Multnomah County Records Department
Multnomah County court case files are maintained by the Multnomah County Circuit Court Records Department. Oregon does not use a Texas-style elected district clerk or county clerk split for trial-court case files. The Oregon Judicial Department identifies Barbara Marcille as Trial Court Administrator for Multnomah County Circuit Court. For case records, the practical custodian is the Trial Court Administrator and Records Department structure within the circuit court.
The Records Department provides five direct copy channels: online request form, email, printed request form by mail, phone during posted records hours, and walk-in service in Room 3315 at the Central Courthouse. The office is at 1200 SW 1st Ave, Portland, OR 97204. Walk-in customer service is 8:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m., Monday through Friday. Phone access is 971-274-0570, Monday through Friday from 8:30 a.m. to 10:30 a.m. and 1:30 p.m. to 4:00 p.m.
Circuit Court Records Department
Trial Court Administrator: Barbara Marcille
Multnomah County Courthouse, Room 3315
1200 SW 1st Ave
Portland, OR 97204
971-274-0570
MUL.Records@ojd.state.or.us
Walk-in service: 8:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m., Monday through Friday
Multnomah County Court Records Duties
The Records Department supplies copies from Multnomah County Circuit Court case files. That includes many civil, criminal, family, probate, small claims, landlord and tenant, traffic, TriMet, and parking cases handled by the circuit court. It does not act as the Multnomah County Clerk/Recorder for marriage licenses, domestic partnership records, official county records, or the Digital Research Room. Those county recorder functions belong on the separate county clerk page.
- Receive requests for regular non-certified copies from circuit court files.
- Issue certified copies when an official court certification is needed.
- Issue exemplified copies when triple certification is required.
- Process FTR courtroom audio requests when the audio is available for release.
- Route confidential case categories to the proper department instead of ordinary public copy handling.
Certified copies may be wet-ink paper copies or electronically certified copies with a court seal. The court recommends checking with the receiving agency before ordering a specific format. Exemplified copies are triple-certified with signatures of the court clerk, Trial Court Administrator, and Presiding Judge.
Request Multnomah County Certified Copies
Certified copies prove that a copy is an official court copy. They may be needed for appeals, agency filings, out-of-state use, financial matters, immigration-related requests, or other uses where a plain copy is not enough. A requester should identify the case and the exact document before asking for certification, because a certified copy of the wrong order or judgment may not satisfy the receiving agency.
- Find the case number if possible. If unknown, gather the filing year, party names, and other identifiers.
- Choose the copy type: regular, certified, or exemplified. Ask the receiving agency which type it requires.
- Submit the order online, by email, by mail, by phone during records hours, or in person at Room 3315.
- Provide the delivery method and wait for fee instructions or staff confirmation if the request needs review.
- For restricted matters, follow department routing if Records staff directs the request to Family, Juvenile, or Probate.
The official federal trial-court source is separate: U.S. District Court for the District of Oregon.
The federal court image is useful as a boundary marker because Multnomah County Circuit Court staff do not supply federal district court case files.
Multnomah County Request Fields
The court's order inventory asks for enough detail to find the case and identify the document. Case number is the best locator. If it is missing, the approximate filing year, filing date, party names, and date of birth for a criminal defendant can help staff distinguish records with similar names. The document title is also important because a case file may contain many orders, motions, judgments, and docket entries.
| Field or item | Type | Required | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Court case number | Text | Requested | Staff may still try to help if unknown |
| Approximate year or filing date | Text/date | Requested | Helps locate older or similarly named cases |
| Party names | Text | Requested | Names of people or businesses involved |
| Defendant date of birth | Date | Criminal only | Used for criminal case identification |
| Document title | Text | Requested | Examples include judgment, order, complaint, or register |
| Copy type | Choice | Yes | Regular, certified, or exemplified |
| Delivery method | Choice | Yes | Email, in person, or mail |
| Submit online | Web form | Optional | OJD workflow records request form |
| Submit by email | Optional | MUL.Records@ojd.state.or.us | |
| Submit by mail | Postal | Optional | Records, 1200 SW 1st Ave Room 3315, Portland, OR 97204 |
Multnomah County Records Fees
Copy fees depend on the type of record and certification. The Records Department rule that small copy orders under $5 are free can matter for short non-certified requests. OJD public-record fee rules also state that cost estimates are provided when a public-records request is likely to exceed $25, and written confirmation plus advance payment is required before work proceeds.
| Item | Posted amount or rule |
|---|---|
| Copy orders totaling less than $5 | Free |
| Multiple cases, non-certified documents | $3 per case |
| FTR courtroom audio request | $10 per case |
| OJD photocopy public-record rate | $0.25 per page |
| OJD certified copy certificate | $5 per certificate plus page cost |
| Public-record request likely over $25 | Estimate and advance written confirmation required |
Multnomah County Copy Channels
The five request channels serve different users. Online and email requests are efficient when the case and document are known. Mail can work for paper forms or payment workflows. Phone is useful for questions during the limited phone window. Walk-in service is best when the requester needs staff help sorting out case details or copy type.
The OJD public records request process applies to administrative public records and statewide court-system requests, while Multnomah court case-file copies use the local Records Department. Federal bankruptcy records are separate from Multnomah County Circuit Court records and are handled by the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the District of Oregon.
The official bankruptcy source for Portland federal bankruptcy records is U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the District of Oregon.
The bankruptcy court image reinforces that bankruptcy copies are not Multnomah County Circuit Court copies.
Records Outside Multnomah County Court
Some records that look court-related are not held by the Records Department. County marriage licenses, domestic partnership records, official records, and Digital Research Room index records belong to the Multnomah County Clerk/Recorder. Federal appellate records belong to the Ninth Circuit. Free legal-data searches may show opinions or docket material, but those platforms are not the local circuit court records custodian.
The official federal appellate source is the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals. A free legal-data source such as CourtListener can help locate opinions or docket references, but official copies still come from the court that holds the file.
The Ninth Circuit source is the federal appeals court for Oregon.
The appeals image clarifies that Oregon state circuit court records and federal appellate records use different offices and portals.
CourtListener is a separate legal-data source: CourtListener.
The CourtListener image belongs in this boundary section because legal-data search is not the same as ordering certified Multnomah County court records.
Note: Use Multnomah County Clerk / Recorder for marriage and official county records, not the circuit court Records Department.