Philadelphia County Court Dockets
A docket is the court's chronological record of case activity. In Philadelphia County, a docket may show a complaint, answer, petition, motion, order, hearing notice, continuance, judgment, disposition, sentence, appeal, warrant entry, or payment event. It is not always the same thing as the full case file. A docket often names the event and date, while the full file may include pleadings, signed orders, exhibits, and certified copies that require a clerk request or a document purchase.
Philadelphia County court dockets are split by court and record type. Civil Trial Division dockets are searched in Philadelphia Civil Docket Access. Criminal Common Pleas and Philadelphia Municipal Court docket sheets are searched in UJS Case Search. Orphans' Court and probate dockets are tied to the Register of Wills and Clerk of the Orphans' Court. Moving traffic citation hearing information has its own Traffic Division hearing list and payment channels.
Search Philadelphia County Court Dockets
Use the search path that matches the court. The civil portal provides person and company searches, judgment searches, Civil Docket Report by Case ID, and court listings. UJS provides public docket sheets for criminal Common Pleas, Philadelphia Municipal Court, appellate, and many other Pennsylvania case categories. The UJS public records page states that criminal Common Pleas case information and magisterial district case information are searchable, and Philadelphia searches by other criteria may include Municipal Court and Common Pleas cases.
- For civil dockets, open Philadelphia Civil Docket Access and choose person/company search when no case ID is known.
- Use Civil Dockets Search when a Philadelphia civil Case ID is available. That route is direct and avoids broad name results.
- For criminal docket sheets, open UJS Case Search and search by docket number, participant name, OTN, complaint number, police incident number, or filing date.
- When a Philadelphia arrest created more than one court record, compare the Municipal Court and Common Pleas docket sheets through the cross-court docket number field.
- For official copies, certifications, or exemplifications, use the Office of Judicial Records channel that keeps the case file.
The Common Pleas judges directory source capture below helps confirm the Common Pleas court context for Philadelphia County court dockets.
Judge and courtroom details can help users interpret docket entries that list a room, judge, division, or hearing assignment.
Philadelphia County Docket Entries
Most docket sheets use a repeated event format. The exact display varies by system, but Philadelphia County court dockets commonly include the docket number, court type, county, case caption, filing date, initiation date, case status, processing status, judge, party names, attorney names, hearing fields, order entries, financial fields, and disposition. Criminal docket sheets can add complaint number, OTN, police incident number, statute section, grade, charge disposition, bail, sentence, and cross-court docket number.
| Field | What It Shows |
|---|---|
| Entry Date | The date a filing, hearing, order, warrant, disposition, or payment event was entered on the docket. |
| Event Type | The action logged by the court, such as complaint filed, motion, continuance, order, judgment, plea, or sentence. |
| Case Status | Whether the case is open, closed, disposed, appealed, withdrawn, dismissed, or otherwise active. |
| Party or Attorney | The person, agency, or lawyer linked to the docket activity when the system shows it. |
| Judge or Courtroom | The judge, hearing officer, court division, courtroom, or event location tied to a listed proceeding. |
| Document Link | Available civil document access or purchase links when Philadelphia Civil Docket Access offers them. |
| Cross-Court Number | A Philadelphia criminal link between MC and CP dockets for a single incident. |
Courts With Philadelphia Dockets
The First Judicial District is made up of the Court of Common Pleas and Philadelphia Municipal Court. The Court of Common Pleas handles felony criminal matters after preliminary proceedings, major civil cases, family matters, and Orphans' Court matters. Municipal Court processes every criminal arrest at the initial stage, tries misdemeanors, conducts preliminary hearings for felony cases, hears landlord-tenant and small civil matters, and handles moving traffic citations through the Traffic Division.
| Court or Office | Docket Route | What It Covers |
|---|---|---|
| Court of Common Pleas - Civil Trial Division | Philadelphia Civil Docket Access | Civil cases, judgments, docket reports, filings, orders, and available civil document purchases. |
| Court of Common Pleas - Criminal Trial Division | UJS Case Search | Felony case dockets after Municipal Court preliminary proceedings. |
| Philadelphia Municipal Court | UJS Case Search | Initial criminal processing, misdemeanors, felony preliminary hearings, landlord-tenant, and small civil matters. |
| Municipal Court Traffic Division | Traffic hearing list and PAePay | Moving violation hearings, citations, fines, costs, and payments. |
| Orphans' Court / Register of Wills | Register of Wills channels | Estates, wills, guardianships, trusts, and Orphans' Court records. |
The statewide prothonotary directory capture below is a source for the Philadelphia civil records office.
That directory points civil docket users to the Philadelphia Office of Judicial Records civil contact at City Hall.
Philadelphia Dockets vs Case Records
A docket is a map of case activity. A full case record is the larger file. For a Philadelphia civil lawsuit, the docket may show that a complaint, answer, motion, or order was filed, while the full record may include the actual document image, certification, or exemplified copy. For a criminal case, the docket sheet may show charges, hearings, pleas, dispositions, bail, and sentencing entries, while the complete criminal case file may include orders or papers that are not fully displayed online.
| Point | Docket | Full Case Record |
|---|---|---|
| Format | Chronological list of court events | Documents, orders, filings, exhibits where available, and certified records |
| Access | Often free online through civil access or UJS | May require a clerk request, purchase, copy fee, certification, or in-person review |
| Best Use | Track status, hearings, dispositions, and case progress | Verify legal text, obtain official copies, or review filed documents |
| Limits | May lag, omit confidential details, or use abbreviations | May be restricted, sealed, too old for web display, or subject to copy fees |
For a fuller field inventory, the broader Philadelphia County court records page explains record contents across civil, criminal, traffic, probate, and family channels.
Read Philadelphia County Dockets
Philadelphia criminal docket research often turns on the MC and CP relationship. Municipal Court has initial jurisdiction in processing every criminal arrest, conducts misdemeanor trials, and conducts preliminary hearings for felony cases. If a felony is held for court, the case later appears in Common Pleas. UJS warns users to use the cross-court docket number field on page one of the docket sheet to connect related Municipal Court and Common Pleas records.
Common terms need plain reading. A disposition is the result of a charge or case. Held for court means a matter moved from a lower proceeding to Common Pleas. Nolle prosequi means the prosecutor chose not to pursue a charge. A bench warrant is a court warrant, often tied to failure to appear or noncompliance. A continuance is a new hearing date. A judgment is an enforceable civil decision.
Note: Recent docket entries may not appear immediately, and destroyed paper records can limit public web availability.
Philadelphia County Docket Copies
The public docket is often enough for basic case tracking, but official uses may require copies from the proper office. The Office of Judicial Records civil fee schedule lists certification or certificate at $41.58, exemplification at $83.16, name search at $58.52, non-party docket report at $5.50, photocopy of records at $0.25 per page, and electronic records at $0.25 per page. The civil docket access system adds a $5 convenience fee at checkout for transactions.
For probate and Orphans' Court dockets, use the Register of Wills and Clerk of Orphans' Court rather than the civil Prothonotary channel. The statewide Orphans' Court clerks directory capture below identifies the Philadelphia Orphans' Court clerk office.
That distinction prevents users from sending estate or guardianship docket requests to the civil clerk channel that handles ordinary civil case records.