You cannot seek Lake County judicial records over the phone although the clerk of court’s office is now allowing online case searches. The internet option has undoubtedly made life simpler for people who are seeking court documents that are connected to civil matters. Of course, the tool available at https://circuitclerk.lakecountyil.gov/publicAccess/html/common/index.xhtml can also be used to launch an inquiry into a criminal matter.
If you are looking for details on felony or misdemeanor trials, pick the option on the page for a search based on the name of the defendant. This will bring you to another form where you will be asked to provide information about the subject such as his/her name, date of birth, case type, status and period of filing. Fill the Captcha code and click on “submit” to access the criminal court dockets from Lake County, IL, in the name of this individual.
Court documents that are linked to civil litigations can be found in a similar way, but in this case, you can pick either person, business or case number as your primary search criteria. Next, from the dropdown menu that has the case types, choose “civil”. The information required to initiate the case search will be the same. In both cases, you will be able to find Lake County judicial records for free and from the comforts of your own home.
If you are looking for court documents that are several decades old, it would make sense to approach the circuit court or the office of the county clerk in person. You could also write to them requesting that a case search be launched on your behalf. The circuit court sits at 18 N County St Waukegan, IL 60085. The clerk of court’s office also works out of this judicial complex, but you will need to go to Room 507 to call on them.