The Villages Court Docket
Court docket records for The Villages are handled by the Sumter County Clerk of Court. The Villages is a large retirement community that spans parts of Sumter, Lake, and Marion counties, but the primary area and population center falls in Sumter County within the 5th Judicial Circuit. More than 82,000 people live in The Villages. All court cases that originate in The Villages go through the county clerk where the property or event is located. For most residents, that means Sumter County. You can search court docket entries, pull up hearing dates, and find case filings online or at the courthouse in Bushnell.
The Villages Quick Facts
Sumter County Clerk and The Villages Court Dockets
The Villages does not have its own court. Florida cities and communities do not operate court systems. All court docket records go through the county clerk. For most residents of The Villages, that is the Sumter County Clerk at sumterclerk.com. The county seat is Bushnell, where the courthouse handles all circuit and county court matters.
The 5th Judicial Circuit covers five counties: Sumter, Citrus, Hernando, Lake, and Marion. Because The Villages spreads across three of these counties, some cases may go through Lake County or Marion County instead of Sumter. It depends on where the property sits or where the incident took place. If your address is in the Lake County portion of The Villages, you would use the Lake County Clerk. For the Marion County section, you would go to the Marion County Clerk. Check your property records to know which county handles your court docket cases.
The Florida Courts website has details on the 5th Circuit and all other judicial circuits in the state. Each circuit has a chief judge who manages court operations across the counties it serves.
| Primary Clerk | Sumter County Clerk of Court |
|---|---|
| Website | sumterclerk.com |
| County Seat | Bushnell |
| Circuit | 5th Judicial Circuit |
Note: The Villages spans Sumter, Lake, and Marion counties; check which county your address falls in before searching.
Searching Court Docket Records for The Villages
Online search is the easiest way for The Villages residents to find court docket information. The Sumter County Clerk website has tools for looking up cases by name or case number. You can view docket entries, hearing schedules, and the list of documents filed in any public case.
Under Florida Statute Chapter 119, all court records in the state are open for public inspection and copying. You do not need a reason to search. Anyone can look up The Villages court docket records through the county clerk system. Automation of public records must not erode the right of access under this law, so online tools are required to give you the same information you could get in person at the clerk office.
The Villages has a community website at districtgov.org that covers local government matters. Court docket records are not on the community site.
The community portal handles local district services. All court docket matters go through the county clerk.
For filing new documents in a case, the Florida Courts E-Filing Portal covers all 67 counties including Sumter. The portal tracks each filing and updates the court docket when documents are processed. It runs 24 hours a day and handles more than 30 million documents each year statewide.
The Villages Docket Access Rules
The Florida Supreme Court's Administrative Order AOSC24-65 from September 2024 governs electronic access to court docket records. It defines 15 user roles. The general public can view case numbers, party names, and docket entries for The Villages cases without any registration. Attorneys and court staff have higher access levels that let them see more documents.
Florida Rules of Judicial Administration 2.420 makes some court records automatically confidential. These include juvenile dependency cases, adoption files, mental health records, and substance abuse files. Social Security numbers and bank details are redacted from public docket views. These rules apply to all The Villages cases across whichever county handles them.
Court Docket Resources for The Villages
The Florida Court Clerks and Comptrollers association lists all 67 clerks in the state. For The Villages residents, the most relevant are Sumter, Lake, and Marion county clerks depending on your location. The MyFloridaCounty portal gives you access to official records like deeds and liens across all Florida counties.
The E-Filing Portal Authority oversees the statewide filing system. For help with e-filing, call the support desk at (850) 577-4609 during weekday business hours. The Florida Courts website at flcourts.gov has information about court structure and self-help resources.
- Sumter County Clerk: sumterclerk.com
- Lake County Clerk: lakeclerk.org
- Marion County Clerk: marionclerk.org
- E-Filing Portal: myflcourtaccess.com
Nearby Cities with Court Docket Pages
The Villages sits in north-central Florida. The closest major cities with court docket pages are below.