Requesting Public Records

Public access to records of the Virginia Judiciary, including records of judicial officers, is governed by Part Eleven of the Rules of Supreme Court of Virginia. As provided in the Rules, Part Eleven applies “to records of judicial officers and administrative records.”  Part Eleven “does not apply to case records, including the records maintained by the clerks of the courts of record, as defined in Virginia Code § 1-212, and courts not of record, as defined in Virginia Code § 16.1-69.5.  Such records are open to inspection as provided for in Titles 16.1 and 17.1 of the Code of Virginia, subject to any prohibitions or restrictions of any applicable law or court order.”

Public Records Maintained by the Office of the Executive Secretary

Request for records of judicial officers and administrative records should be made in accordance with the procedures set forth in Part Eleven of the Rules of Supreme Court of Virginia. Publicly accessible records maintained by the Office of the Executive Secretary of the Supreme Court of Virginia may be requested from the Director of Legislative and Public Relations, Office of the Executive Secretary, Supreme Court of Virginia, 100 North 9th Street, Richmond, Va. 23219; Tel. 804-786-6455.

Public Records Maintained by Clerks of Court

Public records maintained by a clerk of court, including nonconfidential court records maintained in individual case files, should be requested from the clerk of court.  Information on requesting records from a clerk of court is available in the document Requesting Public Records from Clerks of Court.