Search Denver County Court Records

How to Search Denver County Court Records

The main public tool for County Court cases is the Denver County Court public portal at public.denvercountycourt.org. It runs case-number and arrest booking (AB#) lookups, court-date checks, civil court-date lookups, and docket views by courtroom. The portal does not run public name or business searches. For state-court cases, the Colorado Judicial Branch docket search at coloradojudicial.gov/dockets covers Denver District, Denver Probate, and Denver Juvenile. Both tools are free to use.

Before you start, pull together the case number, AB#, party name, date of birth if known, and the year of filing. The state docket tool needs at least one filter on top of the date range. The County Court tool needs a case or AB number, or a full name plus DOB for the future court-date lookup.

1. Pick the right court. County Court for misdemeanors, traffic, small claims, civil under $25,000, and municipal cases. District for felonies, divorce, and larger civil. Probate for wills and estates. Juvenile for delinquency and dependency.
2. For County Court, open public.denvercountycourt.org/Case/Quick and select Case Number or AB# under Search By.
3. Type the case number or AB# into the input field and click Search. Court-date lookups by name need Last Name, First Name, and DOB.
4. For state courts, open the Colorado Judicial docket search and set County to Denver - District, Denver - Probate, or Denver - Juvenile.
5. Pick a date range (6 Months, 3 Months, 1 Month, 1 Week, Today, or Specific Date) and add one more filter, such as Case Class or Party Name.
6. Click Search. Review the result list and note the case number, courtroom, hearing type, and judge.
7. For copies of filings, submit the state record request at coloradojudicial.gov/recorddocument-request-form or email the right Denver clerk.

Denver County Court Records Search Fields

The Denver County Court Case Search at public.denvercountycourt.org/Case/Quick uses a small set of fields. The page warns that AB numbers sit at the top right of the Unified Summons and Complaint. The court-date by name lookup returns cases with active future court dates only. Validation errors include "Please enter case" and "Please enter Last Name, First Name, and DOB." The full field list captured from the live portal is below.

Types of Denver County Court Records

Denver is split across four trial courts, so the file type tells you which clerk holds the record. County Court takes municipal crime, state misdemeanors, traffic, small claims, civil up to $25,000, protection orders, felony advisements, bond, and warrant review for the 2nd Judicial District. District Court takes felony cases, divorce and family law, and larger civil. Probate Court holds wills, estates, guardianships, conservatorships, and mental health adjudication. Juvenile Court holds delinquency, dependency and neglect, paternity, and adoption.

Files inside each court fall into a few standard groups. Most are public, but juvenile, sealed, suppressed, mental health, and adoption files have tight rules.

• Civil records: complaints, answers, motions, orders, judgments, transcripts of judgment, satisfactions, and the register of actions.
• Criminal records: complaints or information, warrant entries, bond paperwork, disposition and sentence orders, protection orders, and minutes.
• Traffic and municipal records: tickets, dockets with AB or TK numbers, scheduled hearing time, language, case type, counsel, charge, and disposition.
• Family and domestic relations records: divorce decrees, parenting plans, separation agreements, support orders, and petitions.
• Probate records: letters, wills, trusts, applications, petitions, closings, claims, and date-of-death filings.
• Juvenile records: delinquency files, dependency and neglect, paternity, custody, and relinquishment or adoption files.
• Protective orders: civil, criminal, or family-based; some details are public, but victim and minor info gets redacted.
• Sealed or expunged records: not in the public portal; parties and their attorneys can still view them in most cases.

What Denver County Court Records Show

A Denver court file is built around a register of actions, a list of filed documents, and a header that ties it all together. The header holds the case number in the standard Colorado pattern, such as 2025CR6963 for a District felony or 24CV30459 for a civil case. Charge cites point to a statute, such as C.R.S. § 42-4-1301 for DUI. Disposition lines show pleas, verdicts, or dismissals. Sentence and judgment entries show jail time, fines, restitution, or money awards.

Sample Denver Case Record Field Inventory

The full field set in a Denver case file goes well past the docket result. The state docket tool shows a slim public view (date, time, name, case number, hearing type, courtroom). The clerk file holds a deeper set. The list below is built from the live Colorado Judicial docket result for Denver and the standard register of actions used by Colorado courts.

Requesting Documents from Denver Courts

Copy requests split by court and case type. Denver County Court runs two clerk counters: one for criminal and municipal files at Lindsey-Flanigan, and one for traffic and civil files at the City and County Building. State courts (District, Probate, and Juvenile) take requests through the Colorado Judicial record request form or direct clerk email. Walk-in service runs Monday through Friday, 8 a.m. to 4 p.m.

Mail requests for District Court files go to Attn: Records Dept., 1437 Bannock St., Room 256, Denver, CO 80202. Probate also takes phone, mail, email, and online portal requests. Include case number, party name, date of birth, date of death (probate), and the document names. The statewide index does not run further back than 1988, so older Probate cases that started in another county must be requested from that county.

Public Access Laws for Denver County Court Records

Court records in Colorado are open under a stack of laws and rules, not just one statute. The Colorado Open Records Act, C.R.S. § 24-72-200.1 et seq., covers many state and local agency records. The Colorado Secretary of State runs a plain-language CORA guide. Criminal justice files are governed by the Colorado Criminal Justice Records Act, C.R.S. § 24-72-301 et seq. Juvenile files fall under the Children's Code, C.R.S. § 19-1-301 et seq.

For court files themselves, the Judicial Branch points to Chief Justice Directive 05-01 and the Supreme Court Rule on Public Access to Information and Records (P.A.I.R.R.). The Colorado Judicial Branch keeps a current access guide that maps which records are open, which need a court order, and which run through CJRA. CJD 05-01 was amended in 2024 and 2025, so use the current version, not older "public access policy" wording.

Anyone may ask. There is no need to live in Colorado, and there is no need to give a reason. Custodians may ask for a photo ID for suppressed cases, juvenile, probate, and protected files. Response time under CORA is generally three working days, with a limited extension. Denver County Court routes its own data requests to coradatarequests@denvercountycourt.org and applies state law plus the Denver Revised Municipal Code.

Restricted and Confidential Denver Court Records

Some Denver files are kept out of the public portal by statute, rule, or court order. Juvenile files are the biggest group. Access is set by C.R.S. § 19-1-301 et seq. and CJD 05-01, and is generally limited to parties, attorneys, certain agencies, and people the court names. Juvenile delinquency expungement can be automatic or by petition, after reforms in HB17-1204 and HB19-1335.

Sealed adult records stay out of public view but remain open to parties, their counsel, and in criminal matters to criminal justice agencies. Suppressed cases, probate mental-health adjudication, adoption files, and protected addresses sit in the same restricted band. Grand jury and pre-execution warrant material are not public. CBI public criminal history checks exclude warrant info, sealed records, and juvenile records, so a clean CBI result does not always mean a clean court file.

To view a sealed file, a person with standing files a motion in the same court where the case was heard. The court weighs the privacy interests against the reason for access. Denver self-help resources at the District and County Court self-help desks point unrepresented parties to the right forms for sealing motions.

Denver Court Records Fees

Fees in Denver track the Colorado Judicial fee schedule plus a few County Court add-ons. Most paper copies cost a quarter per page. Certifications run $20 per document. Name searches, when the clerk runs them, are a flat $5. Research and redaction time is billed by the hour after the first hour. A 2.5% card service fee was added on May 1, 2025 for card payments. Parties and their own attorneys pay no more than $15 for copies of their own case; non-parties have no cap.

Fee waivers may apply under C.R.S. § 13-32-104(1)(a). The state record request form lists the waiver option in its fee notes.

Connecting Records to Related Topics

A Denver case file often links to other public-record types. Check court dockets to confirm a future hearing, or pull criminal records when the case is on the County or District side. Traffic court records live under the County Court traffic clerk. Broader agency files run through public records and the Clerk of Court page.