How to Search Sanilac County Court Records
Case records for the three trial courts live in one place. Michigan runs a free public tool called MiCOURT, and each Sanilac court has its own search route. The 24th Circuit Court search covers felonies, larger civil suits, divorce, and family cases. The 73A District Court search covers misdemeanors, traffic, small claims, and landlord-tenant matters. The 76th Probate Court search covers estates, guardianships, and conservatorships. A shared public hearing display lists upcoming hearings for all divisions on one screen.
Have a name or a case number ready before you start. A full case number returns the cleanest result. A party name works too, though common names bring back many hits. The county courts pages are a helpful starting point when you are not sure which court holds a file.
The county publishes its court links on the official Sanilac County homepage, which carries news, a court docket link, and office contacts.
Here is the official county homepage, the front door to every court and department link in Sanilac County.
From that page, the Courts and Law menu leads to each court's own MiCOURT search button. The steps below walk through a typical public lookup.
- Pick the court that likely holds the case, then open its MiCOURT search link from the county courts page.
- Read and accept the MiCOURT Terms of Service, and clear the hCaptcha challenge if it appears.
- Search by case number for an exact match, or by last name and first name for a party lookup.
- Open the case detail to review parties, charges, bonds, hearings, financial balance, and disposition.
- Contact the court of record for certified copies, since document images are not posted online.
The public search returns index and detail information, not scanned filings. Michigan court rules keep document images off the open Internet, so a printout from MiCOURT is not the official file. The fields you can search are listed below.
| Field Label | Required | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Court | Yes | Sanilac C24 Circuit, D73A District, or P76 Probate. |
| Search type | Yes | Case number or party name; secured search may add date of birth. |
| Case Number | Optional | Best result; formats look like 2025-0000041128-DO. |
| Last Name | Optional | Public name search by party surname. |
| First Name | Optional | Narrows a name search. |
| Business Name | Optional | Used for civil, landlord-tenant, or business-party cases. |
| Date of Birth | Restricted | Secured search only, for approved users. |
| hCaptcha | When prompted | Blocks automated abuse of the search. |
Note: MiCOURT results are informational and do not replace the official record kept by the court of record, so confirm anything important with the court.
Inside the Sanilac County Court System
Michigan uses three principal trial courts, and Sanilac County has one of each. The 24th Circuit Court is the trial court with the broadest powers. It hears felonies, civil claims over $25,000, and every family case, including divorce, paternity, adoption, name changes, and juvenile matters. Judge Timothy C. Wrathell presides over the Circuit Court. The 73A District Court handles the higher-volume, lower-level work. The 76th Probate Court handles estates and protected people. Judge Gregory S. Ross serves as judge of both the District Court and the Probate Court.
Most criminal cases start in District Court. A felony arrest leads to arraignment, bond, and a preliminary examination there. If the judge finds probable cause, the case is bound over to Circuit Court for trial. Misdemeanors usually stay in District Court from start to finish. Appeals leave the county and travel to the Michigan Court of Appeals, with further review possible at the Michigan Supreme Court.
Case flow: 73A District Court › 24th Circuit Court › Michigan Court of Appeals › Michigan Supreme Court
The county gathers every court under one Courts and Law page, shown below, which links each court along with the Family Court, Friend of the Court, Prosecuting Attorney, and jury services.
The table sums up which court hears what, and where each one sits inside the courthouse at 60 West Sanilac in Sandusky.
| Court or Office | Jurisdiction | Location and Phone |
|---|---|---|
| 24th Circuit Court | Felonies, civil claims over $25,000, divorce, family, juvenile, appeals. | Room 303; (810) 648-2120. |
| 73A District Court | Misdemeanors, traffic, civil up to $25,000, small claims, landlord-tenant, felony preliminary exams. | Room 302; (810) 648-3250. |
| 76th Probate Court | Estates, trusts, guardianships, conservatorships, mental-health treatment, will deposits. | Room 213; (810) 648-3221. |
| Magistrate Office | Initial district processing and related lower-court matters. | (810) 648-3424. |
| Family Court, Juvenile | Circuit Family Division juvenile and child-protection matters. | Room 209; (810) 648-3220. |
Sanilac County Courthouse Offices
All three courts share the county office complex at 60 West Sanilac Avenue in Sandusky, the county seat. Each court keeps its own room, phone line, and clerk window on separate floors. Office hours run Monday through Friday, 8:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. The courts close for lunch from noon to 1:00 p.m., though the County Clerk window stays open during that hour. Knowing the right room saves a trip, because a district file is not held at the circuit counter.
Circuit, District, and Probate Case Types
Each court owns a defined lane of cases, and the split follows Michigan law. The Circuit Court takes the serious and high-value work. The District Court takes volume and lower stakes. The Probate Court takes estates and the care of protected people. Picking the right court is the single most useful step in any records search, because a search on the wrong court returns nothing even when a case exists.
The comparison below lines up the three courts side by side so you can match a case to a court before you search.
| Feature | 24th Circuit | 73A District | 76th Probate |
|---|---|---|---|
| Criminal | Felonies, serious cases where prison is possible. | Misdemeanors up to one year, preliminary exams. | None. |
| Civil | Claims over $25,000. | Claims up to $25,000, small claims up to $6,500. | Estate and protected-person matters only. |
| Family | Divorce, paternity, adoption, name change, juvenile. | None. | Guardianship and conservatorship. |
| Where to search | MiCOURT C24. | MiCOURT D73A. | MiCOURT P76. |
Michigan's own trial-court overview, shown below, lays out the same circuit, district, and probate split that Sanilac County follows.
Some records cross the lines. A divorce judgment is a Circuit family file, but a certified copy of that judgment can be bought as a vital record from the County Clerk. The full pleadings and docket stay on the court side. That distinction shapes where you go for a copy.
Types of Court Records in Sanilac County
The three courts produce a wide range of records, and the type of case decides what a file holds. A felony file in Circuit Court reads very differently from a small-claims file in District Court. Criminal cases carry charges, bonds, pleas, and sentences. Civil cases carry complaints, answers, judgments, and collection steps. Family and probate cases carry petitions, orders, and protected-person details. Traffic cases carry citations, dispositions, and fines.
Some records sit outside the trial courts entirely. Vital records live with the County Clerk. Sheriff reports live with the Records Bureau. The list below groups the main record types by where they begin.
- Criminal records - Felonies at the Circuit Court, misdemeanors at the District Court, both searchable in MiCOURT.
- Civil records - Larger suits at the Circuit Court, smaller claims and landlord-tenant cases at the District Court.
- Family and divorce records - Circuit Family Division cases, with judgment copies also sold as vital records.
- Probate records - Estates, trusts, guardianships, and conservatorships at the 76th Probate Court.
- Traffic records - Civil infractions and traffic cases handled by the 73A District Court.
Juvenile files, adoption files, and mental-health filings sit apart from the rest because they carry heavy access limits. They exist, but the public cannot browse them the way it can browse an adult criminal docket.
What Sanilac County Court Records Show
A MiCOURT case detail packs a lot into one screen. The header names the case, the judge, and the filing date, then tracks the status and any disposition. Criminal cases add a charge grid with the current charge, the original charge, the offense date, and the charge level. Bond fields show the amount, the type, and who posted it. Financial fields tally fines, costs, restitution, and the balance still owed. Hearing fields point to the next date, time, and location.
Michigan's own records-management guidance, pictured here, explains why the public sees case details but not scanned documents.
That page cites Michigan Court Rule 8.119, which keeps document images off public Internet access. The table below lists the core fields a public case detail returns.
| Field | What It Shows |
|---|---|
| Case ID | The court's file number and case type suffix. |
| Case Entitlement | The caption or short title of the case. |
| Judge of Record | The assigned judge, such as Wrathell or Ross. |
| Parties | Plaintiff, defendant, petitioner, respondent, ward, or estate. |
| Charges | Count, current and original charge, offense date, and level. |
| Disposition | How a charge or case was resolved, plus the date. |
| Financials | Fines, costs, restitution, and the running balance. |
Legal Terms in Sanilac County Court Records
Court files use words that rarely appear in daily speech. A few plain definitions make a docket far easier to read. The list below covers terms that show up across circuit, district, and probate cases in Sanilac County. Knowing them helps a reader tell a charge from a conviction, or a motion from an order, without guessing.
- Disposition
- How a charge or case was finally resolved.
- Arraignment
- The hearing where charges are read and a plea or bond is set.
- Bindover
- The transfer of a felony from District Court to Circuit Court after probable cause.
- Bond
- Money or conditions that secure release and a promise to appear.
- Bench warrant
- A warrant a judge issues, often after a missed court date.
- Conservatorship
- Court-supervised management of a protected person's finances.
- Set aside
- The Michigan process that makes an eligible conviction nonpublic.
Note: MiCOURT can briefly label an attempted felony as "FELONY," so check the trial court or MCL 750.92 before reading too much into a charge level.
Public Access Laws for Sanilac County Records
Two separate legal tracks govern access in the county, and mixing them up wastes time. Court records answer to Michigan Court Rule 8.119 and the court clerks, not to a standard agency request. Law-enforcement records, such as arrest reports and crash reports, answer to Michigan's Freedom of Information Act through the Sheriff's Records Bureau. A FOIA letter to the sheriff will not produce a certified court judgment, and a request to the clerk will not produce a police narrative.
The Michigan Attorney General keeps a helpful FOIA resource page, shown below, that summarizes the state's public-records law.
The statutes and rule that matter most for Sanilac County records are gathered in the box below, each with a one-line summary.
Key Statutes and Rules:
MCL 15.231, Michigan FOIA - Public bodies must release public records unless a specific exemption applies.
MCL 15.234, FOIA fees - Lets an agency charge limited fees for searching, copying, and mailing records.
Michigan Court Rule 8.119 - Governs court records and keeps document images off public Internet access.
MCL 600.8301 - Sets the District Court civil jurisdiction that defines 73A case limits.
MCL 780.621 - The main adult set-aside statute that can make an eligible conviction nonpublic.
Restricted and Confidential Sanilac County Records
Not every court file is open. Juvenile cases in the Family Division are not treated like adult criminal files, and access turns on case type, party role, and court order. Adoption records are normally confidential and open only to eligible parties or by order. Mental-health proceedings in the Probate Court are sensitive and are not posted as public case details. Personal identifiers, such as dates of birth, appear only in a secured search for approved users, and Social Security numbers and financial account data stay out of public results.
A person who wants to clear an eligible conviction can pursue a Michigan set-aside. The path begins by identifying the exact Sanilac court where the conviction happened, pulling the case number and disposition, and reviewing MCL 780.621 and related sections. Traffic offenses follow a separate rule under MCL 780.621c. A granted set-aside makes a conviction nonpublic for ordinary searches, but it does not erase the record from every government system.
Sanilac County Court Fees and Certified Copies
MiCOURT viewing is free, but certified copies and many filings carry a fee. The County Clerk handles circuit court copies, vital records, and marriage licenses from Room 203. Filing motions in Circuit Court, restoring a driver's license, and appealing a decision each carry a set charge. The clerk accepts payment through posted location codes, and passport photos are also available at the window.
The fees below come from the official County Clerk and vital records pages. Copy and license amounts can change, so confirm the current figure with the office before you pay.
| Item | Fee |
|---|---|
| Vital record, first certified copy | $20.00 |
| Additional copy of same record, same visit | $10.00 |
| Record or judgment of divorce copy | $10.00 per copy |
| Sanilac resident marriage license | $20.00 |
| Out-of-state applicants marrying in Sanilac | $30.00 |
| Standard Circuit Court motion | $20.00 |
| Parenting time or custody motion | $100.00 |
| Petition for driver's restoration | $175.00 |
| Appeal from Circuit Court | $25.00 |
The County Clerk, Leslie Hilgendorf, also serves as clerk of the 24th Circuit Court, so circuit case filings and vital records flow through the same office.
Sanilac County Sheriff and Jail
The Sanilac County Sheriff's Office, led by Sheriff Paul D. Rich, works from 65 N. Elk Street in Sandusky. The Records Bureau handles incident reports, arrest records, jail booking information, warrants, crash reports, and sex-offender registration. Its window is open Monday through Friday, 8:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m., and requests for law-enforcement records go through the FOIA process rather than the court clerks.
The county does not run a public online jail roster. Instead, callers reach the Jail Information Desk at (810) 648-8338 for custody and bond status, and victims can register through Michigan VINE for custody alerts. The sheriff also offers a mobile app for tips, alerts, and public-safety news, though it is not an inmate or warrant lookup. The full roster channels and booking details appear on the Sanilac County inmate records page, while active warrants and the fallback chain sit on the warrant records page.
Marriage, Divorce, and Probate Records
Marriage licenses start at the County Clerk in Room 203. The office issues a license three days after applying, and the license stays good for 30 days. A Sanilac resident pays $20.00, while two out-of-state applicants marrying in the county pay $30.00. Certified marriage, death, and divorce copies are sold at the same counter, online, or by mail. Full details sit on the marriage and divorce records page.
Divorce is a Circuit Family Division case, so the full file lives on the court side while a judgment copy can be bought as a vital record. The 76th Probate Court handles estates, guardianships, conservatorships, and the deposit of wills for safekeeping. More on those filings, forms, and fees appears on the probate records page. A few common probate terms are defined below.
- Testator
- The person who makes a will.
- Executor
- The person named to carry out a will, called a personal representative in Michigan.
- Guardian
- A person given court authority over another's personal care decisions.
Specialty and Defense Services in Sanilac County
Sanilac County does not publish a long catalog of treatment courts, but it does run programs that shape criminal and family cases. The Indigent Defense Services Office, created in October 2021 to meet state standards, appoints counsel to adults who are indigent and charged with a felony in county court or a misdemeanor in the 73A District Court. Robert Heyboer directs the office from Room 104. This program is a key access point for defendants who cannot afford a lawyer.
District Court probation, the magistrate, pretrial services, and community corrections supervise defendants after a plea or sentence. On the corrections side, the county jail emphasizes rehabilitation and reentry, with counseling, mental-health services, and substance-use support. The Prosecuting Attorney, Mark E. Davidson, reviews and authorizes the charges that later appear in a court record, and a victim services coordinator helps with case status and restitution.
Federal Courts for Sanilac County
Federal cases are separate from county court records. Sanilac County falls within the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan for federal civil and criminal matters. That court's courthouses include Detroit, Ann Arbor, Bay City, Flint, and Port Huron, and case assignment decides where a filing lands. Its official homepage is pictured here.
Federal bankruptcy is a different court again. The U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Eastern District of Michigan keeps clerk offices in Detroit, Flint, and Bay City, and its homepage links case tools and e-filing.
Federal dockets are searched through PACER, not MiCOURT. The PACER portal supplies federal case and docket information across every district and bankruptcy court.
To reach the right federal system, PACER offers a court lookup tool. The Michigan Eastern Bankruptcy lookup below points filers and searchers to that court's CM/ECF system.
Federal custody is tracked through the Bureau of Prisons locator, which is separate from the county jail and the state prison system.
How Sanilac County Records Get Updated
Court records change as a case moves. A new hearing, a plea, or a payment can update a MiCOURT detail within days, though timing varies by court and case load. Public search results are informational, so a date or balance may lag the paper file. When accuracy matters, the safest step is to call the court of record and confirm.
The state search tools carry their own limits. Document images never appear online, bulk downloads are barred, and certain nonpublic details are excluded by law. A public case detail is a strong starting point, not the complete file.
Note: Confirm any charge, disposition, or balance with the originating Sanilac court before relying on it, since online details can trail the official record.
History of Sanilac County Courts
Sanilac County was likely named for a Wyandot chief called Sanilac. The Michigan Territorial Legislature formed the county on September 10, 1822, and county government was fully organized on December 31, 1849. Sanilac remains the largest county by area in Michigan's lower peninsula, spread across roughly 1,590 square miles with a long Lake Huron shoreline. That wide, rural geography shapes court life, since residents may travel far to reach the courthouse in Sandusky.
The court structure has deep roots. The Michigan Legislature created the District Court in 1968, and district judges are still elected to six-year nonpartisan terms. The 24th Circuit Court stands as the broadest trial court, and the 76th Probate Court carries the enduring work of estates, guardianships, and will safekeeping. Today MiCOURT ties all three together as the public search and hearing system.
Recent Updates in Sanilac County Courts
The county's online tools have shifted recently. In October 2024, Sanilac County launched a new official website, and the Sheriff's Office launched its own new site the same month. Those moves explain why many pages now use county-branded document centers and updated links. Older bookmarks may redirect, so it helps to start from the current county site.
Court filing rules changed too. Beginning April 1, 2025, the Circuit Court e-filing path stopped accepting summonses and complaints and motions for summary disposition, and it set a 50-page limit on motions and responses. The Sheriff's Office also introduced a mobile app in 2023 for tips, alerts, and public-safety news, available on both the Apple and Google Play stores.
Frequently Asked Questions
Where do I search Sanilac County court cases online?
Use MiCOURT, Michigan's free public case-search system. It offers a separate route for each Sanilac court: C24 for the 24th Circuit Court, D73A for the 73A District Court, and P76 for the 76th Probate Court. Accept the Terms of Service, then search by case number or party name. A shared public hearing display also lists upcoming hearings for every division on one screen.
Can I see the actual court documents online?
No. Michigan Court Rule 8.119 keeps document images off public Internet access. MiCOURT shows case details, parties, charges, hearings, and dispositions, but not scanned filings. To get a certified copy of a document, contact the court of record. The County Clerk handles circuit copies, the District Court handles its own files, and the Probate Court handles estate and guardianship records.
How do I get a certified copy of a Sanilac County record?
Certified court copies come from the court that holds the file, usually in person or by mail. Vital records, such as marriage, death, and divorce judgment copies, come from the County Clerk in Room 203, online, or by mail. A first certified vital copy costs $20.00, and a divorce judgment copy costs $10.00. Confirm current fees with the office before paying.
Is there an online jail roster for Sanilac County?
No public online roster exists. Call the Jail Information Desk at (810) 648-8338 for custody and bond status. Victims can register with Michigan VINE for custody alerts, and booking records can be requested through the Sheriff's Records Bureau under FOIA. The sheriff's mobile app carries tips and alerts, but it is not an inmate or warrant search.
Which court handles a divorce in Sanilac County?
The 24th Circuit Court Family Division handles divorce, along with paternity, adoption, name changes, and custody. The full case file is a court record kept on the circuit side. A copy of the divorce judgment can also be purchased as a vital record from the County Clerk for $10.00 per copy. Sensitive details involving minors and protected parties may be restricted.
Do I need a lawyer to look up a court record?
No. MiCOURT is open to anyone at no cost, and a name or case number is enough to start. For a certified copy, restricted file, or correction, contact the court directly. Defendants who cannot afford counsel in a felony or 73A misdemeanor case may qualify for an appointed attorney through the Indigent Defense Services Office.