Walker County Circuit Clerk Office
Richard E. Fikes is the Walker County Circuit Clerk listed by the Walker County court system. The office is the custodian of court records for both District Court and Circuit Court. It provides file access to judges, court staff, the legal community, and the public while keeping records confidential when Alabama law protects them.
The clerk counter is on the courthouse side of downtown Jasper's public-records corridor. Use the suite address for clerk business. The building address shown by the 14th Judicial Circuit is 1801 Third Avenue South, while the clerk's own suite address is 1803 3rd Avenue, Suite 205. That distinction can help with mail, records pickup, and a first visit.
Walker County Circuit Clerk
Clerk: Richard E. Fikes
1803 3rd Avenue, Suite 205
Jasper, AL 35501
Phone: (205) 384-7268
Fax: (205) 384-7271
Monday-Friday, 8:00 a.m.-4:00 p.m.; closed noon-1:00 p.m.
The county contact source shows how the clerk's phone, fax, hours, and suite are presented to Walker County residents.
These details identify the right counter for district and circuit court correspondence rather than the separate Probate Office.
Walker County Circuit Clerk Duties
The Circuit Clerk is the trial court's chief administrative and fiscal officer at the district and circuit levels. Records work includes file storage, electronic imaging, document retrieval, court data flow, docket setting, and case management. The same office receives pleadings, issues process, generates court reports, and attends court sessions. Its stated jurisdiction covers juvenile, domestic relations, child support, small claims, district civil, circuit civil, traffic, district criminal, and circuit criminal matters.
- Maintains case files and gives lawful access to public court records.
- Collects filing fees, costs, fines, restitution, and civil judgments.
- Issues summonses, writs, process, and approved bonds.
- Prepares records when a case moves to an appellate court.
- Manages juries, court inventories, personnel, purchasing, and statistics.
As fiscal officer, the clerk accounts for money paid into cases and for authorized disbursements. That is why a case detail may include a financial history as well as motions and rulings. Accounts are subject to examination by Alabama's Examiners of Public Accounts.
The official Richard Fikes profile lays out the unusually broad mix of record, fiscal, personnel, and courtroom duties.
The office is therefore more than a filing counter. It is the operating hub for Walker County's district and circuit court files.
Walker County Circuit Clerk Certified Copies
A certified court copy bears the court's certification and is used when a recipient needs proof that the copy came from the official file. The official local clerk materials do not publish a Circuit Clerk certification price, so confirm the current copy charge, accepted payment, turnaround time, and delivery method before sending money. A plain Alacourt image may be useful for review, but it should not be assumed to meet a court, licensing, or agency certification requirement.
- Identify the Walker County court, case type, party names, and case number if known. Use Alacourt first when the number is missing.
- Call (205) 384-7268 to confirm that the document can be released and ask what identifying detail, fee, and payment form the office needs.
- Submit the request in person, by mail to Suite 205, or through another method the clerk confirms. State the exact document and number of certified copies.
- Arrange pickup or mailed return. Check the names, case number, page count, and certification stamp when the copy arrives.
For a certified disposition, name the charge or count as well as the case. For a civil judgment, identify the judgment date if known. A precise request helps staff separate the requested item from the full case action summary and from unrelated filings.
Note: Probate, land, and marriage certifications come from the separate Walker County Probate Office, not the Circuit Clerk.
Walker County Circuit Clerk Request Fields
The official Circuit Clerk sources do not provide a dedicated public request form. These fields come from the documented Alacourt search modes and the details needed to identify a trial court file. Include enough information to distinguish people with similar names, but do not send Social Security numbers or other sensitive data unless the clerk specifically requires a protected submission method.
| Field | Required | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Case number | If known | Best match key for a specific Walker County case. |
| Party names | Yes | Use the names as filed and identify plaintiff, defendant, petitioner, or respondent. |
| Court and case type | Yes | District or circuit; civil, criminal, traffic, domestic relations, child support, juvenile, or small claims. |
| Document or date | Yes | Name the judgment, order, disposition, pleading, docket entry, or filing date needed. |
| Copy format | Yes | State plain or certified and list the number of copies. |
| Requester contact | Yes | Give a return address and a phone number for clarification. |
Alabama public-records law supports inspection and copying of public records, subject to lawful fees and exceptions. Most court records are public, but juvenile, sealed, expunged, and other protected files may be withheld or require special authority.
Walker County Circuit Clerk Fees
The local civil fee sheet separates the base filing charge from service costs. Sheriff service and certified mail or process-server service can produce different totals. The figures below are researched local filing amounts, not certified-copy prices. Additional defendants and later collection steps can add charges, so confirm the current total before filing.
| Item | Amount |
|---|---|
| Circuit civil through $50,000, one defendant | $293 sheriff; $281 certified mail/process server |
| Circuit civil over $50,000, one defendant | $393 sheriff; $381 certified mail/process server |
| District civil, one defendant | $294 sheriff; $281 certified mail |
| Small claims up to $1,500, one defendant | $91.50 sheriff; $79.50 certified mail |
| Small claims $1,501-$3,000, one defendant | $173 sheriff; $161 certified mail |
| Jury demand | $100 |
| Civil subpoena | $29 sheriff; $17 certified mail/process server |
The Walker County civil fee sheet also lists worker's compensation, domestic relations, garnishment, execution, income withholding, and added-defendant charges. Alacourt has separate access prices: a name search or case-number search is $9.99, document images are $5 for the first 20 pages and $0.50 for each later page, and monitoring is $19.99 for district cases or $29.99 for circuit cases.
Walker County Forms and Filings
The Alabama court eForms service supplies forms used in small claims and other state trial court procedures. Choose the form for the right court and case type. Filing a form does not itself prove that service is complete or that the judge granted the requested relief.
- Small claims complaint forms begin a District Court money claim.
- Answer forms let a served defendant respond within the stated deadline.
- Subpoena forms request a witness or documents for a case.
- Garnishment and execution forms support collection after judgment.
The clerk receives and manages the filing. Verify the service method, signature, copies, and payment with the office before submission.
Walker County Circuit Clerk Access Channels
Online research starts with Alacourt Access, which covers Alabama criminal, civil, small claims, traffic, domestic relations, and child support trial court files. The Walker County docket entry is another route to court settings. AlaFile is the state's electronic filing channel, not a free public records database. Mail and in-person requests remain important for older files, non-imaged documents, and certified copies.
- Online case access
- Search Alacourt by name or case number and purchase available case detail or images.
- Docket access
- Use the Walker County docket entry or ask the clerk about a court setting.
- In person or phone
- Visit Suite 205 or call (205) 384-7268 for local file and copy questions.
- Mail or fax
- Write to the suite address or use fax (205) 384-7271 when the office confirms fax is suitable.
Alapay and the Alabama Traffic Service Center handle qualifying traffic or criminal payments. Court forms and documents may be filed through AlaFile when that system supports the filer and case. Probate and recorded-instrument requests go to the Probate Office instead.
Walker County Circuit Clerk Jury Roles
The Circuit Clerk manages jury operations, summonses, qualification, court attendance records, and related administration. Jurors may register through the state juror portal. Local instructions say jurors report to the Main Courtroom, allow time for free courthouse-area parking and the metal detector, and bring no weapons. Most trials last one to five days.
The official Walker County jury information also carries a direct fraud warning from the clerk.
Richard Fikes states that he will not call to request Social Security numbers, credit card numbers, or other sensitive information. A caller who threatens arrest and demands such data should not be treated as a valid jury contact.
The chief magistrate function also connects the office to warrant work. Circuit Clerks must be available to law enforcement around the clock for warrant issuance. After a police report, a person seeking a misdemeanor warrant outside municipal limits calls the clerk number for an appointment. A magistrate hears sworn facts and determines whether probable cause supports issuance. This judicial role is distinct from searching for public court copies.
Walker County Circuit Clerk Appeals
The Circuit Clerk prepares the record when a case is appealed. That task can involve assembling pleadings, orders, docket entries, exhibits allowed in the record, and financial information for review by the next court. Walker County Circuit Court also reviews appeals from District Court, Municipal Courts, and Probate Court. A party should follow the deadline and filing rules for the actual case type, since the local small claims deadline is not a universal appeal period.
The clerk also conducts judicial sales and manages process tied to judgments. A small claims winner must still pursue lawful collection, such as garnishment, execution or levy, or a certificate of judgment. The court does not collect the judgment for the winning party. These duties link the public case file to later payment, enforcement, and appeal entries.
For the judges, jurisdiction, and small claims path behind those files, the Walker County District Court profile explains how limited-jurisdiction cases move toward Circuit Court review.