Private Eyes: Court Closures, Delays, and Updates

Private Eyes: Court Closures, Delays, and Updates

Read below to see the latest updates on Court Closures, Delays, and Updates.

Jurisdiction	State	Delay/Information as of 09/14/2020
Multiple UPDATED 7/16/2020	CA	Counties throughout the state are either closing or are severely limiting public entrance. We should expect significant delays in processing, particularly in areas that require clerk assistance. We have confirmed that the following courts will be closed to the public: Mariposa, Sacramento, San Luis Obispo, San Mateo
Los Angeles UPDATED 6/15/2020	CA	Courthouses are now implementing new safety protocols, and will be allowing the public to enter via appointment. We will continue processing searches, but please be advised that we still anticipate delays as access remains limited.
All UPDATED 07/06/2020	DC	In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, courts will now be closed to the public. Our local partner is working directly with court clerks to verify case information. Only orders that have potential records will be delayed, as they now require clerk assistance.
ALL UPDATED 8/05/2020	DE	Courts have resumed Phase 2 of their reopening plan, and are allowing limited visitation for the public. We will continue to process orders, but please be advised that we anticipate minor delays. Due to the heavy storms in the state yesterday, many court locations lost power, and researchers were unable to process requests. We expect minor delays as a result.
Multiple UPDATED 9/14/2020	GA	In an effort to reduce public exposure to COVID-19, courts in these counties will continue conducting only essential in-person business: Banks, Bibb, Chatham, Chattooga, Clayton, Emanuel, Hancock, Murray, Troup, Walton, Whitfield. On requests that require clerk assistance, we expect delays to continue. Gwinnett has now opened on a very limited basis. We are processing this county, but delays should continue to be expected.   While the vast majority of orders can be completely processed in Dekalb, anything requiring clerk assistance cannot be completed as the court itself is now closed until 10/11. The Supreme Court of GA has extended their judicial emergency until October 10th, and we are monitoring this state closely for updates. You can read the order by following the link below. https://www.gasupreme.us/extend-judicial-emergency/
ALL UPDATED 08/31/2020	KY	Many courts throughout the state are now allowing access by appointment only. These appointments are generally only for 30 minutes or 1 hour, so access will still be limited, and we should continue to expect delays in processing. Our local partners are monitoring closely, and we will provide updates as they are received. Daviess County has closed due to COVID exposure in the courts.
Multiple UPDATED 9/10/2020	LA	In response to the spread of COVID-19, courts are taking measures to limit public exposure. However, almost all courts are now open on at least a limited or by appointment basis. We will continue to expedite our pending orders as much as possible, but we still do anticipate longer than normal TATs. Due to Hurricanes Marco and Laura, many courts will be closed over the coming days, especially in the southern part of the state. For a more complete listing of those closures, you can follow this link: https://www.lasc.org/ The records system in Calcasieu Parish has been restored, and we are now processing here again.
ALL UPDATED 9/10/2020	MA	Courts have reopened today for allowing in-person business. While researchers will now have more access to the public terminals, we do still anticipate continued delays as we process the backlog of orders from the extended closures. Please be advised that the server hosting the records system has been experiencing intermittent outages, causing additional delays.
ALL UPDATED 6/22/2020	MI	In response to the spread of COVID-19, courts in MI are taking measures to limit public exposure. Following the governor’s stay-at-home order, all courts are operating with essential staff only. In areas that require clerks to assist with searches, delays should be expected. We are continuing to process orders in areas with remote access, where our researchers are able to access PATs in courts, and where clerks are willing to assist.
Multiple UPDATED 9/01/2020	MS	In response to the spread of COVID-19, courts are taking measures to limit public exposure. However, almost all courts are now open on at least a limited or by appointment basis. We will continue to expedite our pending orders as much as possible, but we still do anticipate longer than normal TATs. We have learned that Humphreys county courts are now closed due to court staff exposure to COVID-19.
ALL UPDATED 7/30/2020	NJ	All Superior Court locations are continue to remain closed to the public. We have been granted access to the new remote portal, and are processing on a limited basis. The new portal does have require an increased fee for use, so please contact your account manager for more information.
Multiple UPDATED 08/03/2020	NY	In response to the spread of COVID-19, courts are taking measures to limit public exposure. However, all courts are now open on at least a limited or by appointment basis. We will continue to expedite our pending orders as much as possible, but we still do anticipate longer than normal TATs.
ALL UPDATED 8/25/2020	TN	In response to the spread of COVID-19, courts are taking measures to limit public exposure. However, almost all courts are now open on at least a limited or by appointment basis. We will continue to expedite our pending orders as much as possible, but we still do anticipate longer than normal TATs. We have also learned that Benton, Haywood, and Sevier, TN have closed once again due to COVID-19 exposure in the courts.
Multiple UPDATED 8/28/2020	TX	Please be advised that for any in-person searches needed in the northern coastal counties there will be delays as courts are closing due to Hurricane Laura. These include Chambers, Hardin, Galveston, Jefferson, and Orange Counties, where there are currently mandatory evacuation orders in place.
ALL UPDATED 6/01/2020	VA	Courts have lifted some restrictions on in-person activity, and are now allowing some non-emergency matters to be handled at the courts. We are processing orders, but please be advised that we anticipate delays on orders requiring clerk assistance for verification.
ALL UPDATED 9/01/2020	WV	Most courts resumed in-person operations on 5/18. While we expect researchers will once again have access to conduct research, we also expect TATs will be extended until we are able to process the backlog of orders from the closures as many searches require clerk assistance. We have confirmed that Hampshire, WV has closed to researchers again, but clerks will process requests for a fee. We have also learned that Logan county has closed due to COVID-19 exposure in the courts. Braxton county is now requiring a notarized release from the individual being checked.