How to search Tennessee court records

Tennessee has no statewide trial-court search at all. Each county runs its own independent case-management system, so finding a record means first identifying the right county, then searching that county's own portal. Cost varies by record type — some searches are free, others require a paid account or a formal records request.

county by county varies criminal data

Open the official Tennessee portal →

What's actually there

No statewide trial-court search. Larger counties (Davidson, Shelby, Knox) publish their own free portals.

Other official lookups for Tennessee

How Tennessee's courts are organized

Tennessee's trial courts of record are grouped into 32 judicial districts, some a single urban county and some up to seven rural counties. Circuit courts are the general trial courts and hear civil and criminal cases. In heavier-caseload areas the legislature has created separate criminal courts to take criminal cases off the circuit court. Chancery courts hear equity matters and much of the same civil business as circuit courts, but not personal injury or criminal cases.

Every county also has a General Sessions court, a limited-jurisdiction court that hears smaller civil cases, misdemeanor trials when the defendant waives a jury, and preliminary hearings in felony cases. General Sessions judges also act as juvenile judges unless the county has a separate juvenile court.

Above the trial courts are the Court of Appeals, the Court of Criminal Appeals and the Supreme Court. The state's online Appellate Case Search covers appellate cases only. There is no statewide search for circuit, chancery, criminal or General Sessions cases.

Searching Tennessee court records online

The Appellate Case Search lets you look up appeals by case number, case style, party name or business name. For trial court records you have to go county by county, through the clerk who keeps them.

Clerks are local officials. Circuit court clerks are elected in each county for four-year terms and in some counties also serve General Sessions. Chancery courts have a clerk and master appointed by the chancellor. Some counties, such as Hamilton, have a criminal court clerk separate from the circuit court clerk. The Tennessee courts website has a clerk directory searchable by county.

A few large counties run their own online searches. In Davidson County (Nashville), the Criminal Court Clerk's Search Case Information tool covers General Sessions criminal and state trial court criminal cases. It searches by person, case number or complaint number, has system data from 2000 and older legacy data back to 1980, and leaves out expunged charges. For cases before 1980 you contact the clerk's office.

Getting copies and certified copies

Copies come from the clerk of the court that heard the case: the circuit court clerk, the criminal court clerk, the clerk and master for chancery cases, or the General Sessions clerk. Find the right office with the clerk directory on the Tennessee courts website, then ask in person, by mail or by phone about that office's copy and certification charges, which are not posted statewide.

If you get a case expunged, the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation advises keeping a certified copy of the expungement order, since it is the best proof the court completed the expungement.

Records that are not public

Tennessee's expungement law is T.C.A. 40-32-101. Expungement is not automatic: you file with the court in the county where the arrest happened. Charges that were dismissed, nolle prosequi, no true bill or found not guilty can be expunged at no cost to the defendant. Charges handled through pretrial or judicial diversion carry clerk fees, as do conviction expungements.

Some misdemeanor and Class E felony convictions can be expunged too. That process runs through the District Attorney's office in the county of arrest, which provides a conviction expungement packet. Once ordered, TBI deletes the charges from the state record rather than sealing them, and sends the order to the FBI. Making expunged information public is itself an offense under that statute. For your own record, talk to a lawyer or the District Attorney's office.

Tip: spell the name as it was at arrest

Davidson County's criminal search warns that names must be typed exactly as entered at the time of arrest, and some records have no date of birth. Try spelling variants, and confirm any match with the clerk's office before relying on it. TBI also notes that private background-check companies often keep showing charges after an expungement, so check court and TBI records instead.

Sources

Checked against the official sources above in October 2026. Court rules and fees change; the court's own site is the final word. This is general information, not legal advice.

Federal cases filed in Tennessee

State portals don't cover federal court. If the case you're looking for might be a federal criminal prosecution, civil suit, or bankruptcy, use CourtRecordsFree's live federal search — it queries CourtListener/RECAP directly and isn't limited to any one state.

Search tips

Try both "Last, First" and "First Last" — courts index names inconsistently.
Middle initials and suffixes (Jr., III) often matter for common names.
A date of birth or case number is the only reliable way to confirm you found the right person.
An arrest or charge shown in a docket is not a conviction — read the disposition.

Frequently asked questions

Is it free to search Tennessee court records online?

It depends on what you're looking for. Some record types on Tennessee's portal are free; others require payment or a formal request.

Does this include criminal records?

Yes. Tennessee's portal includes criminal case records alongside civil cases, though sealed and expunged cases are not shown.

Does one search cover the whole state?

No single search. Tennessee has no statewide index — you need to find the right county first, then search that county's own system.

Links move. If the Tennessee portal link above is dead, tell us on the corrections page.