Sullivan County Trial Courts
Indiana's court hierarchy starts with the Supreme Court of Indiana, the Court of Appeals of Indiana, and the Indiana Tax Court, followed by trial courts. Trial courts include circuit courts, superior courts, and local city or town courts where established. Sullivan County has both Sullivan Circuit Court and Sullivan Superior Court. Both are housed in the Sullivan County Courthouse, along with the Clerk's Office, Prosecutor's Office, and Probation Office.
The State Court Structure Map resolves the primary trial court name for this project as Circuit Court / Superior Court. That distinction matters because "District Court" is not the Indiana county trial-court label. Court records, dockets, probate-style case types, domestic-relations filings, criminal charges, civil claims, and traffic matters all flow through Indiana trial-court case types and the unified Sullivan County Clerk's Office. Appeals from trial-court decisions generally proceed to the Court of Appeals of Indiana, with Supreme Court review in limited circumstances.
The manifest source for Sullivan County trial courts and Sullivan Circuit Court identifies the local circuit court office.
That local circuit court page is one of the two core court-office sources for Sullivan County case access.
Sullivan County Court Offices
The courthouse is the practical hub for trial-court users. Circuit Court is listed in Room 306. Superior Court is listed in Room 105. The Clerk's Office is in Room 304 and handles court document requests and certified copies. The Prosecutor's Office is in Room 103 and handles State of Indiana criminal cases, juvenile matters, child support, victim assistance, and traffic infractions. Probation is listed in Room 303.
The manifest source for Sullivan County trial courts and Sullivan Superior Court identifies the local superior court office.
Use the circuit or superior court contact when the question is about a hearing, courtroom, court reporter, or judge's office.
| Court / Office | Address | Phone | Local Details |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sullivan Circuit Court | 100 Courthouse Sq, Room 306, Sullivan, IN 47882 | (812) 268-4411 | Judge Robert E. Hunley II listed; weekday hours with noon-1:00 p.m. lunch closure. |
| Sullivan Superior Court | 100 Courthouse Sq, Room 105, Sullivan, IN 47882 | (812) 268-6939 | Court reporter Angela Melchert listed; weekday hours with noon-1:00 p.m. lunch closure. |
| Sullivan County Clerk's Office | 100 Courthouse Sq, Room 304, Sullivan, IN 47882 | (812) 268-4657 | Court document requests, marriage license, fee schedule, child support, voter registration. |
| Sullivan County Prosecutor | 100 Courthouse Sq, Room 103, Sullivan, IN 47882 | (812) 268-6008 | Criminal cases, juvenile matters, traffic infractions, child support, victim assistance. |
| Sullivan County Probation | 100 Courthouse Sq, Room 303, Sullivan, IN 47882 | (812) 268-4552 | Probation office; weekday hours with noon-1:00 p.m. lunch closure. |
Indiana Trial Court Comparison
Indiana trial courts are not divided in Sullivan County like states that use county courts, justice courts, or district courts as separate local layers. The names "circuit" and "superior" reflect Indiana structure, legislative history, and local court organization more than a simple statewide subject-matter split. A case user's task is to identify the court shown on MyCase or on the notice, then contact that specific court or the Clerk's Office.
| Circuit Court / Superior Court | City or Town Court | Appellate Courts | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Role | Indiana trial-court cases filed in Sullivan County. | Local court where established by a city or town. | Review trial-court decisions after appealable orders or judgments. |
| Sullivan County Source Set | Sullivan Circuit Court and Sullivan Superior Court are confirmed. | No separate Sullivan County city or town court page was found. | Court of Appeals of Indiana and Supreme Court of Indiana. |
| Records | MyCase, Clerk's Office, court office, or court reporter depending on record type. | Use official local court source if one exists for that municipality. | Indiana appellate docket and opinions, not county clerk files. |
| Common Matters | Civil, criminal, traffic, probate-style, family, small claims, and other trial-court case types. | Local ordinance or limited local matters where authorized. | Appeals, transfer, and higher-court review. |
Sullivan County Case Flow
A Sullivan County case usually enters the court record when a complaint, charging information, petition, citation, probate filing, or other initiating document is filed. The Clerk's Office receives filings and maintains the case record. MyCase can then show public case information, including the case number, court, parties, status, CCS entries, hearings, charges, bonds, financial balances, and public document links where allowed. The court office handles courtroom scheduling, judge's office questions, and hearing-related issues.
Criminal flow: Arrest or charge review › prosecutor filing › initial hearing or arraignment › pretrial activity › plea or trial › disposition › sentencing › appeal or post-conviction activity.
Civil flow: Complaint or petition filed › service › answer or default period › motions and hearings › settlement or trial › judgment › satisfaction, collection, appeal, or post-judgment activity.
Probate-style flow: Estate, guardianship, trust, or related filing › case number assigned › notices and orders › letters or authority issued › inventory or accounting activity › closing order or ongoing supervision.
Sullivan County Case Types
Sullivan County does not publish separate official pages for a probate court, family court, juvenile court, or city court in the source set reviewed. Those topics should be read as case types within the Indiana trial-court system. Civil matters can include collections, torts, foreclosures, small claims, evictions, tax sale matters, and plenary civil cases. Criminal matters can include felonies, misdemeanors, murder, post-conviction cases, and expungement petitions. Traffic matters include infractions, ordinance violations, and criminal traffic cases.
Family and divorce records may be searchable when public, but sensitive documents are limited. Probate matters include estate supervised, estate unsupervised, estate miscellaneous, guardianship, guardianship miscellaneous, and trust categories. Juvenile, adoption, mental-health, termination of parental rights, and many protection-order records are restricted under Indiana access rules. The Clerk's Office is the records route for public documents, while the court office is the route for scheduling, hearings, transcripts, and courtroom-specific questions.
Judicial District 19
The Indiana Judicial Branch Sullivan County page places Sullivan County in Judicial District 19 with Clay, Putnam, and Vigo counties. Local rules are posted through the judiciary's Sullivan County page. The state explains that Supreme Court approval is required for local rules involving special judge selection in civil and criminal cases, court reporter services, caseload allocation plans, and acting judge service in another court, county, or district. Other local court rules can be adopted locally without Supreme Court approval.
The manifest source for the Indiana Judicial Branch Sullivan County page connects Sullivan County to the statewide court directory and local rules.
That state page is useful when a user needs local rules, statewide court links, or official Indiana court context.
A 2025 local-rule proposal posted by the Indiana Judicial Branch included a public-comment period from January 9, 2025, through February 12, 2025. It concerned caseload allocation, a topic that requires Supreme Court approval. The proposal also stated that a paper copy would be available in the Sullivan County Clerk's Office. That detail reinforces the clerk's role as a local access point for court structure documents, not only case copies.
Lower Courts and Access
The State Court Structure Map notes that city or town courts may exist where established by local government, but no separate Sullivan County city or town court page was found in the county source set. For most Sullivan County court-record users, the practical path is therefore MyCase, then the Clerk's Office, Circuit Court, or Superior Court. Federal cases are separate and route to the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Indiana, Terre Haute Division, not to the Sullivan County trial courts.
The manifest source for Indiana trial courts and clerks by county helps users distinguish local Indiana trial-court contacts from broader state court structure.
Use the state directory when confirming whether a court contact is local, regional, appellate, or statewide.
Note: MyCase can show public case activity, but official records still come from the maintaining court or clerk.
Sullivan Trial Court Access
Indiana court records are public unless a rule, statute, court order, or confidentiality category restricts access. The Indiana Rules on Access to Court Records identify public access, confidential personal information, excluded records, and how courts handle restricted case material. Sullivan County users may see a case summary in MyCase while still needing the clerk for a document, or they may find that a case category is not publicly searchable at all.
The manifest source for Indiana Rules on Access to Court Records is central to Sullivan County trial-court access.
Those rules explain why a trial-court case can be searchable in part, redacted in part, or withheld from ordinary public access.
For court dates, call the court shown on the notice or MyCase result. For certified copies, call the Clerk's Office. For criminal charging decisions, diversion, juvenile prosecutor matters, or traffic infraction deferral, the Prosecutor's Office is the local agency identified in the research. Using the right office prevents a docket question from being sent to the copy counter or a copy request from being sent to the judge's office.