East Baton Rouge Parish Public Records Search
East Baton Rouge Parish public records are kept by the Clerk of Court for the 19th Judicial District and include court filings, property documents, marriage licenses, and more. As the most populous parish in Louisiana and home to the state capital, East Baton Rouge holds a large volume of government and court records. The clerk's office at 222 St. Louis Street in Baton Rouge maintains both physical files and online access tools that let the public search cases and land records without visiting in person.
East Baton Rouge Parish Quick Facts
East Baton Rouge Parish Public Records Access
The East Baton Rouge Parish Clerk of Court, Doug Welborn, runs one of the busiest clerk offices in Louisiana. The office handles public records for the 19th Judicial District, which serves East Baton Rouge Parish exclusively. You can reach the office at (225) 389-3960 during normal business hours, Monday through Friday, 8:30 AM to 4:30 PM. The main courthouse is located at 222 St. Louis Street, Baton Rouge, LA 70801.
Public access to records is governed by La. R.S. 44:1 and the Louisiana Constitution, Article XII, Section 3. These laws make most government records open to any person who asks. The clerk's office cannot deny access to records simply because you don't say why you want them. Certified copies cost $1 per page plus a certification fee. Plain copies are also available at the same per-page rate. If you need a large number of documents, calling ahead to schedule a records request can save time.
The clerk's online portal at ebrclerkofcourt.org provides free search access to civil, criminal, and property records. This is the fastest way to look up case numbers, party names, and filing dates without coming to the courthouse.
Note: Certified copies require in-person pickup or a written mail request with payment included.
Court Public Records in East Baton Rouge
Civil court records in East Baton Rouge Parish cover a wide range of case types. These include contract disputes, personal injury claims, domestic matters, successions, and more. Each case file contains the original petition, all motions, orders signed by the judge, and the final judgment. Under La. R.S. 44:1, these records are public unless a judge has ordered them sealed. Sealed records are rare and require a specific court order. Criminal court records are also public and include charges filed, arrest warrants, bond information, and dispositions. The 19th JDC handles felony and misdemeanor cases for the parish. You can search both civil and criminal indexes through the clerk's online system.
Probate records are filed through the same clerk's office. These records cover successions, wills, interdictions, and tutorships. If someone died in East Baton Rouge Parish, their succession file is likely on record at 222 St. Louis Street. These files can include inventories of property, lists of heirs, and court orders approving distributions. Probate records are fully public under state law.
The statewide ClerkConnect portal also indexes East Baton Rouge case records. You can access it at ClerkConnect to search across multiple parishes at once.
The Louisiana Clerks of Court Association statewide portal at laclerksportal.org provides a single point of access for public record indexes across Louisiana parishes.
The portal is useful when you need to check records in East Baton Rouge alongside records from other parishes.
Property and Land Public Records
East Baton Rouge Parish maintains conveyance and mortgage records through the clerk's office. Conveyance records document the transfer of real property and go back many decades. Mortgage records show liens, cancellations, and refinancing activity on property in the parish. These records are indexed by name and by property description. The clerk's online portal lets you search conveyance and mortgage records by grantor, grantee, or legal description.
UCC filings are also handled by the East Baton Rouge Clerk of Court. These filings cover secured transactions involving personal property and are used by lenders and businesses. Under La. R.S. 44:4 et seq., public bodies must make these records available. The clerk's office indexes UCC records alongside land records in the same online system. Title companies, lenders, and attorneys search these records regularly. Anyone can do the same search for free through the clerk's portal.
Note: Property records older than several decades may only be available in physical form at the courthouse and are not yet digitized.
Vital Records and Marriage Licenses
Marriage licenses in East Baton Rouge Parish are issued and recorded by the clerk's office. You apply at the courthouse, and the completed license is filed there after the ceremony. The clerk keeps a marriage index that is searchable by name. Certified copies of marriage records can be requested in person or by mail.
Birth and death records for Louisiana are maintained by the Louisiana Office of Vital Records, which operates under the Department of Health. These records are not held at the parish clerk's office. For historical vital records, the Louisiana Secretary of State maintains an online index of older birth and death records.
The Louisiana Secretary of State's vital records search at the online vital records index covers historical birth and death records for the state.
This resource is a good starting point for genealogy research or locating older vital records tied to East Baton Rouge Parish residents.
Criminal Background Public Records
Criminal history records in Louisiana are governed in part by La. R.S. 15:588, which covers the collection and use of criminal identification records by state agencies. The Louisiana State Police Bureau of Criminal Identification and Information handles statewide criminal history checks. These are separate from the case-level records held at the parish clerk's office. If you need a certified background check, you go through state police rather than the clerk. Court records at the clerk's office, on the other hand, are public and show case filings, charges, and dispositions without restriction under La. R.S. 44:1.
Arrest records from the East Baton Rouge Parish Sheriff's Office and the Baton Rouge Police Department are separate from court records. Booking records and jail rosters may be available through those agencies directly. The sheriff's office and police department each have their own records divisions that handle requests for incident reports and arrest documents.
Note: Expunged records are not accessible to the public and are removed from court indexes under court order.
State Archives and Government Public Records
Because Baton Rouge is the state capital, East Baton Rouge Parish is also home to a large body of state government records. The Louisiana State Archives, operated by the Secretary of State's office, holds historical records from state agencies, legislative documents, and other government materials. These are distinct from parish-level records but are physically located in Baton Rouge and accessible to the public.
The Secretary of State's office also manages business entity records, notary public records, and election filings. These state-level records are searchable through the Secretary of State website. If you are looking for records tied to a business registered in Louisiana, that search starts at the Secretary of State, not the parish clerk.
The Louisiana State Archives at sos.la.gov/historicalresources holds decades of state government records that complement parish-level public records.
Researchers can visit the archives in person or access some collections online through the Secretary of State's historical resources portal.
Note: Louisiana Legislative records, including bills, acts, and committee records, are maintained by the Legislature itself and are accessible through the Louisiana Legislature's official website.
How to Request East Baton Rouge Public Records
You can get public records from the East Baton Rouge Clerk of Court in several ways. In person is the most direct option. Go to 222 St. Louis Street, Baton Rouge, LA 70801, and ask the clerk's staff for the records you need. Bring as much identifying information as possible — party names, case numbers, dates, or property addresses all help narrow the search. For online requests, use the clerk's portal at ebrclerkofcourt.org to find records and then decide if you need certified copies.
Mail requests are accepted as well. Send a written request describing the records you need along with a check or money order for the copy fees. The office charges $1 per page for copies and an additional fee for certification. Response times vary depending on the volume of requests the office is handling. Calling (225) 389-3960 first to confirm the records exist and get a fee estimate is always a good idea before mailing payment.
The eClerks LA system at eclerksla.com also provides access to certain East Baton Rouge records through a statewide aggregation platform.
Nearby Parishes
East Baton Rouge Parish borders several other parishes, each with their own clerk offices and public records systems.