November 23, 2024 [Z1A]
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Welcome to the Website of Marilyn Burgess, Harris County District Clerk

The following was compiled to provide an overview of the system, please take a few minutes to read this valuable information.

Types of Documents Available

The District Clerk maintains the case (cause) files for all cases (causes) filed in the Harris County District Courts and County Criminal Courts at Law. This system was not designed to provide an index of all cases (causes) filed with Harris County District Clerk. It was designed to provide an index of certain types of documents maintained by the District Clerk in electronic form and available to the public for purchase via the Internet. The documents available through the system constitute the “minutes” of the Harris County Civil District Courts (non-family). A “minute” document can be defined as any document in a case (cause) to which the judge affixes his/her signature.

We began maintaining the “minutes” of the Harris County Civil District Courts in electronic form subsequent to October, 1998. If you require documents filed before this date, please refer to the Purchase Copies page for information on how to obtain copies of those documents.

Technical Information

This site:

  • Is best viewed with Microsoft Internet Explorer at 1024 by 768 resolution
  • Requires Adobe Acrobat Reader to view partial documents, free download available at www.adobe.com
  • Compresses documents shipped using e-mail or download methods into a .zip format. Several .zip compression/de-compression programs are available for download at sites such as http://download.cnet.com -- many are free
  • Will log you out of the site after 30 minutes of inactivity for security reasons

General Information

The site allows you to query for documents using one of the following methods:

  • Case (Cause) number
  • Plaintiff name
  • Defendant name
  • Plaintiff and defendant name

If you cannot find your document using one of the above methods, you will need to obtain a case (cause) number through additional services we provide (see Purchase Copies for more details). Our website does provide capabilities to preview the document selected to aid in identifying the correct document prior to purchase. There is no cost to search the index of electronic documents; however, if you choose to purchase a document, you will be charged a fee of $1.00 per page purchased . All sales are final; no refunds will be available for any purchases made through www.hcdistrictclerk.com.

There are various methods available for delivery of the selected documents:

  • Download (documents compressed using .zip format, limited to 2500 pages per order)
  • Fax (limited to 20 pages per order, area code limitations)
  • E-Mail (documents compressed using .zip format, limited to 50 pages per order)
  • Mail (limited to 1000 pages per order, additional mailing costs are calculated and included in cost of order)
  • Pickup (no size limitations)

Exemplified documents can only be obtained using the Mail or Pickup delivery functions at this time.