Oktibbeha County Circuit Clerk

About the Oktibbeha County Circuit Clerk

The Circuit Clerk is an elected county official who serves as clerk of the Oktibbeha County Circuit Court. Tony M. Rook holds the office and took office in 2017. The clerk and the office staff keep the files, dockets, and money records for the county's general law court, which sits in the 16th Circuit Court District alongside Lowndes, Clay, and Noxubee Counties.

The office works out of the Court Annex in downtown Starkville. Normal hours run Monday through Friday, but the county notes that court sessions and election season can call for extra working hours, including some Saturdays. A short visit covers most copy and license requests, though busy court terms slow the counter down.

The county Circuit Court page lays out the clerk's role and links the public search tools described below. The directory page lists the office address, phone, fax, and the same extended-hours note.

What the Circuit Clerk Does in Oktibbeha County

The office establishes, maintains, and keeps the records of the Circuit Court. It files pleadings, manages trial dockets, and accounts for court costs, fees, fines, and assessments. The clerk also summons juries and keeps the county judgment rolls. Because the Circuit Court hears appeals from the County, Justice, and Municipal courts, those appeal files land with the Circuit Clerk as well, along with the felony indictments returned by the county grand jury that meets twice each year. A second large duty set covers elections, since the Circuit Clerk in Mississippi is the county's voter registration and election records office.

• Circuit Court case files, both civil actions at law and felony criminal prosecutions
• Civil and criminal trial dockets and the county judgment rolls
• Marriage licenses, jury lists, and certain professional licenses kept by the office
• Voter registration records and election assistance records
• Candidate qualifying papers and absentee ballots

Anything in equity sits with a different office. Divorce, child custody, estates, guardianships, land records, and board minutes belong to the Oktibbeha County Chancery Clerk, not the Circuit Clerk. That split is the single most useful thing to know before you call.

Searching Oktibbeha County Circuit Records Online

The county Circuit Court page links four searches hosted by Delta Computer Systems: civil cases, criminal cases, the judgment roll, and marriage licenses. The county describes circuit case coverage as 1997 to present. The search screens are visible to anyone, so you can see the index fields and confirm a record exists. Opening full case detail is a different matter.

The Circuit Court staff directory lists the office contacts and the extended-hours note for court and election season.

The directory above is the quickest way to confirm the phone, fax, and address before a visit. The Delta record portals carry a paid-access notice: Circuit Court information costs $30 per month or $330 per year, and a user account is required to open documents. The civil and criminal searches share the same index fields.

The judgment roll search adds fields for rendition date, enrollment date, satisfied or cancel date, case or lien number, and book and page. One local change matters for lien research. As of January 1, 2015, all state tax liens are filed at liens.ms.gov, and the Circuit Clerk's office no longer receives them, so an older judgment roll search may miss newer state tax liens.

Note: The public Delta screens let you check whether a circuit case or judgment exists, but reading the full record requires the paid subscription account described on each portal.

Marriage Licenses and Election Duties

Marriage licenses in Oktibbeha County are issued by the Circuit Clerk, not the Chancery Clerk. The county says both parties must appear in person with picture identification. Applicants who are 21 or older may apply without parental consent. Applicants under 21 need notarized parent authorization or a parent present. A marriage license search runs through the Delta portal by party names, marriage date, or book and page, though scanned marriage documents are not posted online.

The current Oktibbeha marriage license fee is not published in the county's online material, so confirm the exact amount with the Circuit Clerk at 662-323-1356 before you visit. Divorce records are a separate matter and live with the Chancery Clerk, since divorce is decided in Chancery Court.

The election side of the office is busy in cycle years. The Circuit Clerk maintains voter registration, processes candidate qualifying papers, manages absentee ballots, and supports general election operations. That workload is why the office posts a notice that election season may require added hours, including Saturdays.

How to Request a Certified Copy

A certified copy carries the clerk's seal and is the version courts, agencies, and many private offices accept as official. An uncertified printout from an online index is fine for a quick look but is not the same document. Use these steps for a circuit record copy.

1. Identify the record by case number, party names, and the filing or disposition date so the clerk can locate the right file.
2. Confirm whether the record is held by the Circuit Clerk; if it is a divorce, estate, or land matter, the request goes to the Chancery Clerk instead.
3. Contact the office at 662-323-1356 to verify the copy and certification charge and the accepted payment method before you submit.
4. Submit the request at the counter or by mail, including payment and, for a mailed request, a stamped self-addressed return envelope.
5. Pick up the certified copy at the Court Annex or wait for it to arrive by return mail.

County Records Request Form Fields

When a record is not posted online, the county public records request form is the universal fallback for non-confidential files. The form is listed on the county documents and forms page. The exact field labels are not fully published online, but a county records request of this type asks for the items below.

The county public records policy governs how the office responds. The Mississippi Public Records Act, found at Section 25-61-1 and following, requires public bodies to make records available unless an exemption applies, and the Mississippi Ethics Commission publishes the full text.

Oktibbeha County Circuit Clerk Fees

Copy and certification charges are modest and apply across most counter requests. Filing fees for new circuit civil or criminal actions are set out in a separate Circuit Clerk filing fees document kept by the office. The specific circuit filing amounts are not published in the county's online material, so confirm those with the clerk before you file.

Always verify a current fee and the accepted payment method with the office before mailing anything. A short call to 662-323-1356 avoids a returned request and a second trip.

Other Ways to Reach Oktibbeha County Court Records

The Circuit Clerk is one office in a split system. Lower-court records sit elsewhere. Justice Court records are at 104 Felix Long Drive, and Starkville Municipal Court records are inside City Hall at 110 West Main Street. Those courts hold most traffic, small civil, and misdemeanor files. The full criminal case file, from charges through sentencing, is covered in the Oktibbeha County criminal court records.

For circuit civil and criminal cases, the path is the Delta portal first, then the Circuit Clerk counter for certified copies or for files the index does not show. For divorce, probate, land, and board records, the Chancery Clerk is the office to call. When no portal covers a record, the county public records request form reaches non-confidential files held by any county office.