrons can use Fastcase remotely to find final opinions for select Texas and federal appellate cases. Lexis and Westlaw are available at the library in person.

PACER access is for federal courts only.