Leavenworth County Clerk Contact
The District Court records page states that the Clerk of the District Court is the official custodian of court records and is authorized to charge for research and photocopying. The local contact list names Julie Clemens as Clerk of District Court for Leavenworth. The office is part of the Leavenworth Justice Center, where District Court, the sheriff, detention, and the County Attorney also operate from different suites.
Clerk of the District Court
Clerk: Julie Clemens
601 S. 3rd Street, Suite 3051
Leavenworth, KS 66048
913-684-0700
Records clerk: 913-684-0716
Fax: 913-684-0492
For a court-file copy, use the District Court records channel. For county administrative records, use the county KORA custodians at the historic courthouse. For deed records, use the Register of Deeds. These are separate custodians.
Leavenworth County Clerk Duties
The Leavenworth County Clerk of the District Court handles court case records for civil, criminal, traffic filed at the district level, divorce, family, probate, guardianship, conservatorship, juvenile matters with restrictions, protection orders, small claims, and docket filings. The clerk's role is record custody and court processing. It is not the same as the County Clerk's role in elections, budgets, tax rolls, plats, and county board records.
- Maintain District Court case files and docket records.
- Process requests for copies and certified copies of public court documents.
- Collect court filing, copy, transcript, certification, and research fees.
- Support filing channels such as in-person filing, mail, fax, and the after-hours drop box.
- Route restricted files, sealed materials, juvenile records, and sensitive documents under court access rules.
The county's Register of Deeds page is included in the clerk page image manifest because many users confuse court records with land records. Source: Register of Deeds document search.
That distinction helps keep District Court copy requests separate from deed and land-record searches.
Request Certified Court Copies
Certified copies are used when a plain printout is not enough. A certified divorce decree, probate order, judgment, or other court-file document may be needed by another court, an agency, a title company, or a financial institution. The Leavenworth District Court records page says copy requests by mail may be made in writing or by email. Include the case number or the book and page location of the document to be copied.
- Identify the case number, party names, case type, and document needed. Use Kansas CaseSearch or the courthouse terminal if the case number is not known.
- Send a written or email request to the Clerk of the District Court records clerk with the case number or book and page when available.
- Wait for the clerk's written or emailed estimate for copy, certification, transcript, and research charges.
- Mail the estimated payment and a self-addressed stamped envelope if the copies should be returned by mail.
- Ask for certification on each document that needs an official seal or court certification.
Leavenworth County KORA Form Fields
County-wide public records that are not District Court case files route through the county KORA process. The county KORA page lists designated custodians as the County Administrator and County Counselor at 300 Walnut, with emails mbrown@leavenworthcounty.gov and ayatsula@leavenworthcounty.gov. A KORA request must be in writing, and requests received after 5 p.m. are logged the next business day.
| Field | Required | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Name | Yes | Requester name. |
| Address | Yes | Street or mailing address. |
| City, State, ZIP | Yes | Address fields are listed separately on the form. |
| Phone | Optional | Useful for questions about scope or fees. |
| Optional | Useful for written estimates and responses. | |
| Records request | Yes | Specific description of the records wanted. |
| Signature | Yes | Certifies access rights and no prohibited commercial use. |
| Date | Yes | Date signed. |
The Kansas public records chapter supports KORA request processing and fee rules. Source: Kansas public records statutes.
County KORA rules are useful for administrative records, while District Court case records remain with the court clerk.
Leavenworth County Clerk Fees
The court copy fee table is narrow and local. The broader KORA fee table applies to county administrative records and can include staff time, information technology time, legal review, and advance payment. The District Court clerk estimates cost before copies are returned by mail.
| Item | Amount or rule |
|---|---|
| Most District Court document photocopies | $0.25 per page |
| Transcripts | $0.50 per page |
| Certification | $1.00 per document |
| Extensive research or copying time | $20.00 per hour |
| County KORA clerical time | $18.00 per hour |
| County KORA information technology services | $38.00 per hour |
| County KORA legal staff | $44.00 per hour |
| Returned check | $30.00 |
KORA and Court Records
Kansas open-records law begins with K.S.A. 45-215, but court records also follow Kansas Supreme Court rules. Supreme Court Rule 22 controls electronic public access to district and appellate case records. Public records can include case data and public case documents, but sealed cases, sealed records, juvenile restrictions, adoption records, personal identifiers, and medical or protected-person details can be withheld or redacted.
K.S.A. 45-215 is the KORA starting point for Kansas public records access. Source: K.S.A. 45-215.
For Leavenworth County clerk records, the practical question is still which custodian holds the record: the District Court clerk, the county KORA custodians, the sheriff, KDHE, or another office.
Mail Fax and Filing Options
District Court subpages state that self-represented litigants may file in person, by mail, by fax at 913-684-0492, or after hours through the drop box at the Leavenworth Justice Center main entrance. Protection-order petitioners may use the Kansas Protection Order Portal, file in person with the Clerk of District Court between 8 a.m. and 5 p.m. excluding weekends and holidays, or file by fax. These filing channels are separate from public search access.
For a copy request, do not use county KORA language if the request is for a District Court case file. Send the court-record request to the Clerk of the District Court with case detail, wait for the estimate, and pay the estimated cost. For county administrative records, the county says it will give some response no later than the third business day after receipt, with a written response if more time, fees, or closure issues apply.
The building split is part of the workflow. The Justice Center at 601 S. 3rd Street is the court-record location for District Court, sheriff, detention, court services, and prosecution functions. The historic courthouse at 300 Walnut is the county administration location for the County Clerk and the county KORA custodians. A person asking for a divorce decree, probate order, criminal judgment, or civil case document should start with the District Court clerk. A person asking for county board records, election records, budget records, or other county administrative records should use the county KORA process.
Leavenworth County also has municipal courts, and those city courts are outside the District Court clerk's ordinary case file. City of Leavenworth, Lansing, and Tonganoxie municipal tickets may have their own payment and court office channels. If a case began in municipal court and was appealed, the District Court file may show the appeal, but the original city court record may still require contact with the issuing municipal court.