Search Pima County Family Court Records

Pima County family court records are held at the Superior Court of Arizona in Pima County. The Clerk of Superior Court at 110 West Congress Street in Tucson keeps all family law case files for the county. These records cover divorce filings, child custody disputes, support orders, and paternity cases. You can search Pima County family court records online through the clerk's portal or go to the courthouse in person. The county is home to Tucson, the second largest city in Arizona, and handles thousands of family law matters each year. Staff at the clerk office can help you find the records you need.

Pima County Clerk of Superior Court

The Pima County Clerk of Superior Court is the main office for family court records in the county. The office is at 110 West Congress Street in Tucson, Arizona 85701. You can call the main line at (520) 724-3200. The fax number is (520) 724-3531. Staff can help you find case files, get copies of documents, and file new papers with the court. The office is open Monday through Friday. It is closed on weekends and state holidays.

For family court record requests, contact the Legal Records Unit. This unit has its own phone line at (520) 724-3240. The office is in Room 241 at the same address on West Congress Street. You can also email questions to COCLegalRecordsWeb@sc.pima.gov. The unit handles all copy requests and searches for family law cases. Staff can look up old cases if you give them party names or a case number. They process both in-person and mail requests.

The screenshot below shows the Pima County Clerk of Superior Court website where you can find family court record information and contact details.

Copy fees in Pima County are $0.50 per page for plain copies from the clerk office. Certified copies cost $35.00 for the certification plus the per-page fee. If you need staff to search for records without a case number, there may be a research fee. Mail requests should include a check or money order for the estimated cost. The clerk will contact you if the actual amount differs from what you sent.

Pima County Family Court Division

The Pima County Family Court hears cases that affect families and children in the county. This court handles divorce filings, paternity and maternity actions, legal decision-making disputes, parenting time matters, and child support cases. The court is part of the Pima County Superior Court system. Judges in the family division focus only on family law, which helps cases move through the system in a steady way.

The family court website states that it does not give legal advice. It just shares information about court procedures in family law matters. This is an important point to keep in mind when you visit the site or call the office. Staff can tell you how things work, but they cannot say what you should do in your case. For legal advice, you need to talk to a lawyer or use the self-help resources the court provides.

Pima County also has a Juvenile Division for cases that involve minors in dependency or delinquency matters. This office is at 2225 E Ajo Way in Tucson, Arizona 85713. The phone number is (520) 724-2064. Juvenile family court records have special rules about who can see them. Not all juvenile records are open to the public under Arizona law.

Search Pima County Family Court Records Online

Pima County offers online access to family court case information through the Online Case Search portal. This tool lets you look up cases by party name or case number from your home computer or phone. The search is free and does not require you to make an account. Results show the case status, filing date, and names of the parties involved.

The statewide Arizona Courts Public Access Portal also covers Pima County. This portal connects to 153 of the 180 courts in Arizona, including Pima County Superior Court. You can use it to search across multiple counties at once. This is helpful if you are not sure where a case was filed. The system shows basic case data but may not have all documents available for viewing online.

Note: Some family court documents may require an in-person visit to view or copy even if the case appears in the online system.

Pima County Parent Education Requirements

Pima County requires parent education classes in many family court cases. The Pima County Parent Education Course helps parents understand how divorce and separation affect children. The class teaches skills for co-parenting and reducing conflict. It is required for most cases that involve children under 18 years old.

The course costs $50.00 per person. Parties must attend within 45 days of filing or being served with a petition unless the judge orders a different timeline. The court is strict about which classes it will accept. Pima County Superior Court will not accept certificates from other online parent education classes that are not connected to the county court. If you want to take a class from another provider, you must get approval from the judge assigned to your case first. This rule trips up many people, so be sure to check before you sign up for any class.

The Conciliation Court in Pima County runs the parent education program. This court also offers mediation services to help parents reach agreements about custody and parenting time. Using mediation can save time and money compared to going to trial. The court encourages parents to try mediation before asking a judge to decide their case.

Pima County Law Library Resources

The Pima County Law Library provides help for people handling their own family court cases. The library is at 110 West Congress Street, Room 256, in Tucson. This is the same building as the clerk office. The library is open Monday through Friday from 8:30 AM to 5:00 PM. You can call them at (520) 724-8456 or email lawlibrary@sc.pima.gov with questions.

The law library has forms for many types of family law cases. Many forms can be downloaded and printed from the court website. Staff can help you find the right forms for your situation, but they cannot choose forms for you. Librarians also cannot tell you what to write in the blanks on the forms. That would be legal advice, which they are not allowed to give. They can show you where to find instructions and sample documents, though.

Self-service copies at the law library cost just 15 cents per page. This is less than the 50 cents per page at the clerk window. All copies are black and white only. If you need many pages of records, using the self-service machine can save you money. The library also has computers you can use to look up cases and access legal research databases.

Types of Pima County Family Court Records

Divorce records make up the largest part of Pima County family court files. A divorce case starts when one spouse files a petition for dissolution of marriage. The file grows to include the response from the other spouse, financial disclosure documents, temporary orders, and the final decree. The decree is the court order that ends the marriage and sets out the terms for property division and any support payments. Arizona is a community property state, so most marital assets are split equally between the spouses.

Pima County family court records typically include:

• Petitions for dissolution of marriage and legal separation
• Responses and answers from the other party
• Financial disclosure affidavits
• Parenting plans and custody agreements
• Child support worksheets and orders
• Final decrees and judgments

Child custody records in Arizona use different terms than some other states. Legal decision-making means who gets to make big choices for the child about school, health care, and religion. Parenting time is the schedule that says when each parent has the child. Pima County keeps records of the parenting plans filed by parties, any custody evaluations ordered by the court, and the final orders that set the arrangement. If parents come back to court to change the plan later, those modification filings also go in the file.

Paternity cases establish who the legal father of a child is. These records may show DNA test results, voluntary acknowledgments of paternity, or court orders declaring paternity. Once the court sets paternity, it can order child support and set up a parenting plan. Paternity records are public unless the court seals them for some reason.

Arizona Family Law in Pima County

Arizona Revised Statutes Title 25 governs all family law matters in Pima County. This includes the rules for marriage, divorce, custody, support, and paternity cases. The same laws apply across all 15 Arizona counties. Pima County follows the same procedures and uses the same forms as the rest of the state. The main differences between counties are local practices, court calendars, and how busy the docket is.

To file for divorce in Pima County, at least one spouse must have lived in Arizona for 90 days before filing. You file in the county where you or your spouse currently lives. Arizona is a no-fault divorce state. You do not have to prove that your spouse did something wrong. You just need to state that the marriage is irretrievably broken. The court must wait at least 60 days after the other spouse is served before it can finalize the divorce. This waiting period applies even if both parties agree on everything.

The Arizona Division of Child Support Services works with Pima County courts on support matters. You can reach them at 602-252-4045 or toll-free at 1-800-882-4151. They help parents get support orders, modify existing orders, and collect payments. The agency also helps establish paternity for children born to unmarried parents. Their office hours are Monday through Friday from 7 AM to 5:30 PM.

Cities in Pima County

Pima County includes several cities and towns, but only Tucson has a population over the qualifying threshold. All family court cases for Pima County cities go through the Pima County Superior Court in Tucson. There is no separate city family court. Municipal courts in Arizona handle traffic tickets and minor criminal matters, not family law cases.

Tucson is the county seat of Pima County and the second largest city in Arizona. With a population of over 500,000 people, it generates most of the family court filings in the county. If you live in Oro Valley, Marana, Sahuarita, or South Tucson, your family court cases still go through the Pima County Superior Court in downtown Tucson.

Nearby Arizona Counties

Pima County borders several other Arizona counties. If you need family court records but are not sure where the case was filed, it may be in one of these neighboring areas. Records stay in the county where the case was filed, not where you live now. Check with the clerk office in each county if you cannot find what you are looking for in Pima County.