Philadelphia County Court Docket Records
Philadelphia County is Pennsylvania's most populous county and operates as a consolidated city-county, meaning the City of Philadelphia and Philadelphia County share the same governmental boundaries. The county is served by the First Judicial District of Pennsylvania, one of the busiest court systems in the Commonwealth. Court records in Philadelphia span criminal, civil, family, and orphans court matters and are maintained across several court divisions. Residents, attorneys, and researchers can access Philadelphia court dockets online through both the statewide UJS Portal and the Philadelphia Courts website, which provides direct access to case records filed in the city.
Philadelphia County Quick Facts
First Judicial District of Pennsylvania
Philadelphia County is home to the First Judicial District of Pennsylvania, which encompasses the Philadelphia Court of Common Pleas and the Philadelphia Municipal Court. The First Judicial District is one of the largest and most active judicial districts in the state, handling hundreds of thousands of case filings annually. The Court of Common Pleas is divided into several specialized divisions including Criminal, Civil, Family, and Orphans Court. Each division maintains its own docket records, though many of these records are accessible through a unified search interface available to the public.
The administrative structure of the First Judicial District differs from most other Pennsylvania counties because Philadelphia functions as a consolidated city-county. This means there is no separate county government distinct from the city government. As a result, court administration in Philadelphia is handled somewhat differently than in the Commonwealth's other 66 counties, with the Philadelphia Courts website serving as a central hub for court information and some record access.
Note: The First Judicial District handles the highest volume of filings in Pennsylvania; some older records may require an in-person visit to the Clerk of Courts office to obtain complete documentation.
Philadelphia Court of Common Pleas
The Philadelphia Court of Common Pleas is the trial court of general jurisdiction for Philadelphia County and handles a broad range of matters. The Criminal Division processes felony and misdemeanor cases, while the Civil Division handles disputes involving larger monetary claims and complex civil litigation. The Family Court Division manages domestic relations matters including custody, support, and juvenile cases. The Orphans Court Division handles estate matters, guardianships, adoptions, and trusts.
Court of Common Pleas dockets for Philadelphia are accessible through the UJS Web Portal, which is the statewide system maintained by the Pennsylvania courts. Criminal dockets filed in the Court of Common Pleas can be searched by name or docket number through this portal, and the results include filed charges, court dates, attorney information, and case dispositions.
The Philadelphia Court of Common Pleas website provides additional resources specific to each division, including forms, local rules, and contact information for each court section.
The Court of Common Pleas divisions each maintain separate docketing systems, though the UJS Portal provides a consolidated access point for most publicly available records.
Note: Civil Division dockets filed before the transition to electronic filing may require direct contact with the Prothonotary's office at the courthouse to retrieve complete case documents.
Philadelphia Municipal Court
The Philadelphia Municipal Court handles a significant portion of the caseload for Philadelphia County, including preliminary hearings for criminal matters, summary offense trials, and civil claims up to $12,000. Municipal Court is often where individuals first interact with the Philadelphia court system following an arrest or citation. Summary offense cases, which include minor traffic violations and certain low-level infractions, are typically resolved entirely within Municipal Court without proceeding to the Court of Common Pleas.
Municipal Court dockets are searchable through the UJS Case Search tool using the Magisterial District Judge (MDJ) docket lookup. Philadelphia Municipal Court uses the statewide Magisterial District Judge System (MDJS) for tracking cases at this level, even though Philadelphia Municipal Court is a distinct court not found in other Pennsylvania counties.
The Philadelphia Municipal Court website provides information on filing fees, hearing procedures, and how to contest a judgment entered in a civil matter.
Municipal Court cases involving civil claims are heard before a Municipal Court judge and may be appealed to the Court of Common Pleas for a trial de novo.
Note: Municipal Court cases in Philadelphia require a different search pathway within the UJS Portal system than Court of Common Pleas cases; verify the correct court level before searching.
Searching the UJS Portal for Philadelphia Records
The UJS Web Portal provides free public access to court docket information for cases filed in Philadelphia County across multiple court levels. Users can search for dockets by entering a party name, docket number, or other identifying information. The portal returns results from both the Court of Common Pleas Criminal Management System (CPCMS) and the Magisterial District Judge System (MDJS), covering the majority of publicly available Philadelphia court records.
When searching for Philadelphia cases, it is important to note that both CPCMS and MDJS records may return results for the same individual. A criminal case typically begins in the MDJS system at the preliminary hearing stage and then moves to CPCMS once it is bound over to the Court of Common Pleas. Researchers should check both systems to get a complete picture of a case's procedural history.
The UJS Portal is updated regularly as new case information is entered by court staff, though there may be short delays between court activity and its appearance in the online system.
Note: Search results from the UJS Portal reflect publicly available docket data and may not include sealed, expunged, or restricted records as defined under Pennsylvania court rules.
Philadelphia Clerk of Courts
The Philadelphia Clerk of Courts maintains official court records for criminal cases filed in the Philadelphia Court of Common Pleas. The Clerk of Courts office is responsible for storing and managing case files, recording court orders and judgments, and providing certified copies of documents to parties and the public. The Philadelphia Courts website offers online access to certain court records and provides detailed information about how to request documents in person or by mail.
For cases where online access is limited or where certified copies are required, individuals may visit the Clerk of Courts office in person at the Criminal Justice Center in Philadelphia. The office can provide complete case files including charging documents, motions, orders, and sentencing information. Copy fees are charged at the standard rate of $0.25 per page for non-certified documents, with higher fees applying for certified copies and raised-seal certifications.
The Philadelphia Courts website serves as the primary online resource for court information and record access in Philadelphia County.
Note: The Prothonotary's office maintains civil court records separately from the Clerk of Courts, which handles criminal records; contact the correct office based on the type of case you are researching.
Criminal History Records and PATCH
Individuals seeking a comprehensive criminal history record for a person who has been involved in the Philadelphia court system may also use the Pennsylvania Access to Criminal History (PATCH) system. The PATCH system is maintained by the Pennsylvania State Police and provides statewide criminal history record information compiled from court records across all 67 Pennsylvania counties, including Philadelphia. PATCH records are based on final dispositions reported to the state and may differ somewhat from the active docket records maintained in the UJS Portal.
PATCH is commonly used for background check purposes and provides a summary-level criminal history report rather than the full docket details available through the UJS Portal. The system charges a modest fee per record request and is accessible online through the Pennsylvania State Police website. For researchers who need both procedural history and final disposition data, combining PATCH results with UJS Portal searches provides the most complete picture of an individual's court involvement in Philadelphia.
Note: PATCH records reflect only Pennsylvania criminal history and do not include federal court records, out-of-state records, or civil matters filed in Philadelphia courts.
Public Records Access and Court Docket Sheets
Pennsylvania courts operate under a presumption of public access to court records, as established by the Pennsylvania courts public records policy. Court dockets in Philadelphia are generally available to the public unless a judge has issued a specific order restricting access, or unless the records fall under a statutory exemption such as those protecting juvenile records, certain family court filings, or cases where expungement has been granted.
A court docket sheet in Philadelphia County contains a structured summary of everything that has happened in a case from initiation through final resolution. For criminal cases in the Court of Common Pleas, the docket sheet includes the original charges, all motions filed, court dates, bail conditions, attorney appearances, plea information, verdicts, and sentencing details. Docket numbers in Philadelphia follow specific formatting conventions: Court of Common Pleas criminal dockets begin with "CP-51," Municipal Court dockets use "MC-51," and summary offense dockets use "MJ-51."
Court statistics for Philadelphia and the rest of Pennsylvania are published periodically by the Administrative Office of Pennsylvania Courts and are available through the Pennsylvania courts statistics page. These reports provide aggregate data on filings, dispositions, and case trends across all court levels in the First Judicial District and statewide.
Note: Expunged records are removed from public access and will not appear in UJS Portal searches; if you believe a record should have been expunged, contact the Clerk of Courts directly for assistance.
Nearby Counties
Researchers looking into court dockets for counties adjacent to Philadelphia can access records for Montgomery, Delaware, and Bucks counties through the same UJS Portal.