Jefferson County, AL Courts and Public Records

The Jefferson County Circuit and District Courts serve as the county's trial courts through the Birmingham and Bessemer Divisions of the 10th Judicial Circuit, handling felonies, misdemeanors, traffic cases, civil and small claims disputes, family matters, and juvenile cases.

Have the person's full name, the case number if you know it, and the approximate dates ready before you search. Jefferson County cases are kept by the Circuit Clerk in the Birmingham or Bessemer Division.

Jefferson County's Circuit and District Courts together are estimated to have received ~92,044 new cases in FY 2025 and disposed of ~87,067, based on FY 2023 reports and the Alabama AOC's 2025 civil dashboard. Civil filings changed +14.5% and family law filings +11.2% from FY 2024.

The civil docket drove the change, moving from ~34,054 to ~38,996 filings.

Total filings in Jefferson County are estimated to be higher in FY 2025 than in FY 2023, with the two newest years estimated from the Alabama AOC's 2025 civil dashboard.

Over the five years shown, filings moved +21.2% between FY 2021 and FY 2025, from 75,959 to ~92,044. The largest annual change was FY 2024. In FY 2025, civil filings changed +14.5% and family law filings +11.2%, while criminal and juvenile filings are held at their FY 2023 level.

Criminal cases are estimated to make up the largest share of Jefferson County filings in FY 2025, at 46.5% of the ~92,044 filed.

Circuit civil was the fastest-growing category at ~+14.5%, while criminal was the slowest at ~+0.0%.

Jefferson County is estimated to account for 11.50% of the ~800,306 cases filed in Alabama circuit and district courts in FY 2025. Its filings are estimated to change faster than statewide filings.

Jefferson County has a less criminal-heavy docket than the state as a whole. It files fewer cases per resident than Alabama overall.

These are the crimes reported to the FBI in 2025 by the 34 law enforcement agencies in Jefferson County, added together. For the agencies with both years on file, violent crimes fell 6.2% and property crimes fell 4.0% from 2024.

Jefferson County's violent crime rate of 592.0 per 100K is above the Alabama rate of 350.4, and its property crime rate of 2,543.6 is above the state's 1,479.4.

Jefferson County has 4 court locations in 2 cities, 3 in Birmingham and 1 in Bessemer. Check your notice or ticket for the division and courtroom before you go, and use the Find My Courtroom page on the court website if you are unsure.

Jefferson County's Circuit and District Courts sit in two divisions, Birmingham and Bessemer, and your citation or notice shows which one has your case. Federal cases are filed in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Alabama.

Yes, most Jefferson County court records are public. Alabama's Rules of Court-Record Privacy and Confidentiality (Rule 104) give the public the right to inspect and copy court records unless a law, rule, or court order says otherwise.

Public records

Most case files in the Circuit and District Courts are open, including dockets, filings, and orders in criminal, traffic, civil, small claims, and domestic relations cases.

Restricted or confidential records

Sealed records and records the rules list as confidential are not available without a court order. The Family Court states that juvenile proceedings and records are confidential, and grand jury records, youthful offender records, and presentence reports are also protected.

Online access

Alacourt public access lets you look up case dockets for Alabama circuit and district courts. Online results show docket information, not every document, and restricted or closed cases are not shown. Traffic and criminal fines can be paid at Alapay.com.

In-person access

Visit the Circuit Clerk at the Jefferson County Courthouse, 716 Richard Arrington Jr. Blvd. N., Birmingham, or the Bessemer Justice Center, 1851 Second Avenue North, Bessemer, to view or request records. Call (205) 325-5355 in Birmingham or (205) 497-8510 in Bessemer to confirm which office holds your case.

Fees

The Circuit Clerk's office notes that on-demand access to Alabama trial court records through alacourt.gov carries required fees. The court website lists filing fees for circuit civil, district civil, and domestic relations cases, and the clerk can quote fees for copies and other record requests.

Use the official Alabama portals to search Jefferson County cases by case type, and ask the Circuit Clerk for documents that are not online.

1. Identify the case type, such as criminal, traffic, civil, small claims, family law, or juvenile, and whether it is in the Birmingham or Bessemer Division.
2. Open Alacourt public access for circuit and district court dockets, or the Jefferson County court website at jefferson.alacourt.gov.
3. Search by party name or case number and note the case number from the results.
4. Review the docket for case status, parties, and scheduled dates.
5. Contact the Circuit Clerk at (205) 325-5355 in Birmingham or (205) 497-8510 in Bessemer to request documents that are not online.

Jefferson County traffic tickets can be paid online, by phone, or by mail, depending on the ticket and the division that issued it.

1. Online: Pay traffic tickets and district criminal cases at Alapay.com.
2. Phone: Pay with a credit or debit card by calling (877) 252-7294, and make sure the payment reaches the clerk before your court date.
3. Mail: Sign the guilty plea on your copy of the ticket and mail a money order or cashier's check with it. In Birmingham, send it to District Criminal Court, 207 Mel Bailey Criminal Justice Center, 801 Richard Arrington Jr. Blvd. North, Birmingham, AL 35203; in Bessemer, send it to the Clerk at 1851 Second Ave North, Bessemer, AL 35020. Personal checks are not accepted.
4. Alabama Traffic Service Center: Visit traffic.alacourt.gov or call (866) 954-9399 with questions or to pay, or call the clerk for fine amounts at (205) 325-5309 in Birmingham or (205) 497-8510 in Bessemer.
5. Extensions and driving school (Birmingham Division): The court allows 90 days to pay without penalty and accepts partial payments, and an extension request must be filed with the Circuit Clerk at least 10 days before the 90 days end. Defensive driving school may be an option if you are approved at traffic.alacourt.gov.

Parking tickets are handled by the agency that issued them, not by this court's Traffic Division. Fines and costs may be higher if you do not pay before your court date.