Bradford County Court Records

Bradford County sits within Pennsylvania's 42nd Judicial District and operates a single Court of Common Pleas alongside four Magisterial District Courts. The county seat is Towanda, and the Bradford County Courthouse at 301 Main Street is where you'll find most of the judicial and records offices you'll need to visit. Court records here cover case filings, docket entries, judgments, orders, decrees, sentencing details, and financial case information. Depending on the type of case, those records are held by different offices — mainly the Prothonotary and Clerk of Courts for civil and criminal matters, and the Register and Recorder for probate, vital records, and property documents.

If you're starting your search from home, PennsylvaniaCourts.us offers a useful entry point to statewide court resources. The Unified Judicial System Web Portal gives free electronic access to criminal docket sheets across Pennsylvania, while Bradford County's own Prothonotary Web Viewer covers civil case records specifically. For anything that requires a certified copy or an in-person review, you'll need to visit the appropriate clerk's office during regular business hours. Public-access terminals may also be available on site.

How to Look Up a Court Case in Bradford County?

Where you look depends on the kind of case you're researching. Criminal and certain appellate matters are searchable through the statewide UJS Portal, while civil actions are available through the county's own online viewer. Here's a practical step-by-step approach:

Determine the case type. Criminal cases — felonies and misdemeanors — are maintained by the Clerk of Courts. Civil suits, family law actions, and liens are under the Prothonotary. Probate and estate matters fall to the Register and Recorder, who also serves as Register of Wills and Clerk of Orphans Court.
Search online. For criminal docket sheets, use the UJS Portal Case Search and select your preferred search method — participant name, case number, or offense tracking number. For civil records, head to the Bradford County Prothonotary Web Viewer and search by case number or party name. Documents viewed through the Web Viewer cost $0.25 each.
Visit in person. All three record-keeping offices are at or near the Bradford County Courthouse:
Bradford County Courthouse
Address: 301 Main Street, Towanda, PA 18848

Office	Phone	Fax	Hours
Court Administration	(570) 265-1707	(570) 265-1747	Mon–Fri 8:30 a.m.–4:00 p.m.
Prothonotary / Clerk of Courts	(570) 265-1705	(570) 265-1735	Mon–Fri 8:00 a.m.–4:30 p.m.
Register & Recorder	(570) 265-1702	(570) 265-1721	Mon–Fri 8:00 a.m.–4:30 p.m. (recording until 3:30 p.m.)

Submit a mail request. Written requests should include the full names of all parties, the case number if you have it, a clear description of the document you need, and payment for any applicable copy fees. Mail everything to the relevant office at 301 Main Street, Towanda, PA 18848.
Contact the court for scheduling questions. The Office of Court Administration directs scheduling inquiries to the Pennsylvania Judiciary Web Portal, where you can find up-to-date public court calendars.

Are Court Records Public in Bradford County?

Pennsylvania operates under a general presumption that court records are open to the public. The Public Access Policy of the Unified Judicial System (effective January 1, 2022) and the Pennsylvania Right-to-Know Law (65 P.S. §67.101 et seq.) together establish the framework for accessing judicial case records. Electronic records available through the UJS Portal and county viewers typically include case numbers, filing dates, case types, judge assignments, party names and addresses, docket entries, charges, dispositions, and case financial information.

That said, certain categories of information are kept off-limits to the general public and may only be viewed by the parties to the case, attorneys of record, or authorized judicial personnel. Restricted categories include:

Social Security numbers and state identification (SID) numbers
Driver's license numbers
Financial account numbers (except the last four digits of an active account when part of a case)
Income and expense statements and financial source documents
Psychological and medical records
A juvenile's educational records
Children, Youth, and Family Services records
Marital property inventories and pre-trial statements
Agreements between case parties filed under seal
Victim contact information — including address, employer name and address, and work schedule — in family court protection-from-abuse matters
Names and dates of birth of juveniles, except those charged as defendants in criminal proceedings

Records sealed by court order are entirely restricted. If you need access to a sealed or confidential record, you'll need to petition the court. A Confidential Form with Instructions is available from the Prothonotary's office for filings that contain restricted information. The Administrative Office of Pennsylvania Courts also publishes a Request for Access Form that can be used when seeking non-public case records.

Bradford County Criminal Court Records

Criminal cases in Bradford County move through different levels of court depending on the offense. Felonies and higher-level misdemeanors are handled by the Court of Common Pleas, while the four Magisterial District Courts manage preliminary hearings, summary offenses, and arraignments. The Clerk of Courts — located within the Prothonotary's office at 301 Main Street — is the official custodian of all criminal and juvenile court records.

Magisterial District Courts in Bradford County:

Court	Address	Phone
MDJ 42-3-01	123 Canton Street, Troy, PA 16947	(570) 297-3880
MDJ 42-3-02	75 Herrick Avenue, Sayre, PA 18840	(570) 888-6324
MDJ 42-3-03	200 Main Street, Towanda, PA 18848	(570) 268-5057
MDJ 42-3-04	1959 Golden Mile Road, Wysox, PA 18854	(570) 265-9393

Criminal docket sheets for Bradford County cases are searchable free of charge through the UJS Portal. You can search by participant name, docket number, or offense tracking number to pull up case details, charges, and disposition information.

For a formal criminal background check, the Pennsylvania State Police PATCH system (Pennsylvania Access to Criminal History) provides statewide criminal history reports. A standard online request costs $22.00 (non-refundable), with a 2% credit card transaction fee applied as of April 2026. Adding a notarized certification costs an extra $5.00. If you'd rather submit by mail, complete Form SP 4-164 and send it with a certified check or money order to:

Pennsylvania State Police Central Repository 164
Address: 1800 Elmerton Avenue, Harrisburg, PA 17110-9758

If you're requesting your own criminal history record, use Form SP 4-170 with a $20.00 check by mail.

The Bradford County Sheriff's Office handles bench warrant service, court order enforcement, and courtroom security. Direct arrest-related inquiries and warrant questions to:

Bradford County Sheriff's Office
Address: 215 Main Street, Towanda, PA 18848
Phone: (570) 265-1701
Fax: (570) 265-1734
Hours: Monday–Friday 8:00 a.m.–4:30 p.m.

Inmate-related records are handled by the Bradford County Correctional Facility:

Bradford County Correctional Facility
Address: 15927 Route 6, Troy, PA 16947
Phone: (570) 297-5047
Fax: (570) 297-4350

Bradford County Civil Court Records

The Prothonotary is the chief clerk of the civil division of the Court of Common Pleas and maintains records for lawsuits, judgments, liens, name changes, and petitions. The current Prothonotary is Tammy Hart, reachable at (570) 265-1705 or by email at hartt@bradfordco.org (you can also use bcproth@bradfordco.org for general inquiries).

Start your civil case search online through the Bradford County Prothonotary Web Viewer. You can search by case number or party name, and each document you view costs $0.25. Note that the Web Viewer is optimized for certain browsers and may not work correctly in all environments.

For in-person requests, the Prothonotary's office is open Monday through Friday, 8:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Staff can help you locate records and arrange copies. The Prothonotary Fee Schedule breaks down costs for filings, certifications, and document copies — covering areas like copy and certification charges, appeal filing fees, judgment certifications, and lien docketing.

Several civil forms are available for download from the Prothonotary page on the county website:

The Unified Judicial System also publishes additional public forms available statewide. Property-related civil records — deeds, mortgages, liens, easements, and UCC financing statements — are recorded by the Register and Recorder. You can search deed and mortgage indexes online through the Landex remote access portal, and property tax records are searchable via the Treasurer's Tax Search Portal.

Certified copies of recorded property documents cost $2.00. Plain copies run $0.25 per page if self-serve, or $0.50 per page if staff produces them. The full 2026 Recorder of Deeds fee schedule is on the Register & Recorder page. Representative recording fees include $77.75 for a deed, $77.75 for a mortgage, $64.75 for a satisfaction of mortgage, and $105.00 for a UCC financing statement. All recording fees cover up to four pages, four names, and one parcel; additional pages are $2.00 each, additional names $0.50 each, and additional parcels $0.50 each.

Bradford County Family Court Records

Family law actions in Bradford County are filed with the Prothonotary and heard in the Court of Common Pleas. The Prothonotary records divorces, custody complaints, protection-from-abuse (PFA) petitions, and related motions. A Hearing Master presides over dependency, delinquency, divorce, and support proceedings. Family court case records are generally accessible to the public, though confidential information protected under the Public Access Policy — such as victim contact details in PFA cases, juvenile identifying information, and psychological evaluations — is withheld.

If you need to review divorce records, visit the Prothonotary's office during business hours and provide the party names, divorce dates, or case numbers to help staff locate the file. For copy fee information, call (570) 265-1705 or email hartt@bradfordco.org. Downloadable family court forms from the county website include:

The Bradford County Domestic Relations Office handles child support, spousal support, and alimony pendente lite matters under the supervision of the President Judge. Reach the office at (570) 265-1718 (automated phone system). Forms and additional resources are available through the PA Child Support Program website.

Marriage licenses are issued by the Register and Recorder. The license fee is $40.00, with an additional $2.00 for a consent form if applicable and $19.00 for a three-day waiver petition. Certified copies of a marriage license cost $6.00. An Online Marriage Application is available through the county's Landex partnership. To schedule an in-person appointment for marriage license processing, call (570) 265-1702; recording hours for appointments run Monday through Friday, 8:00 a.m. to 3:30 p.m.

Birth and death certificates from 1893 through 1905 are held by the Register and Recorder. Birth records cost $20.00 and death records $9.00 from this office. You can visit in person or submit a mail request with a self-addressed stamped envelope; staff will search the record and bill you when it is located. For records from 1906 to the present, contact the Pennsylvania Department of Health's Division of Vital Records. The standard state fee is $20.00 per birth or death certificate, with an additional $10.00 processing fee for online orders. Mail requests can be submitted using the Application for a Birth Certificate or Application for a Death Certificate, along with a check or money order and valid ID, sent to:

Division of Vital Records
Birth or Death Certificate Processing Unit
P.O. Box 1528, New Castle, PA 16103

Walk-in requests are accepted at any Vital Records Office location during business hours. Mail and in-person applicants must be at least 16 years old; online applicants must be 18 or older.

Bradford County Probate Court Records

Probate matters in Bradford County go through the Orphans Court division of the Court of Common Pleas. The Register and Recorder — who also serves as Register of Wills and Clerk of Orphans Court — is the custodian of all probate records, including wills, letters testamentary, letters of administration, inventories, estate accountings, guardianship petitions, and adoption filings. The office probates approximately 350 to 400 estates each year.

Probate records are available for in-person review at the Register and Recorder's office, Monday through Friday, 8:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Bring a decedent's name or case number to help staff conduct the search. The estate search fee is $5.00. Copies of probate documents cost $2.50 for a certified copy of the first page of an estate instrument, $0.25 per additional page, and $5.00 for short certificates. The full Register of Wills and Clerk of Orphans Court Fee Schedule (effective December 1, 2025) lists the following representative fees:

Action	Fee
Letters Testamentary/Administration (estate $1,000)	$30.00
Letters Testamentary/Administration (estate $5,001–$10,000)	$60.00
Letters Testamentary/Administration (estate $50,001–$75,000)	$175.00
Letters Testamentary/Administration (estate $75,001–$100,000)	$200.00
Each additional $100,000 or fraction	$75.00
JCS Fee (per filing)	$41.25
Probate of will only (first page)	$15.00
Final accounts	$225.00
Guardianship petition & appointment	$76.25
Periodic (yearly) guardianship accounting	$14.00
Adoption filing	$50.00
Orphans Court petition (any kind)	$76.25
Claim against estate	$20.00
Short certificates	$5.00
Appeal to appellate court	$90.25

The office accepts cash or check payments only. Bond fees of $10.00 apply when required. Guardianship appointments carry a requirement that a first account be filed within four months. If you're representing yourself in a probate filing, the Unified Judicial System's Representing Yourself resources offer useful guidance. Those who need legal assistance can reach North Penn Legal Services for local help.