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Arizona Court Case Search - Find Your Lawsuit

Dena Standley | August 02, 2023

Dena Standley

Dena Standley is a seasoned paralegal with more than 20 years of experience in legal research and writing, having received a certification as a Legal Assistant/Paralegal from Southern Technical College.

Edited by Hannah Locklear

Hannah Locklear
Editor at SoloSuit
Hannah Locklear, BA

Hannah Locklear is SoloSuit’s Marketing and Impact Manager. With an educational background in Linguistics, Spanish, and International Development from Brigham Young University, Hannah has also worked as a legal support specialist for several years.

Summary: Are you being sued for a debt in Arizona and want to check the status of your case? Here is SoloSuit's guide on how to search for your Arizona case information online.

The Arizona Public Record Law is a collection of laws enacted in 1901 to ensure that public records are accessible and distributed throughout the state. Criminal and Civil Court documents are viewable online in all states. US citizens can access this information under the Freedom of Information Act.

Arizona Public Record Law court case information is made available to the public, but there are several restrictions on what information is obtainable. Mental health and probate cases and victim and witness data are excluded from the analysis. The database may also exclude juvenile delinquency cases.

If you are involved in a debt collection lawsuit in Arizona, you can check the status of your case online. Here's everything you need to know about Arizona court structures and how to access courts records.

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Arizona's court structure has three levels

Arizona has courts at three different levels. It's important to note that, if you are being sued for a debt you owe, the case will almost always be initiated at the Justice Court level.

Limited Jurisdiction at Level 1: Municipal (or city) Courts and Justice of the Peace Courts have limited jurisdiction, which means that only specific types of cases fall under their jurisdiction. The case's subject may constrain these courts' decision-making authority, the amount of money at stake, or the potential sentence.

General Jurisdiction at Level 2: The Superior Court of Arizona, a Trial Court with state-wide jurisdiction, is the general jurisdiction court. This court hears the broadest range of cases. For instance, each county has at least one Supreme Court facility, referred to by its county name. For example, Maricopa County Superior Court.

Jurisdiction on appeal at Level 3: Arizona's appellate courts are the Court of Appeals and the Supreme Court. The state appellate courts have the authority to evaluate appealed verdicts and trials, except appeals involving the death sentence, some cases involving elected officials, and disagreements between counties. These cases are sent straight to the Supreme Court. The two divisions of the Court of Appeals consider most appeals that originate from the Superior Court.

The appellant must submit a petition for review by the Supreme Court to challenge a Court of Appeals ruling. The justices of the Supreme Court decide whether to hear the case after considering the petitions for review. Unlike the Court of Appeals, the Supreme Court is not compelled to listen to every appeal.

Check out this Arizona court structure graphic for more information:

graphic of the Arizona court structure

Where can I find court records in Arizona?

When attempting to obtain court records in Arizona, the first step is to determine which courthouse is responsible for the documents in question. According to Arizona's revised statutes, public bodies are responsible for safeguarding their records. Court clerks are in charge of keeping court records and making them accessible to the public.

Individuals can get copies of court records in person, by mail, or through online portals. The requester can make an in-person request by going to the courthouse where the case was filed. The court clerk assists them with the necessary procedures after submitting their request. Note that a walk-in requester may be required to submit a written request.

Use your case number to find your case status

The case number makes it simple and distinct to refer to particular civil and criminal cases. It indicates the case's filing year, office, and the judicial officer(s) assigned to it. Within the federal system, case information may be accessed consistently, primarily through case numbers. Any reference to the correct case number must appear in every document submitted to the court. This method ensures that documents are correctly sent to the court.

One of two formats is generally used to display the case number, as demonstrated in the examples below:

CV 2:17cv00010 or 17-00010-PHX-DJH

  • The case type is "CV."
  • The court has allocated three different case types: civil (cv), criminal (cr), and miscellaneous (mc).
  • The year the case was filed is indicated by the number 17.
  • The case number is 00010, as stated.
  • For each division, "1" denotes the first case submitted that year, and so forth.
  • The division is represented by "PHX" or "2:".
  • Phoenix (PHX or 2), Prescott (PCT or 3), and Tucson are the divisional offices' designations (TUC or 4).

Use the Arizona Judicial Branch case search tool to find your case

The Arizona Judicial Branch website has a Public Access to Court Information tool that is an excellent place to start looking for court records in Arizona. It is an online resource that gives users access to court case status and information from the state's Municipal and Justice Courts. It offers court records from 177 Arizona courts.

Search for your case in Maricopa County

Even though it is the biggest county by population in Arizona, Maricopa County cases are not included in the Arizona Judicial Branch's court case search tool. That being said, Maricopa County has its own court case search tool for cases found within the region.

Use the Maricopa County court case search tool to look up Justice Court cases. You can search by name or case number.

Search for superior court cases in Arizona

The Arizona Judicial Branch makes Superior Court case information available through eAccess, a web-based portal. Requesters must register and pay for the appropriate monthly subscription to access Superior Court records through the eAccess portal. The portal gives users access to court records if available and accessible after successful registration and login. The monthly document limit determines the cost of each subscription.

There are fees associated with obtaining court records and documents. Only approved government agencies are exempt from paying such fees to view court records. On the other hand, out-of-state government agencies cannot obtain government agency access accounts and privileges. The currently available subscriptions and their prices and access restrictions are listed below.

  • The cost of accessing court case documents is $10 per document on a "Pay As You Go" basis. There is no monthly fee for this.
  • An $80 monthly subscription grants access to a maximum of 20 documents.
  • A $200 monthly subscription grants access to a maximum of 50 documents.
  • A $360 monthly subscription ensures access to a maximum of 100 documents.
  • A $640 monthly subscription grants access to a maximum of 200 documents.
  • A monthly subscription fee of $1,050 grants access to 375 documents.
  • A $10,000 subscription fee gives you access to 5,000 documents per month.
  • Court case documents are available to approved government agencies without charge.
  • Access to Certified Documents (AOC) allows a requester to buy certified documents. There is no need to pay a monthly fee for this.

It's important to note that documents exceeding the subscription limits can be accessed at the purchase price of the Pay As You Go document. However, the online service makes some of the listed courts' case information unavailable. These courts are as follows:

  • The Arizona Supreme Court
  • Court of Appeals - Division 1
  • Court of Appeals - Division 2
  • Chandler Municipal Court (non-delinquent cases)
  • Gilbert Municipal Court
  • Justice of the Peace Courts (non-delinquent cases)
  • Maricopa Superior Courts (non-criminal cases)
  • Mesa Municipal Court
  • Paradise Valley Municipal Court
  • Tempe Municipal Court
  • Pima Consolidated Justice Court (non-delinquent cases)
  • Pima County Superior Court

Search for Arizona Court of Appeal cases

Interested parties may request to see or copy court documents from the Arizona Court of Appeals. Requests for court records should be sent to the Clerk's Office. The court case information must be viewed in the Clerk's Office viewing room. As a result, public access to the Clerk's Office is restricted. Requesters can contact the Court of Appeals for copies of court documents in three ways:

  1. Counter request: The requester must submit a copy request form to the Clerk's Office counter location to obtain a copy at 1501 W. Washington Avenue, Phoenix (2nd floor). Requests can only be submitted during the Clerk's Office business hours from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday.
  2. Email request: Email requests for copies should be sent to inform@appeals.az.gov. Interested parties must include full payment before receiving requested copies.
  3. Mail request: To get copies of court records by mail, send a completed copy request form along with a check or money order to: Court of Appeals, Division One Clerk's Office, 1501 W. Washington Avenue, Phoenix, AZ, 85007.

If you need to find a specific lawsuit, for example, you want to view a copy of the decision in an important lawsuit, contact the court in which your case is filed. The court clerk should be able to check the status of your case and answer basic questions about the case over the phone. You can also contact us at SoloSuit if you can't reach the court clerk. We can guide you through the process of conducting a court case search.

What is SoloSuit?

SoloSuit makes it easy to fight debt collectors.

You can use SoloSuit to respond to a debt lawsuit, to send letters to collectors, and even to settle a debt.

SoloSuit's Answer service is a step-by-step web-app that asks you all the necessary questions to complete your Answer. Upon completion, we'll have an attorney review your document and we'll file it for you.

>>Read the FastCompany article: Debt Lawsuits Are Complicated: This Website Makes Them Simpler To Navigate

>>Read the NPR story on SoloSuit. (We can help you in all 50 states.)

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