New London County Court Records Lookup

The following is for information purposes only

New London County is located in the southern region of Connecticut. It was formed in 1646 and named after London in England by John Winthrop Junior. New London County has had no county seat since 1960 and the council of government is responsible for all local government activities. It comprises a population of 268,555 (2020) and both the Superior and Probate courts have the fundamental rights to hear all cases and proffer legal solutions to all cases brought in by the residents of New London.

The Superior Courts are the highest trial courts in New London County. They are courts of general jurisdiction and hear all civil, family, housing, criminal, and juvenile cases. The Superior Court jurisdiction covers cities like East Lyme, New London, Groton, Lyme, Stonington, Groton, Old Lyme, Ledyard, and Waterford. This court also presides over small claims (sue for money damages) in many municipalities. New London County has a handful of Municipal Courts in various locations and they are:

• New London Judicial District, New London
• New London Judicial District at Norwich
• Juvenile Matters at Waterford
• Geographical Area 21 at Norwich
• Geographical Area 10 at New London

The Probate Court has a traditional role in adoption, decedent estates, filing of wills, and trust cases. It also appoints guardians for children whose parents are unfit for parental roles, appoints guardians for the intellectually disabled, appoints conservators, and processes name change requests. New London Probate Court (New London), New London Regional Probate Court (New London), Niantic Regional Probate Court (Niantic), Norwich Probate Court (Norwich), Southeastern Connecticut Regional Probate Court (Groton) are the probate courts in New London county.

According to the Connecticut Judicial Branch Statistics, annually, New London County files 3,000 civil cases; this is derived from the number of cases handled from FY2020-FY2023. The Juvenile Matters Division (Waterbury) of the Superior Court filed 1,372 and disposed 1,093 cases in FY2023 while in FY2022, it filed 1,411 cases and resolved 1,072 cases in child protection petition cases. On a yearly basis, the Juvenile Matters Division caseload is 1,200 - 1,300. The public can view the Superior Court records on the State of Connecticut Judicial Branch or the Connecticut Probate Courts website. The court clerks in both the superior and probate courts have the duties of safekeeping and maintaining court record stores. Records are either stored electronically or at the courthouses and can be accessed at the geographical area/judicial district where a case was filed. Records that have been erased, youth offender information, bail interviews, pre-sentence investigation & assessments, juvenile records, and paternity actions (partially open files after 10/1/95) are protected from public disclosure.

The Superior Court and Probate Court are very meticulous in the discharge of their duties by providing a comprehensive approach to resolving cases. New London County reflects and operates an organized court system that aims to achieve integrity, improved productivity, and enhanced workflow. Remote accessibility to court records serves as a means of viewing court pleadings, motions, exhibits, transcripts, and judgments. This has brought the court system closer to the people.