York County Superior Court Case Search

York County Superior Court maintains records of all appeals filed in the courthouse. The court’s officials maintain such records and may disclose them upon requests from public members. However, some court documents are classified as confidential or restricted from public access due to statutory or judicial constraints.

The Superior Court may deny access to such records unless the requester has the legal right to make the request. Examples of restricted court documents include drug and alcohol treatment records, information on informants in a criminal case, and minor-related family law records.

Public members may search York County Superior Court records for these reasons:

• To find information about the court’s activities
• To conduct legal research from closed cases
• To determine if the court was fair or transparent in its activities.

Note: There is only one superior court in Pennsylvania, and its authority is not limited to York County. The court has statewide authority over appeals from lower courts.

What Kinds of Cases Are Heard in the York Superior Court?

The York County Superior Court hears appeals concerning judgments and decisions made in the Court of Common Pleas. It hears appeals relating to criminal, civil, and family law cases. It also oversees cases involving mandamus and prohibition of lower courts. That being said, the court may issue writs like habeas corpus. Unlike lower courts, the Superior Court does not have divisions or specialized departments for handling specific case types. The court handles all its duties in one location.

York County Superior Court

York County Superior Court is an intermediate appellate court with exclusive authority over cases that involve mandamus and prohibition of lower courts. It also reviews all appeals concerning cases heard in the Court of Common Pleas. There are no limits or thresholds for cases handled in the superior court.

The Superior Court is one of the busiest and most important appellate courts since it receives appeals concerning cases handled at the Court of Common Pleas. Local residents may use the court to seek redress concerning civil disputes or criminal matters. Residents can find the superior court at these locations:

Pennsylvania Superior Court
Judicial Center
601 Commonwealth Avenue
Suite 1500
Harrisburg, PA 17120

Superior Court’s Prothonotary Locations
Philadelphia Office
530 Walnut Street
Suite 315
Philadelphia, PA 19106
Phone: (215) 560-5800

Harrisburg Office
Pennsylvania Judicial Center
601 Commonwealth Avenue
Suite 1600
P.O. Box 62435
Harrisburg, PA 17106
Phone: (717) 772-1294

Pittsburgh Office
Grant Building
310 Grant Street
Suite 600
Pittsburgh, PA 15219
Phone: (412) 565-7592

York County Case Lookup

Public members can look up and obtain copies of court case records through these options:

Online searches on official repositories

The Pennsylvania court system maintains an online database for all appeals and cases handled in the Supreme Court. To view records on the database, inquirers must follow these steps:

1. Visit the state’s online search portal
2. Click the "Case Search" tab.
3. To access appellate records, select "Appellate" or "Docket Number" in the dropdown search menu.
4. Fill in the required information, such as the appellate court name, docket type, and case type.
5. Click on "Search’ to view the records.

There is also a searchable platform for viewing superior court opinions. Inquirers must input the court type, publication type, and content to locate opinions on the search platform.

Walk-in requests for court records

The York County Clerk of Courts allows in-person requests for court records under their jurisdiction. Inquirers must make the request by visiting the clerk’s office from 8:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. at this address:

York County Judicial Center
45 North George Street
York, PA 17401

The clerk of courts will charge fees for creating copies of the requested documents.

Mail-in requests for court records

Interested parties can obtain court records by sending a completed court transcript request form to the Clerk of Court’s office at:

York County Clerk of Courts
Attn: Transcript Request
York County Judicial Center
45 North George Street
York, PA 17401

After sending the transcript, visit the clerk of court’s licensed third-party payment platform and follow these steps:

1. Input the case identifiers for the requested transcript.
2. Type the amount owed in the "Fee Payment" box.
3. Next, enter your personal information, including your name and email address.
4. After making the payment, contact the clerk of courts at CoCTranscriptRequest@YorkCountyPA.gov to inform them of your payment.
5. The clerk of courts will process the request after confirming the payment.

York Superior Court Case Search by Name

Name-based inquiries involve using the record subject’s names or aliases to locate related documents. To name-search York superior court records, inquirers must visit the courthouse or its prothonotaries at these locations:

Pennsylvania Superior Court
Judicial Center
601 Commonwealth Avenue
Suite 1500
Harrisburg, PA 17120

Superior Court’s Prothonotary Locations
Philadelphia Office
530 Walnut Street
Suite 315
Philadelphia, PA 19106
Phone: (215) 560-5800

Harrisburg Office
Pennsylvania Judicial Center
601 Commonwealth Avenue
Suite 1600
P.O. Box 62435
Harrisburg, PA 17106
Phone: (717) 772-1294

Pittsburgh Office
Grant Building
310 Grant Street
Suite 600
Pittsburgh, PA 15219
Phone: (412) 565-7592

However, the court may request additional identifiers to easily locate court documents. Note that name-based inquiries may bring up information for case parties with similar names. To fine-tune your search result, you must include case identifiers like case number, docket number, filing date, or birthdate.

York Superior Court Docket Search

Court dockets are summaries of all events that transpired in a case proceeding. The records may cover data about filed documents, case parties, presiding judges, filing dates, case status, and case description.

Record seekers can find York Superior Court records through the state’s online case repository. To view records on the platform, users must select "docket number" or "appellate" in the search menu drop-down. Next, they must input relevant search data to obtain the record.

Inquirers can also visit the superior court’s office to view or obtain physical copies of court dockets. Court docket searches are important for staying up-to-date about court dates and to track case progress. Inquiries also use court docket information to locate important documents filed in a case proceeding.

Lookup York County Superior Court Online

Public members can obtain official York superior court records from the state’s online case search platform. The platform features court documents like case files, court dockets, and judgments. Alternatively, third-party search platforms like Pennsylvaniacourtrecords.us may provide access to superior court records. These sites have easy-to-use interfaces that enable inquirers to easily search and retrieve court information. Some search sites also offer perks like free downloads of court documents. However, these sites operate independently of government agencies and cannot, therefore, guarantee accurate, updated, or complete information.

Supreme Court vs. Superior Court

Pennsylvania’s Supreme and Superior Courts are both under the appellate court system. However, they are quite different in terms of hierarchy and functions. The Supreme Court is the highest appellate court, while the Superior Court is referred to as an intermediate court.

Based on its functions, the former hears appeals from the appellate courts—Commonwealth Court and Superior Court—and lower courts like the Court of Common Pleas. The court has the authority to review and overturn decisions made in other courts. In addition, it has exclusive judicial authority over death penalty cases and can oversee cases of public importance. In contrast, the Superior Court only hears appeals from the Court of Common Pleas. It also has authority over mandamus and prohibitions of lower courts.