Cobb County Clerk of State Court Lookup

About the Cobb Clerk of State Court

The Clerk of State Court is a county office in Marietta. The clerk runs the day to day work of the State Court of Cobb County under state law and local court rules. The State Court itself was set up by the Georgia General Assembly in 1964 and began work on January 1, 1965. It was first known as the Civil and Criminal Court of Cobb County and later became the State Court of Cobb County. It is a court of limited jurisdiction. It hears traffic cases, state law misdemeanors, county ordinance cases, and a broad range of civil cases.

The Clerk's Office sits inside the State Court building near Marietta Square. The office is split into four parts. There is a Criminal Division, a Civil Division, Courtroom Deputies, and an Accounting Division. Each part has its own phone line. The office maintains all State Court records, collects fines and fees, attends court sessions, schedules cases, records dispositions, and processes follow up paperwork. Cobb's central Search Judicial Records hub points users to the State Court Clerk for traffic and misdemeanor lookups.

A short tour of the official Cobb State Court page shows the building, the contact list, and the link to the clerk's section.

The page links into the clerk section, the traffic page, and the daily court calendar, which are the main tools people use after they get a ticket or a court notice.

Tahnicia Phillips and the Office

Tahnicia Phillips is the Clerk of State Court for Cobb County. The county notes that she is the first African American elected as Clerk of State Court in Cobb and in Georgia. The official clerk page names her and lists the tools she oversees. Those include Pay Traffic Citation, Pay School Bus Violation, the Daily Court Calendar, Court Records Search, Civil E-Filing, Criminal E-Filing, and the State Court Address Change Request.

The clerk works with the State Court bench. Chief Judge Eric Brewton sits on the State Court. Donna Tschappat is the State Court Administrator on the public contact card. The clerk's office does not give legal advice. Staff can help a person locate a file, explain a fee, or walk them to the right window. They cannot tell a person what to file or how to argue a case. That line is set by state rules for clerks of court.

What State Court Records Are Maintained Here

The Clerk of State Court keeps only the files for State Court cases. That is a smaller set than what the Superior Court Clerk holds. The State Court Clerk page and the General Information page describe the case types. Traffic cases come in from state law tickets written in unincorporated Cobb County. Misdemeanors and county ordinance cases come in from arrests and citations. Civil cases include a broad set of money and tort matters that fall under State Court limits.

• Traffic citations and bond schedules
• State law misdemeanor accusations and dispositions
• County ordinance violations
• State Court civil complaints, answers, motions, and judgments
• Court orders, sentences, probation orders, and fine records
• School bus camera violation citations
• Address change forms and other clerk filings

Felony files, divorce decrees, land records, and child support cases are not here. Those are kept by the Clerk of Superior Court. Small claims under $15,000, dispossessory cases, and most warrant work are held by Magistrate Court. The split matters because people often guess wrong and call the wrong office first.

Searching State Court Records Online

State Court files are searchable through the State Court Records Search portal. The portal needs a disclaimer click first. Civil cases go back to March 17, 1997. Traffic and misdemeanor cases go back to April 26, 1999. The user guide says data is refreshed nightly. Today's case management work shows up the next day. The 2024 user guide covers each field and the result grid.

A short look at the live portal helps before a first search.

The page asks for a name, a case number, a citation, or a tag, and it uses reCAPTCHA at the bottom. Only the first 5,000 records come back, so a broad name search needs a date range or a case type filter to cut the list down.

The full list of search steps is short.

1. Open the State Court Records Search portal and accept the disclaimer.
2. Pick the right tab: Name/Dates, Case Number, Citation Number, or Tag Number.
3. Choose Civil or Criminal. Traffic and misdemeanor cases sit under Criminal.
4. Fill in at least one name field or one number field. Use a filing date range to cut the list.
5. Solve the reCAPTCHA and click Submit.
6. Click the arrow in the first column to open Case Details, or use the Documents button to view filings.
7. If the case is not found, wait 10 to 14 business days from the citation date and try again.

Note: The State Court portal is for individual public use; bulk downloads and direct query URL building can lead to permanent loss of access.

Traffic Citations and the Traffic Violations Bureau

The clerk's Traffic Violations Bureau handles most ticket work. The line is (770) 528-2660. The official Traffic Citation Information page is the main spot for ticket details, payable offenses, mandatory court dates, and online payment links. A look at that page shows the layout.

The page tells drivers to wait 10 to 14 business days after the ticket date before paying online or searching the case. If the ticket still does not show up after 14 days, the clerk's office is the right next call. Not every ticket can be paid online. Some require a court appearance. When a payable offense is paid online, the bond amount is forfeited on the court date and stands as the final disposition. Skipping the court date when an appearance is required can lead to a license suspension or a bench warrant. For more on tickets, see the traffic court records page.

Note: The Clerk's Office does not accept filings by fax or email, so traffic paperwork must be mailed, dropped off, or eFiled through PeachCourt.

Fees and Payment

State Court fines and bond amounts are set by the bond schedule for each charge. Civil filing fees are set by Georgia statute and local rules. The clerk takes cash, money order, and credit or debit card at the counter. Online payments run through the traffic citation portal. The official pages do not publish a single fixed copy fee table for State Court paper copies; calling the clerk for the current copy and certification charge before mailing a check is the safe step. The court records page has more on the general fee picture across all Cobb courts.

Phone lines split by division:

• Traffic Violations Bureau and general case help: (770) 528-2660
• Civil Division: (770) 528-1216
• Criminal Division: (770) 528-1246
• Accounting Division: (770) 528-1271

How to Request a Certified Copy

Certified copies prove that a court paper is a true copy of the official file. They are needed for license reinstatement, insurance work, immigration, and other legal use. Plain copies work for personal records but do not carry the clerk's seal.

1. Find the case number first through the State Court Records Search portal.
2. Note the party names, the case type, and the filing date for the request slip.
3. Bring or mail the request to 12 East Park Square, Marietta, GA 30090, with the fee.
4. Pick up at the counter or wait for the copy to come back in the mail.

The clerk's office is on the 2nd floor of the State Court building for in person drop off. Call ahead for the current per page and certification fee. The clerk will not search the file by phone for a record they cannot easily pull.

Difference Between Clerk of State Court and Clerk of Superior Court

Cobb has two clerks because the records are split by court class. People who know the split save a phone call and a trip. The Clerk of Superior Court is Connie Taylor. The Clerk of State Court is Tahnicia Phillips. Both are elected. Both work in Marietta. Each one keeps a different set of files.

A person looking up a DUI traffic ticket starts at the State Court Clerk. A person looking up a divorce or a deed starts at the Superior Court Clerk. For a felony, the Superior Court Clerk is the right office. For more on the trial courts behind each clerk, see the State Court page and the Superior Court page. For arrest and booking files, see criminal records.

Hours and Contact

The Clerk of State Court is open Monday through Friday from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. The office is closed on county holidays. The main email is statecourt@cobbcounty.gov. The clerk's General Information page lists hours and the building directory.

The page also lists the State Court divisions and the phone lines that go with each one. Records are open for inspection during work hours. The office may help on an individual case by phone when staff time allows, but it does not run name searches over the phone.

Walk-In Visits and Mail Requests

Walk in service is at 12 East Park Square in Marietta. The State Court building is near Marietta Square. The Clerk's Office is on the 2nd floor of that building. Parking sits in the downtown civic area. People who come in for a traffic case should bring the citation, a photo ID, and a means to pay. People who come in for a civil case file should bring the case number from the records search. The clerk's main page lists the building access notes.

Mail requests go to the same street address. The clerk does not take filings by fax or by email. A mail request needs the case number, the party names, the type of copy, and the number of copies. Include a check or money order for the fee and a return envelope.

A look at the official clerk page gives the full link set for online tools and paper forms.

From that page, users can reach Pay Traffic Citation, the Daily Court Calendar, Court Records Search, Civil E-Filing, Criminal E-Filing, and the Address Change Request form.

Related Cobb County Resources

For Superior Court filings, see the Clerk of Superior Court. For the bench behind the records, see State Court and Superior Court. For tickets, see traffic court records. For arrest data and criminal history, see criminal records. For a broader view of all court files, see court records.