Georgia Court Records Online Guide

The Georgia trial court system consists of Superior Courts, State Courts, Magistrate Courts, Juvenile Courts, Probate Courts, Recorder's Courts, Municipal Courts, and Civil Courts.

Superior Courts have general jurisdiction over all types of cases, but typically only handle cases that are beyond the jurisdiction of other courts. Courts with limited jurisdiction over certain types of cases include State Courts, Magistrate Courts, Juvenile Courts, Probate Courts, Municipal Courts, Civil Courts and Recorder's Courts.

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Georgia Superior Courts

Superior Courts have general jurisdiction over all civil and criminal cases, but typically only handle cases that are beyond the jurisdiction of other courts.

Criminal cases heard by Superior Court include felonies and lesser-included offenses.

Civil cases heard by Superior Court include equity, title to real property and domestic relations.

Each Superior Court has a Family Court division with jurisdiction over divorce and related cases that involve children, such as child support, custody, child abuse, domestic violence, legitimacy and paternity.

Family Court divisions may hear other types of cases, including cases transferred to a Family Court division from other courts.

Georgia State Courts

State Courts have limited jurisdiction over certain types of civil and criminal cases.

Criminal cases handled by State Courts include misdemeanor criminal cases and traffic offenses.

Civil cases handled by State Courts include all civil actions not within the exclusive jurisdiction of Superior Courts.

State Courts may share some jurisdiction with other types of courts.

Georgia Magistrate Courts

Magistrate Courts have limited jurisdiction over certain types of civil and criminal cases. Magistrate Courts do not offer jury trials, and if a proper request is made for a jury trial, the case will be transferred to a Superior Court or State Court.

Criminal cases handled by Magistrate Courts include preliminary hearings, some minor criminal offenses and county ordinance violations.

Civil jurisdiction includes most general civil claims with less than $15,000 in dispute.

Cases typically handled by Magistrate Courts include landlord-tenant cases and deposit account fraud (bad checks).

Georgia Juvenile Courts

Juvenile Courts have exclusive original jurisdiction over cases involving children alleged to be delinquent, unruly, deprived, or in need of treatment due to mental illness or “mental retardation.”

Juvenile Courts also handle juvenile traffic offenses and cases involving judicial consent for minors when required for marriage, employment, enlistment, abortion and other circumstances.

Juvenile Courts may handle certain cases for termination of parental rights and other types of juvenile matters, including child custody, paternity or child support cases related to pending Juvenile Court cases or referred by another court.

Juvenile Courts share jurisdiction with Superior Courts over certain crimes committed by juveniles, but Juvenile Courts do not have jurisdiction over certain serious criminal cases that are within the exclusive jurisdiction of Superior Courts, such as murder, rape and armed robbery.

Georgia Probate Courts

Probate Courts have exclusive original jurisdiction to handle cases involving the probate of wills, the administration of estates, guardianships of minors or “incompetent” persons, and other types of probate cases.

If authorization is granted to a Probate Court, other cases may be heard, including some traffic cases, some fish and game ordinance violations, and some criminal commitment hearings.

Georgia Recorder's Courts

Recorder's Courts handle traffic infractions, city and county ordinance violations, some criminal cases and preliminary hearings for criminal cases.

Georgia Municipal Courts

Some municipalities have established Municipal Courts with limited jurisdiction to handle municipal ordinance violations and preliminary hearings for certain criminal cases.

Some Municipal Courts may share jurisdiction with other courts for certain minor criminal offenses.

Georgia Civil Courts

Some counties have Civil Courts that handle civil cases involving less than $25,000 in dispute. Civil Courts may offer jury trials to eligible cases.

Georgia Accountability Courts

Some Georgia Courts have special divisions for certain types of cases. These divisions are generally referred to as Accountability Courts but are part of existing courts. Accountability Courts offer comprehensive social services as an alternative to incarceration or other penalties in certain types of criminal and juvenile cases.

Accountability Courts focus on rehabilitation and personal responsibility. Various types of Accountability Courts exist and the services offered vary across the state. Accountability Courts include Adult/Felony Drug Courts, DUI Courts, Juvenile Drug Courts, Family Dependency Treatment Courts, Mental Health Courts, Juvenile Mental Health Courts, Child Support Problem Solving Courts, and Veterans Courts.

Adult/Felony Drug Courts are currently available in the judicial circuits of Appalachian, Atlanta, Atlantic, Augusta, Bell-Forsyth, Brunswick, Chattahoochee, Cherokee, Clayton, Cobb, Conasauga, Coweta, Dubln, Eastern, Enotah, Griffin, Gwinnett, Macon, Mountain, Northeastern, Ocmulgee, Ogeechee, Pataula, Piedmont, Stone Mountain, Tallapoosa, Towaliga, Waycross and Western.

DUI Courts are currently available in the judicial circuits of Atlanta, Augusta, Bell-Forsyth, Blue Ridge, Clayton, Cobb, Coweta, Eastern, Flint, Gwinnett, Northeastern, Ogeechee, Rockdale, Stone Mountain and Western.

Family Dependency Treatment Courts are currently available in the judicial circuits of Appalachian, Atlanta, Cherokee, Cobb, Coweta, Douglas, Eastern, Enotah and Northeastern.

Juvenile Drug Courts are currently available in the judicial circuits of Alcovy, Appalachian, Atlanta, Bell-Forsyth, Chattahoochee, Cobb, Coweta, Dublin, Macon, Ocmulgee, Rockdale and Stone Mountain.

Mental Health Courts are currently available in the judicial circuits of Appalachian, Atlanta, Chattahoochee, Dougherty, Eastern, Flint, Macon, Northeastern, Piedmont, Stone Mountain and Western.

Juvenile Mental Health Courts are currently available in the judicial circuits of Eastern and Stone Mountain.

Child Support Problem Solving Courts are currently available in the judicial circuits of Coweta and Western.

A Veterans Court is currently available in the Towaliga Judicial Circuit.

Where to find court cases in Georgia

The chart below gives general information on the types of cases heard in each type of court in Georgia.

= Most or all cases.

= Some cases.

Case Type	Court Type
Civil	Superior Courts	State Courts	Magistrate Courts	Juvenile Courts	Probate Courts	Recorder's Courts	Municipal Courts	Civil Courts
General Civil - Unlimited
General Civil - Limited
Small Claims
Civil Equity
Complex Commercial
Foreclosures and Liens
Real Estate Title and Boundary
Landlord / Tenant
Ordinance Violations						$Most or all Ordinance Violations cases can be found in the Recorder\'s Courts$
Protection, No Contact, and Restraining Orders
Administrative Agency Appeals
Criminal	Superior Courts	State Courts	Magistrate Courts	Juvenile Courts	Probate Courts	Recorder's Courts	Municipal Courts	Civil Courts
Felony
Felony Preliminary Hearings						$Some Felony Preliminary Hearings cases can be found in the Recorder\'s Courts$
Misdemeanors						$Some Misdemeanors cases can be found in the Recorder\'s Courts$
Ordinance Violations						$Some Ordinance Violations cases can be found in the Recorder\'s Courts$
Juvenile
Traffic and Infractions		$Some Traffic and Infractions cases can be found in the State Courts$	$Most or all Traffic and Infractions cases can be found in the Magistrate Courts$	$Some Traffic and Infractions cases can be found in the Juvenile Courts$	$Some Traffic and Infractions cases can be found in the Probate Courts$	$Most or all Traffic and Infractions cases can be found in the Recorder\'s Courts$	$Most or all Traffic and Infractions cases can be found in the Municipal Courts$
Domestic Relations	Superior Courts	State Courts	Magistrate Courts	Juvenile Courts	Probate Courts	Recorder's Courts	Municipal Courts	Civil Courts
Divorce
Child Custody and Visitation
Child Support
Paternity
Domestic Violence Protection Order
Juvenile	Superior Courts	State Courts	Magistrate Courts	Juvenile Courts	Probate Courts	Recorder's Courts	Municipal Courts	Civil Courts
Adoptions
Juvenile Delinquency
Child Abuse and Neglect
Termination of Parental Rights
Children in Need of Supervision
Mental Health	Superior Courts	State Courts	Magistrate Courts	Juvenile Courts	Probate Courts	Recorder's Courts	Municipal Courts	Civil Courts
Involuntary Commitments
Other Mental Health Cases
Probate	Superior Courts	State Courts	Magistrate Courts	Juvenile Courts	Probate Courts	Recorder's Courts	Municipal Courts	Civil Courts
Wills & Estates
Name Changes
Trusts
Guardianships and Conservatorships

The Guide to Georgia Court Records