Washington D.C. Court Docket Search

District of Columbia Court Docket Search

Court dockets are an important part of the judicial system in the District of Columbia. They are a repository of all case information and enable easy retrieval and lookup. Dockets may be considered an aggregation of District of Columbia court records that can be referenced at any point in a judicial proceeding. They are typically used for:

Scheduling: Court dockets help in planning and organizing pending hearings, trials, and other activities that would take place in a court. It informs judges, attorneys, and the involved entities of when a hearing will take place.
Public records: Court records are part of the public records in the District of Columbia per the D.C. Freedom of Information Act. Therefore, interested members of the public can access and use the information in court dockets in legal ways.
Case management and organization: Courts receive numerous cases which can be difficult to classify and organize without a proper database. Cases are arranged according to dockets and available electronically via docket numbers assigned to each court docket report.
Case tracking: Retrieving information and monitoring the development of a case is faster and easier with a court docket. Researchers can track a case by obtaining details about the docket without hassle.

In Washington DC, a court docket search can be performed by contacting the administrative office of the clerk in charge of the docket or entering the docket number into the online database of a public or privately owned repository. The website of the U.S. District Court provides the public with the information and links needed to perform a successful court docket lookup. Alternatively, third-party websites offering the service can also be used to look up court dockets to retrieve the needed information, including the involved parties, case type, case location, attorneys, and judges' information.

What is a Court Docket in the District of Columbia?

A court docket has divergent meanings, depending on how it is used in a context. In most legal contexts, a court docket implies the outline of every proceeding in a court of law. It can also be used interchangeably with court calendars in other legal definitions and indicates the schedule of activities in a court. The following are some of the court dockets available in a court:

Civil and Arrest Dockets
Criminal Dockets
Civil Dockets
Equity Dockets
Misc Dockets
Case Files
Attorney Records
Letters of Attorney
Roles of Attorney
Orders of the Court
Petit Juries
Witness Documentation
Judgement Documentation
Jury Records and Files

Furthermore, court dockets are essential in case management and tracking since they make it easier for cases to be classified and organized accordingly. When a person is sued, the clerk opens a docket for the case to keep proceedings and let interested persons access them.

Conversely, court dockets can also be sealed, deleted, and made inaccessible to protect the interests of the parties involved in the case. These cases usually involve underages, national interests, trade secrets, etc.

Are Court Dockets Public Record in the District of Columbia?

According to the D.C. Freedom of Information Act, court dockets are public records in the District of Columbia. These records are available to the public for inspection and usage in legal ways, although not all court records are accessible to the public. However, court dockets can be partially or totally inaccessible to the public, depending on their nature and content.

Where to Find a Court Docket in the District of Columbia?

Interested persons can find a court docket in the District of Columbia offline or online. Getting a court docket offline involves visiting the custodian court (where the case occurs) and picking up a Request Form to request the docket. The person can also contact or meet the clerk for guidance before visiting the court. The information page of the U.S. District Court's official website contains the clerk's contact details and links to other courts.

Alternatively, court dockets can be found online by visiting the website of the custodian court through the following links:

Some third-party platforms on the internet that helps to locate courts in a region in the U.S. can also be utilized to locate a court in D.C.

National databases such as Public Access to Court Electronic Records (PACER) also provide access to databases of cases in the U.S. and can be used to perform an extensive search for a docket, especially when it appears unavailable on the state records. Also, private websites and portals not affiliated with the government should not be neglected in the search. However, the information provided by these types of websites cannot be relied upon since they might not have the updated version of the dockets for open cases.

How to Conduct a District of Columbia Court Docket Search

Conducting a court docket search in the District of Columbia can be done physically by visiting the custodian court or on the internet. The clerk of the custodian court is charged with keeping and providing needed information about court dockets available in the court.

Interested persons can contact the main clerk of the D.C. court via the below-listed telephone between 9:00 am and 4:00 pm from Monday to Friday:

Clerk's Office (Main): (202) 354-3000
General questions: (202) 354-3120
Civil Cases: (202) 354-3190
Criminal Cases: (202) 354-3060

Researchers can search for court dockets via the internet on government or third-party non-government affiliated websites for free or by subscription. There are two main government websites available for this search in the District of Columbia, these are:

United States District Court Website: The website is the official platform to search for court dockets and report other legal issues in D.C. The website provides links to contact the clerk's office, other courts, and databases to access court records. Announcements regarding the legal system in D.C. are also made on the website.
Public Access to Court Electronic Records (PACER): PACER is the official national database for court dockets in the U.S. The website of D.C. also provides a link to the Portal as Case Locator. The Portal offers access to records of court dockets across the United States for a one-time subscription.

Apart from the two platforms mentioned above, several websites not affiliated with the government can assist with searching for court dockets in D.C. However, the accuracy of their data may be questionable.

What Do Court Dockets Contain in the District of Columbia?

Court dockets typically contain information regarding a particular case in D.C. The information differs according to the type of court dockets and the data available to the court when it is created. The information in dockets is also altered as the case drags on; hence, it is advisable to contact the clerk of a court to obtain the latest details in a docket:

Nevertheless, some of the information contained in a court docket include the following:

Docket number: The docket number or case number is the first information found in a docket. This unique code given to a docket differentiates it from others of the same group.
Details of parties involved: The details of the plaintiff (s) and defendants involved in the case must reflect in the docket. Only the names of the involved parties are included in most cases to protect their privacy.
Case Type: A docket signifies the type of case, which could be criminal, civil, tax, felony, etc. The corresponding abbreviation in some dockets may represent the type of case; the meaning can be looked up on the internet.
Details of attorneys, juries, lawyers, and other legal representatives: A court docket also contains details and actions of every legal personnel involved in the case. The details of each legal personnel (names and contacts) are placed beside the party they represent.
Filing date: A docket also provides information about the date the case was filed and subsequent filing dates.
Docket proceedings: Interested persons can retrieve full information about the development of the case, including trials and pending hearings. For closed cases, the docket would include orders and decisions taken by the court.
Details of the court: A docket provides information about where the case was heard. The docket would also indicate if the case was transferred to another court.
Pending hearings: Interested persons can also look up the time, location, and venue for the hearing of adjourned cases.
Status of docket: A docket can be opened (active) or closed (inactive); this information can also be obtained from the docket.

What is a Court Docket Number in the District of Columbia?

A docket number is a unique number given to each in a court of law in D.C. and is also called the case number. It helps track and sort court dockets in a court. The number consists of a 6-digit number, although it might include some other parts for accuracy. Hence, it is formatted using the case year, case number, and case type (optional).

2020-AMP-000001 or 2020AMP000001 is an example of a docket number in the District of Columbia. The number can be written with or without the dash. In some cases, extra information may be needed and written in parentheses on the source data, e.g. 2020-CA-000001-L(R.P.). While performing a lookup, the researcher must enter it as 2020-CA- 000001-LRP or 2020CA000001LRP.

In addition, a docket number performs several functions, which include:

Identification of the parties involved in a case
Identification of the type of case
Tracking and monitoring the progress and status of a case
Finding the location and time a case will be heard

How to Conduct a Court Docket Number Lookup in the District of Columbia

Interested persons can conduct a court docket lookup in the District of Columbia on the websites of the court record custodian. To do this, inquirers must first find the custodian of the court record or case information and their website. Links to the websites of each court in the District of Columbia can be found on the website of the D.C. court.

If the case concerns the D.C. Superior Court, then Portal can be used to search. Portal is a database developed by the Superior Court to enable interested persons to easily access court dockets, including images of certain case documents, via their docket numbers.

Accessing the Portal does not require any registration and is free to use. The database also provides dockets on all cases, including civil, criminal, domestic violence, family (domestic relations), probate, office of the auditor master, and tax. However, not all case dockets are uploaded on the website, and the former eAccess should be checked for unavailable dockets on Portal.

Researchers can also physically perform docket number lookups by contacting the clerk of the custodian court and the docket number or any other acceptable information for the search. This process usually attracts a fee determined by the clerk and the nature of the case.

Certain cases may be unavailable while performing a docket number lookup as they may have been expunged or sealed by the court. The court clerk should be contacted to get more information about these dockets and how to recover them.