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 Court Records, State Judiciary & PACER

Texas Court Records

Texas court records come from two separate court systems: the state judiciary (trial, appellate, supreme courts) and the federal judiciary (U.S. District, Bankruptcy, and Circuit Courts of Appeal). Each has its own public docket search.

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Texas Court Records at a Glance

Official court resources, local court directories, and statewide links for civil, criminal, probate, family, bankruptcy, and appellate research in Texas.

1Quick Links

Start here for the fastest path into Texas court record research.

2Official Texas Court Resources

Use these statewide and official court resources for case information, court structure, forms, clerk access, or public search tools.

3Texas Court Directory & Local Resources

Legacy directory content has been retained inside the updated layout so county-level links, clerk references, and older court research notes remain available in one place.

4Research Notes

5Related Texas Court Topics

Continue into related Texas specialty pages and supporting court-research topics.

6Federal & National Authoritative Sources

These federal and national sources complement Texas's state-level records. They are the authoritative sources you should cross-check when Texas state records are incomplete or out-of-state activity matters.

PACER, Public Access to Court Electronic Records
The U.S. federal judiciary's unified electronic records system. Every federal district, bankruptcy, and appellate case docket is here.
https://pacer.uscourts.gov/ (pacer.uscourts.gov)
U.S. Courts, Federal Court Finder
The official directory of every federal district, bankruptcy, and circuit court. Use it to identify the correct Texas district(s) before searching PACER.
https://www.uscourts.gov/federal-court-finder (uscourts.gov)
National Center for State Courts
The NCSC's directory of state court websites, technology standards, and public-access policies.
https://www.ncsc.org/information-and-resources/browse-by-state (ncsc.org)
 Frequently Asked Questions

Texas Court Records, FAQ

Are court records free?

State court records are usually free to view at the courthouse and often free online, with per-page fees for certified copies. PACER charges $0.10 per page (capped at $3.00 per document), waived under $30 per quarter.

Do sealed cases show up?

No. A sealed case is hidden from the public docket index by court order. Its existence may still be confirmable by number, but documents are not accessible.

What's the difference between civil and criminal court records?

Civil cases involve disputes between parties (contracts, torts, family). Criminal cases are brought by the government. Both are indexed by the same court clerks but tracked in separate sub-dockets.

Can I search every court at once?

Not in one search. PACER covers all federal courts. Most states have a statewide judiciary portal that covers their state courts, but a few require per-county lookups. This page links to Texas's official portal.

 Last reviewed: April 2026  Updated: April 2026