Washington County Circuit Clerk Office
Circuit Clerk Valerie Bailey, also listed as Valerie Knapp in the Alabama Secretary of State official directory, leads the local office. Her official Circuit Clerk biography says she began a 20-year career as a court specialist after high school, studied court reporting, co-owned a court-reporting business, and served as official court reporter for a First Judicial Circuit judge. She ran for the office in 2012 and became the first woman elected Circuit Clerk in Washington County history.
The Circuit Clerk serves both Circuit Court and District Court. Court specialists help provide public court-record information, and an in-office public access computer is available for searches. The office is the direct local channel when a person lacks a case number, needs an older or non-digitized file, or wants a plain or certified copy. It is also the right place to confirm whether a restricted file can be released.
Washington County Circuit Clerk
Circuit Clerk: Valerie Bailey
45 Court Street
Chatom, AL 36518-0548
Mail: P.O. Box 548, Chatom, AL 36518-0548
(251) 847-2239
Monday-Friday, 8:00 a.m.-4:30 p.m.
The Circuit Clerk profile is preserved in this official Washington County court source.
The local biography gives Washington County record access a named official and a specific history, rather than a generic clerk function.
Washington County Circuit Clerk Duties
The Circuit Clerk receives and maintains pleadings, orders, case action summaries, judgments, and other filings for the county's circuit and district cases. Those records span criminal, civil, small claims, state traffic, domestic relations, and child-support matters. The office collects filing charges and court costs, processes requests for copies and certification, and helps the public identify the court record associated with a party name or case number.
- Maintain Circuit Court and District Court case files and docket information.
- Provide access to the public computer and assist with public record information.
- Collect local filing charges, copy charges, certification fees, and court costs.
- Process state traffic correspondence, payments, proof, and court compliance through the supported channels.
- Direct users to statewide court forms and Alabama court information.
Probate Judge Nick Williams is a separate custodian for probate cases, recorded land documents, marriage certificate recording, and related county duties. Sheriff Richard Stringer and the Sheriff's Office handle sheriff service, jail, booking, warrant, and law-enforcement record questions rather than Circuit Clerk case copies. City ordinance and city traffic matters may belong to Chatom or McIntosh Municipal Court. Checking the court named on a notice prevents a request from being sent to the wrong Washington County office.
Request Certified Washington County Copies
A certified copy carries the Circuit Clerk's certification that the copy matches the court record. It may be needed when an agency, another court, or a legal process requires official proof. An online case detail or screen print is not the same as a clerk-certified document. No universal Washington County court-record request form was located, so the safest method is to confirm the current request and payment procedure with the office first.
- Identify the court, case number, party names, and document needed. If the case number is unknown, use the public access computer or paid statewide name search.
- Call the Washington County Circuit Clerk to confirm that the record is public, the page count if known, and whether the request may be handled by mail.
- State clearly that certification is required. Ask for the total copy and certification charge and the accepted form of payment before sending funds.
- Submit the request at the counter or by the method confirmed by staff. Include return-mail information if the office approves a mail request.
- Check the seal or certification statement when the copy arrives and keep it intact for the agency or proceeding that requested it.
Washington County's local fee schedule charges for the copied pages and a separate certification. The clerk can also explain if a confidential, sealed, expunged, or juvenile record requires party status or a court order before any copy can be issued.
Washington County Request Details
Because research found no county-specific universal request form, the table separates confirmed statewide search controls from practical identifiers the Circuit Clerk needs to locate a record. It does not label an unconfirmed field as mandatory. Providing the case number is the best way to distinguish people with similar names and shorten a Washington County records search.
| Detail or control | Status | Use |
|---|---|---|
| Case Number Search | Confirmed Alacourt mode | Use when the exact court case number is known. |
| Name Search | Confirmed Alacourt mode | Use when the number is unknown; a paid no-match result still counts as a search. |
| Party names | Practical identifier | Give full names and useful spelling variants to clerk staff. |
| Document and certification | Practical request detail | Name the order, judgment, complaint, or other document and say whether certification is needed. |
| Copies and delivery | Confirm with clerk | Ask about page count, number of sets, payment, pickup, and approved mail procedure. |
Alacourt ACCESS / Just One Look is the official paid statewide trial-court search. Its case detail can include status, settings, parties, court actions, financial history, and the case action summary. The county courthouse computer remains the strongest local fallback when paid access is unsuitable or a search needs staff help.
Washington County Circuit Clerk Fees
The Washington County court-cost schedule provides confirmed charges for copies, certification, common civil filings, and sheriff service. The amount depends on case type and claim range, so a filer should identify the correct division before paying. These are Circuit Clerk court fees, not Probate Office recording charges.
| Item | Amount |
|---|---|
| Copies, first 1-20 pages per case | $5 |
| Each copy page after 20 | $0.50 |
| Certification | $5 |
| Small claims, $1,500 or less | $94 |
| District civil $6,000.01-$20,000 or unlawful detainer | $293 |
| Domestic relations original filing | $244 |
| Washington County Sheriff service | $25 |
Alacourt's separate online rates include $9.99 for a name search and $9.99 for a case-number search. Document images are listed at $5 for the first 20 pages and $0.50 per page after that. Case monitoring is $19.99 for district cases and $29.99 for circuit cases. Online access and clerk certification serve different needs.
Washington County Court Forms
The local court site points users to Alabama's judicial system for state court forms and legal or court information. AlaFile supports electronic filing by registered Alabama attorneys, account managers, self-represented individuals, and self-represented businesses. It is an e-filing system, not a free public court-record search.
- Alabama court forms for state civil, district, domestic, criminal, and related procedures.
- AlaFile registration and e-filing for supported registered user types.
- Online Traffic Resolution requests and proof submissions for eligible Washington County citations.
Traffic matters use several official channels. Eligible fines may be paid through Alapay. A mailed guilty plea must be signed on the back of the ticket and sent with a money order or cashier's check to the Circuit Clerk's post office box. Personal checks are not accepted. OTR requests must reach the system seven days before the court date, and a not-guilty plea requires appearance on the citation's court date.
State and Federal Clerk Boundaries
The Washington County Circuit Clerk keeps Alabama state Circuit Court and District Court files. The office does not keep federal district or bankruptcy records. Washington County is served federally by the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Alabama, whose official court site provides federal court information.
A case filed under federal jurisdiction must be requested from the federal clerk or searched in PACER, not from the Washington County Circuit Clerk.
The federal court's Mobile courthouse location page lists the official clerk location and public terminal schedule.
The Mobile federal courthouse is at 155 Saint Joseph Street and operates separately from the Washington County courthouse in Chatom.
Washington County and Federal Dockets
Federal electronic filing and public docket access are described on the Southern District's CM/ECF and PACER information page.
CM/ECF serves federal filing and electronic service, while PACER supplies official federal docket and document access. The PACER lookup for the Alabama Southern District identifies the correct federal court system.
This boundary prevents a federal docket request from being misdirected to the Washington County Circuit Clerk and keeps county record access focused on state cases.