Seminole County Clerk of the Circuit Court

The Clerk and County Structure

Seminole County uses a unified Clerk of the Circuit Court and Comptroller, not a split county-clerk and district-clerk model. Grant Maloy was elected to the office in November 2016 and began serving in January 2017. The office wears several hats at once: court record-keeper, county recorder, clerk to the Board of County Commissioners, and comptroller. That one office handles court files, recorded documents, and county finances.

The Clerk's "About Your Clerk" page, shown below from the Seminole Clerk about page, lists the office's duties.

Court Record Duties

As Clerk of the Circuit Court, the office runs the court record system. Its court duties include attending hearings and trials, filing indictments and verdicts, processing all civil and criminal cases, preparing appellate records, and managing the jury system. The Clerk also collects and disburses fines, costs, and fees, conducts mortgage foreclosure sales, maintains evidence entered by the court, and assists with small-claims and protective-injunction paperwork.

The office keeps the court registry, audits guardianship reports, and audits child-support payments. In short, almost every step of a court case touches the Clerk at some point, from filing to final disposition. That is why the Clerk's portals, not the courtroom, are where the public reads a case. The court hears the matter, and the Clerk records and posts what happened.

County Recorder Duties

The Clerk is also the County Recorder. In that role, the office records and indexes deeds, mortgages, tax deed applications, public defender liens, judgments, tax liens, claims against estates, conveyances, contracts, maps, plats, and surveys. The Official Records include deeds, mortgages, notices of commencement, liens, declarations, final judgments, military discharges, death certificates, and probate documents.

These recorded documents are searched through the Clerk's Official Records system, shown below from the Official Records search.

Comptroller and Board Duties

The third role is financial. As Comptroller and Clerk to the Board of County Commissioners, the office keeps board minutes, Value Adjustment Board records, an open-checkbook financial record, and other county administration files. This is why a Value Adjustment Board petition or a county financial record runs through the same office that holds court files.

For most people searching court or property records, the comptroller side matters little. But it explains why the Clerk's site links jury duty, payments, county finance, and board records all in one place. The Value Adjustment Board, which hears property-value disputes, is one example: its petitions and fees flow through the Clerk because the office serves the Board.

Clerk Office Locations

Clerk services are spread across several Sanford buildings. During the Criminal Justice Center renovation, the CJC is the full-service civil and criminal counter, the Records Center handles official records and passports, and the Casselberry Branch handles branch services and weddings. Probate and juvenile services sit at the Juvenile Justice Center.

The main mailing address is Seminole County Clerk of the Circuit Court and County Comptroller, PO Box 8099, Sanford, FL 32772-8099.

Online Records and Search Tools

The Clerk posts most records online for free. The Search for a Court Case page links the civil, criminal, traffic, dependency, juvenile, official records, foreclosure, tax deed, and court-events tools. The portals show most cases from 1985 and scanned document images for open cases from 2005. Each search returns at most 500 records, and a CAPTCHA appears after 20 requests in an hour.

For the full case-search walkthrough, see Seminole County court records, and for the docket view see court dockets.

Payments, Jury Duty, and Self-Help

The Clerk handles more than searches. The office takes payments for fines, fees, and traffic citations, manages jury duty, and links self-help programs for people filing on their own. The Clerk's civil court page says the most convenient way to file a civil case is through the Florida Courts e-filing portal, and self-represented parties can also file at Clerk locations.

Jury duty for the Criminal Justice Center takes place in Courtroom 1A during the renovation. If you receive a summons, the notice tells you where and when to report, and the Clerk's site posts current jury information.

Forms and Confidentiality Requests

The Clerk publishes request forms for recorded documents and for confidentiality. The Official Records Order Form is used to request copies of recorded documents by mail or in person. It asks for the requester's contact details, the document reference, and the number of copies, and it says to add $2.00 per document for certification.

The Request for Confidentiality form, tied to section 119.071, removes protected information from Official Records for eligible people and must be notarized. The Clerk also lists an email channel and a mailing address for these requests, so a qualified person does not have to appear in person to start the process.

How to Request a Certified Copy

A certified copy is the official version of a record, stamped by the Clerk. Most court and business uses require one. The steps below follow the Clerk's process.

1. Identify the record by case number or document reference.
2. Complete the Official Records Order Form or request the court copy from the case file.
3. Note how many plain and certified copies you need.
4. Add the $2.00 per-document certification charge for certified copies.
5. Submit by mail to the Recording Department or in person at the Records Center.
6. Pay the copy and certification fees to receive the certified record.

Seminole County Clerk Fees

Clerk fees are set by statute and schedule under Chapter 28. The certification add-on is known, while plain copy and filing fees should be confirmed on the current schedule. Value Adjustment Board fees are published separately.

The Clerk operates under Florida Statutes Chapter 28, which defines clerk duties and fees.

Related Seminole County Searches

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