Looking for the court date, either in your name or on behalf of someone else, is very important. However, knowing it early will give someone time to prepare everything, including mentally. If the date is missed, this could result in a person dropping the case, being fined, or even receiving an arrest warrant.
Instead of accepting it all, it’d be better to put your energy into finding out the court date, which is pretty straightforward to do. If you want to help someone know his or her court date, you can try to do it by following our guide. Let’s check out the post below!
Finding Out the Court Date for Someone: Here’s How!
Today, you can actually find out the court date online and offline. If you want to do something simple, we recommend you do a search online, but of course, this way will have a few shortcomings, such as the website cannot be accessed, the court data is not available, or the court where your case was filed doesn’t provide public court records.
So as with the offline ones, you may need to mentally prepare to deal with clerks or court officials, not to mention the extra time and energy you need to spend since you may not have enough to come once. But if you’re lucky, you can get information about someone’s court date faster.
To make it easier for you to find out the court date for someone, we’ll show you several ways to do so, including:
Way 1: Doing a Search Online
Most states currently have their own online databases that store case records. The court case will be regularly updated, but some states may not provide it to the public. Now, you can try to check if the court in your local county provides an online court case search tool.
To start looking for someone’s court date, you must know at least his or her full name. To make searching easier, you can track down someone’s court date by entering their case or citation number.
On the tool, you’ll usually need to type your state into the search tool and then “court date lookup.” And the tool will require you to “Find Courts,” “Search Records,” or “Court Calendar Search.”
Most of the online court case tools will provide some of the following information:
- Officer’s name
- Agent
- Officer Number
- Court Date
- County
- Session
- Courtroom
- Defendant’s name
- Citation number
Keep in mind that it can vary by state, and some jurisdictions may not provide up-to-date databases for the public to view at all.
Since each county has a different website that provides a tool to search for someone’s court date, we’ll give you an example: Washington Courts. So, if you happen to look for someone’s court date, where the case was filed in Washington Courts, you can take advantage of its tool.
The Washington Court actually provides the court case in real time, and the public is allowed to find out when they have to appear in a district or municipal court. To use the Washington Courts case search tool, you can access it at https://dw.courts.wa.gov/index.cfm?fa=home.fmcd&terms=accept&flashform=0.
On the page, you’ll have to choose the court. Then, enter the defendant’s first and last name. Then, click “Search.” If the court case data is available, the next page will bring up information about the defendant’s court case.
But if the records are not found, you can try to access the Washington court’s and county clerk’s offices at http://www.courts.wa.gov/court_dir/.
Way 2: Find the court date by phone
Contacting the court officials is the next best option if the court in your local county doesn’t provide the case court database to the public. The county clerk’s contact information can usually be found on the official county website.
During a phone call, you’ll have to provide the defendant’s first and last name, along with his or her court case number if you have one. Make sure to clearly explain that you want to confirm the court date and time of the upcoming hearing. The officials will then search the case records to find it. If necessary, you can ask the attorneys who are involved in someone’s case to get information about the trial date.
Way 3: Visiting the clerk’s office
If making a phone call gets you into trouble, it’d be better for you to directly visit your local clerk’s office. Make sure to prepare your valid government ID and the defendant’s name. To make it easier for them to search for the court date, you can provide the defendant’s case number. Well, your local county clerks will usually have all court case records that have been updated.
Okay, those are several ways to find out someone’s court date.
Why Don’t You Find the Court Date for Someone?
There’s no doubt that not all court cases could be public records. Of course, every case will be different, and sometimes certain cases relate to juvenile or father cases, as well as cases where the subject is sensitive.
The trial date, which has not been changed or updated, can be another reason why you cannot find someone’s court date. However, the details about court cases, including the court date, are actually taken from official court documents.
For this solution, you may have to contact the court where someone is scheduled to appear. If the person has a private attorney, you can reach out to him or her and ask for information about someone’s court date.
How Do You Find Someone’s Court Date for a Federal Offense?
If someone you know is a federal offender who must appear at an upcoming trial, you can find information on a federal court case. And today, all federal court cases can be accessed on Public Access to Court Electronic Records (PACER).
PACER is an electronic public access to federal court records that actually allows the public to look for and find docket information about appellate, district, and bankruptcy court cases. To find them, you can use the PACER tool, which can be accessed at https://pacer.uscourts.gov/find-case/search-specific-court.
To do a court date search via the PACER tool, you may have to create a PACER account first because only registered users are allowed to access federal case records. If you already have a PACER account, you can only click the “PACER Login” button to start.
Then, you need to fill out your credentials to login, such as your username, password, client code, and court. Then, click “Login.”
If you don’t have an account, you must create one first by clicking the “Need an account?” button on the PACER login page. You may need to fill out the following information:
- First name
- Middle name
- Last Name
- Generation
- Date of Birth
- Firm/Office
- Unit/Department
- Address
- Room/Suite
- City
- State
- ZIP/Postal Code
- Country
- Primary Phone
- Text Phone
- Fax Number
For more information, the PACER database is regularly updated in real time when new records are filed with the court. Make sure to know the specific court where someone’s case was filed.
A bookworm and researcher especially related to law and citizenship education. I spend time every day in front of the internet and the campus library.
