How to Search the Washtenaw County Court Docket
Start with MiCOURT Case Search. The system asks you to pick the right court context first. It does not promise one countywide result set. Washtenaw County also gathers its current court-specific links on an online resources page. There you will find each 14A calendar, plus traffic review, payment, and records channels.
Have the case number ready if you know it. A name search works too, when the case is public. Either way, the court, party role, case type, filing date, and status all need review. MiCOURT's online data is informational only, so a name match never replaces a clerk-confirmed record.
- Identify the municipality and likely case type.
- Choose the court in MiCOURT or follow the matching county court link.
- Search by case number, or by name with only the permitted fields needed to narrow a result.
- Read the case history, court, case type, status, and hearing setting.
- Use the court of record for a copy, certificate, document, or date verification.
Washtenaw County Has Many Docket Courts
One county name does not mean one docket. The Washtenaw County Trial Court and 22nd Circuit Court hold circuit-level felony, civil, family, juvenile, and related records. Probate keeps a records function of its own. The county's four 14A District Court locations carry a large share of the misdemeanor, traffic, civil-infraction, small-claims, and district civil work. 14B covers Ypsilanti Township. The City of Ann Arbor runs the 15th Judicial District Court.
The official county court map is worth a look before any search. Venue follows municipality and jurisdiction. A Ypsilanti City matter and a Ypsilanti Township matter can land in different courts. So can a felony. It may start at the district stage and later move to the circuit docket.
The county court map lays out the local trial-court routes. Any Washtenaw County docket search must respect them.
That court map is a practical check to run before you treat a no-result screen as a complete Washtenaw County docket search.
What a Washtenaw County Court Docket Shows
A docket, also called a case history or Register of Actions, is the chronological index of a court case. It is not the whole file. Common entries include the court, the case number, the parties in their court roles, filings, hearings, and orders, plus a status. Not every attachment or complete document image appears.
| Case number | The court-assigned identifier, often best searched by its year, number, and type components. |
|---|---|
| Case type | The classification that identifies jurisdiction, such as criminal, civil, traffic, probate, or domestic. |
| Case history | Chronological filings, appearances, notices, motions, orders, and other court events. |
| Setting | Date, time, location, judge or magistrate, and event type, subject to change. |
| Status | A system label such as open, closed, or disposed that must not be overread. |
| Documents | Items that may require a clerk request, payment, or authorized access. |
A calendar is only the schedule. For an order, a transcript, or a certified copy, go through the court's own records process.
MiCOURT Case Search for Washtenaw County
MiCOURT separates its name and case-number panels. The public name panel requires a last name or business field, and you can narrow the query with first name, middle name, and birth year. The case-number panel uses year, number, and type. Case types vary by court, so a full number is more precise than a common surname.
| Search field | Use | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Last name or business | Primary name query | A business can be entered in the same field. |
| First and middle name | Narrows a common name | Review the court and party role before relying on a match. |
| Year, number, type | Case-number query | Use the court's complete identifier when available. |
| Court selector | Sets the record collection | Select the correct Washtenaw court or location. |
The state's public search notice warns against bulk downloads. It also says the online data never replaces the official court record. A missing result can follow public exclusions. It can also follow older criminal display limits or a wrong court selection. Those are limits, not proof the case is gone.
The public search notice on the official Michigan search interface supplies the statewide layer, and the court selection keeps a Washtenaw County docket search pointed at the right venue.
County links tie the statewide search to local calendars and court-specific service pages. Treat them as separate channels, not one database.
Which Washtenaw County Courts Keep Dockets
The right docket depends on the level of court and the event. The county's court-divisions overview describes the Trial Court's civil, criminal, family, juvenile, probate, and problem-solving functions. District courts keep their own lower-court case histories.
| Court | Docket covers | Where to begin |
|---|---|---|
| 22nd Circuit / Trial Court | Felony after bindover, circuit civil, family, juvenile, and related matters | MiCOURT, Court Services, and county records access |
| Probate Court | Estates, guardianships, conservatorships, mental-health, and wills matters | MiCOURT where public, then Probate records staff |
| 14A District Court | Misdemeanors, traffic, civil infractions, small claims, and district civil matters | County 14A links, MiCOURT, and eCourts for tickets |
| 14B District Court | Ypsilanti Township cases | 14B clerk, MiCOURT, and eCourts |
| 15th District Court | Ann Arbor district civil, traffic, ordinance, misdemeanor, and felony preliminary work | 15th case search and daily calendar |
State appellate cases live in Michigan appellate systems, not in the trial court's public view.
Four 14A Docket Locations in Washtenaw County
14A is not one counter or one calendar. County locations list 14A-1 near Ann Arbor and Pittsfield Township, plus 14A-2 in Ypsilanti. 14A-3 is in Chelsea. 14A-4 is in Saline. Chelsea and Saline are separate sites. Each location serves different municipal areas and carries separate calendar links. Confirm territorial assignment with the county rather than inferring it from a nearby mailing address.
The official locations page supplies current coverage and address information. The county notes a Tuesday through Thursday closure pattern for 14A-3, and all public counter hours stay subject to holidays and local administrative orders.
Venue follows territory here. The county locations page shows why a Washtenaw County court docket may sit with a district site rather than a city name.
Confirm the correct 14A court before any records request.
Finding Washtenaw County Court Dates and Settings
Each 14A site posts its own labeled calendar. The county says those links connect to the case-management system as schedule changes become available. The 15th daily calendar also offers all-listing, judge, magistrate, mediation, case-evaluation, and felony preliminary views. Sealed and nonpublic matters stay off the public calendars.
A calendar entry is a date lead. It is not a final result. Check date, time, location, and event type with the clerk before travel, especially after a continuance, weather event, holiday, or local order. The full Washtenaw County court calendar walks through the verification channels.
Washtenaw County Calendar Limits
A future hearing may show a case number and setting type but not the full order or reason for the setting. A missing entry can reflect a sealed matter, a recent change, or a different court. It is not a dismissal. It is not a substitute for the case history either.
The 15th District daily-calendar page tells users to call and verify the time. Some listings cross courts. It notes that certain felony probable-cause and preliminary-examination listings can include 14A, 14B, and 15th matters and may be held at 14A-1.
The county's general court information page states its holiday and local-order caveat. Schedules and counter hours are not the same thing. Treat them separately. The county's operational notices are what can shift a Washtenaw County court date. Read them before you go.
Check the docket calendar itself and confirm the court of record before trusting a generic hours notice.
Public Access to Washtenaw County Court Dockets
Michigan opens most court records to the public under MCR 8.119. A statute can still close the door. So can a court rule, administrative order, or a specific case order. A Washtenaw County court docket may stay public. When it does, the court must offer some way to inspect or copy the electronic record. Personal identifiers that the law protects get redacted first. And note the limit: a public case history does not turn every filing or attachment into a public document.
Michigan court-record rules. MCR 8.119 addresses inspection, copying, and access limits. MCL 15.232 excludes the judiciary and circuit-court clerk from ordinary FOIA treatment. MCL 712A.28 supplies special protections for juvenile records. MCL 780.621g affects public visibility of eligible set-aside convictions.
Ask the court of record directly about its public terminal, its inspection procedure, or its approved request method. A gap in search results or on a calendar does not mean material is protected.
The Washtenaw County Clerk and Docket Records
Michigan court rules put the case records in the clerk's hands. Each court's clerk holds its case histories. Washtenaw County Trial Court Court Services handles public-records requests at the circuit level. For Probate, 14A, 14B, and 15th District Court dockets, go to the clerk or records counter of the court that handled the case. Keep the offices straight. The county Clerk/Register of Deeds is a separate elected office. It cannot stand in for every court docket request.
Washtenaw County Trial Court Court Services
101 E Huron Street, Room 1109
Ann Arbor, MI 48104
734-222-3270
When you make a request, name the court, give the case number if you have it, describe the document or proceeding, estimate the date, and say what kind of copy you want. The court can tell you whether inspection, a plain copy, a certified copy, a transcript, or a media request fits your situation. The Trial Court administration page names the Court Services contact point for circuit-level Washtenaw County records.
That office profile sorts out one practical question. It shows when a circuit records request belongs at Court Services rather than with a district or Probate clerk.
Washtenaw County Docket Copies and Fees
A search result is not a clerk copy. Washtenaw lists a plain-copy charge of $2 per page. Certified and exemplified copies run $10 plus $1 per page. Treat the posted schedule as a request fee only. It does not promise that every online search or document image is free.
| Request type | Posted county charge | Use |
|---|---|---|
| Plain copy | $2 per page | Reproduction of an available public record |
| Certified copy | $10 plus $1 per page | Clerk-authenticated reproduction |
| Exemplified copy | $10 plus $1 per page | Additional authentication format |
Washtenaw's court-records request page is the hub for search, docket, calendar, and record access. Confirm any e-access or document-image fee with the court, since the schedule does not spell one out.
Washtenaw County Docket Technology
Washtenaw's technology runs on several tracks. There is the legacy Odyssey Public Access context. There is also the statewide MiCOURT public search, the Michigan eCourts ticket and payment interface, and MiFILE for filing. Each has its own job. MiFILE e-files documents statewide; it is not a public docket search. Its available-courts list includes Washtenaw Trial Court and the 15th District Court. Use MiFILE's available-courts page to check current filing availability. The old Odyssey landing page may redirect or fail on a current device. For a missing case, the county links and the court's own contact are safer fallbacks.
Federal Dockets Near Washtenaw County
State dockets and federal dockets are separate worlds. The U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan keeps an Ann Arbor divisional office. It sits at the Federal Building, 200 East Liberty Street. Public federal access runs through PACER, while CM/ECF handles filing for authorized users. A Washtenaw state-court case never becomes federal just because it arose locally. PACER's official pricing page states the standard $0.10 per-page charge and the usual $3 document cap, with stated exceptions. Courthouse terminals let you view for free. Printing there can still carry a per-page charge. Authorized free RECAP material may show up through CourtListener, though coverage is incomplete. The Eastern District's Ann Arbor office page identifies the federal building. It also lists its public access requirements.
The federal building is a different place from the state Trial Court and the Ann Arbor Justice Center. PACER's official fee explanation shows how federal electronic access differs from a Washtenaw County court docket search.
Use the federal system only for a federal matter. For a Michigan trial case, use the state or county court channel. CourtListener serves as an authorized free alternative for some federal filings contributed through RECAP.
A missing RECAP item does not establish that a federal document was never filed.
Washtenaw County Docket Workload Context
The 2025 Michigan judicial-resources report puts 14A at 98 percent average workload with three judges. It puts 14B at 169 percent with one judge. The report recommends consolidating 14A and 14B as an efficiency response. Yet that recommendation changes nothing about where a person files or appears. For the 22nd Circuit and Probate, the report estimates about 144 percent workload. It recommends an additional circuit judgeship there.
These figures describe capacity and court geography. They say nothing about the merits or speed of a particular case. They do reinforce one habit: start a Washtenaw County docket search with the correct division.
Court Dockets by City in Washtenaw County
City profiles offer a quicker route to the court most often tied to a local matter. Ann Arbor has the 15th District Court. The City of Ypsilanti generally routes to 14A-2, while Ypsilanti Township is 14B. Saline and Milan share the 14A-4 venue, and Chelsea is served by 14A-3. Remember that city routing never overrides the court actually assigned to a case, which stays the controlling source.
Ann Arbor Court Docket
2020 Census population 123,851. Search the 15th Judicial District Court route.
Ypsilanti Court Docket
2020 Census population 20,648. Confirm city versus township venue first.
Saline Court Docket
2020 Census population about 8,948. Use the shared 14A-4 court path.
Milan Court Docket
2020 Census population 6,079. Cases commonly route through 14A-4 in Saline.
Chelsea Court Docket
2020 Census population 5,467. Use the 14A-3 Chelsea location.
Map and Directions to the Washtenaw County Trial Court
The Washtenaw County Trial Court, built on the 22nd Circuit, keeps circuit-level felony, civil, family, and juvenile case files at 101 E Huron Street in downtown Ann Arbor, with case-history and records requests handled by Court Services in Room 1109. The building sits a few blocks from the Ann Arbor Justice Center, home to the separate 15th District Court docket for City of Ann Arbor matters.
Washtenaw County Trial Court Court Services
101 E Huron Street, Room 1109
Ann Arbor, MI 48104
734-222-3270
Monday through Friday, 8:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.
Ann Arbor Justice Center (15th District Court)
301 East Huron Street
Ann Arbor, MI 48104
734-794-6750
Fax service is available for the Trial Court at 734-222-3077, but the county's posted schedule does not describe a general visitor parking policy, so plan ahead for downtown Ann Arbor parking. A case that instead sits with the 15th District at the Justice Center means metal-detector and x-ray screening at the door, with weapons, knives, food, and beverages barred from the building.