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Vol. 13, No. 4 April 2017
Family Court Minute Entries
Effective this month, the Clerk’s office has removed family court minute
entries from the Clerk’s minute entry online website. Maricopa County was one
of two Superior Court Clerks posting family court minute entries online to the
general public, as allowed by Arizona Supreme Court Rule 123. A variety of
information appears in Maricopa County’s minute entries, depending on the
issues raised in a proceeding and the type of proceeding. After reviewing
concerns from our customers about the information that appears in family court
minute entries, the office decided to remove unregistered internet access to
these documents. Parties and
their attorneys can still remotely access public records in their own cases
through the Clerk’s ECR Online website (https://ecr.clerkofcourt.maricopa.gov/login.aspx)
and public records will still be accessible through public access terminals
located around the Valley. For more information on Clerk’s office locations and
on other ways to obtain public records, see http://www.clerkofcourt.maricopa.gov/copies.asp.
Although this change was made quickly, it protects families while maintaining
access to public records.
Marriage and Travel
If you missed the February and March events, there are two more chances
to take advantage of the Clerk’s Saturday hours for processing passport
applications and issuing marriage licenses. The summer travel season will be
here before you know it and April is a good time to start the four-to-six week
process of getting your passport issued or renewed. And you won’t be alone — ten
years ago the Clerk’s office had a rush on passport applications due to the
2007 Western Hemisphere Travel Initiative and those passports are now expiring.
Saturday office hours are only offered at the Clerk’s Customer Service Center located
at 601 W Jackson St in downtown Phoenix. The office will be open from 9:00 a.m.
to 3:00 p.m. on April 8 and 22. In addition to processing passport
applications, the office will issue marriage licenses.
The Clerk’s Office is an acceptance agency for processing passport
applications for passport books and cards for children and adults. The U.S.
Department of State and Clerk of Court fees are paid separately. The Clerk’s
$25 fee applies to each application and is payable by cash, debit card, money order,
Visa, MasterCard or American Express only. The State Department’s fees vary
depending on the type of application and the State Department accepts checks
and money orders only. Applicants can start their paperwork online, print and
bring their forms to the Clerk’s Office to save time. See http://travel.state.gov/content/passports/en/passports/apply.html.
For more information, see the Clerk’s website at http://www.clerkofcourt.maricopa.gov/passport.asp.
External Filing Depository Box
in Mesa
The external filing depository
box located on the north side of the Southeast Adult Court building in Mesa
will soon move to a more convenient location for the public — the main entrance
on the south side of the building. The filing box is one of four external
filing depository boxes that are available 24 hours-a-day, seven days-a-week
around the Valley. The filing boxes can be used any time, but are particularly
helpful on weekends, holidays, when there are long lines at the internal file
counters, and when filings do not require a fee. The 24-hour filing depository boxes
are available for Criminal, Family Court, Tax, and Probate filings and for some
Civil filings. They are not for any Juvenile filings or for Civil filings that
must be eFiled. Last fiscal year, the Clerk’s office received 36,690 filings
through the external filing depository boxes. Find the box locations online
at http://www.clerkofcourt.maricopa.gov/alternative_filing.asp.
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