Fountain County Court Record Requests
Begin with MyCase. Search 23C01 for Fountain Circuit Court or 23H01 for Attica City Court, then note the full number and Chronological Case Summary entry date. If a permitted document link appears, it can provide a public online copy. If not, contact the custodian. The Fountain County Clerk handles county court files at the courthouse counter, by phone, and through a focused mailed request. Attica City Court handles its own city-court records.
- Find the case number and exact CCS event or document date.
- Check MyCase for a public document link.
- Call or visit the clerk, or mail a request that identifies the record with reasonable detail.
- State whether inspection, a plain copy, or a certified copy is needed.
- Confirm the current fee, payment form, identification rule, delivery choice, and timing.
No general Fountain County copy-request form or full copy-fee schedule was located. A mailed request should include a reliable reply address and should not include protected personal details that are not needed to identify the record.
For a routine public-record question, a phone call can confirm the right product before a trip or letter. For inspection at the counter, bring the case number and a short list of documents. A statewide MyCase search is still the best first index. Bulk or compiled court-data requests follow Administrative Rule 9 through the Office of Judicial Administration, not an ordinary county copy order.
Fountain Clerk Record Desk
Patricia Smith is listed as Fountain County Clerk in the state court directory checked August 22, 2026. The county Clerk of Courts page says the office files Circuit Court and Small Claims cases, records payments tied to county cases, and maintains court records. Staff can explain access and filing mechanics. They cannot decide what a record means or give legal advice.
Fountain County Clerk of Courts
301 4th Street
Covington, IN 47932
Monday through Friday, 8:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m.
765-793-6230
Mail directory: PO Box 183, Covington, IN 47932
State directory records also list 765-793-2192 and fax 765-793-5002. Confirm which contact and mailing address fit the requested record before sending payment or original paperwork.
Kinds of Court Records
A court file is broader than its docket. Indiana calls the docket index the Chronological Case Summary, or CCS. The Record of Judgments and Orders preserves formal judgments and orders. Other materials may exist behind those entries, subject to the access rules and any sealing, exclusion, or redaction.
- CCS event summaries and hearing entries
- Judgments, orders, pleadings, and motions
- Summonses, citations, and service returns
- Exhibits, attachments, and retained recordings where public
- Financial entries and access-status indicators
Online access varies by case type. The state document matrix may allow an order online while requiring an in-person request for another filing in the same case. A missing link is a reason to ask the clerk, not proof that the filing was never made.
Fountain Court Forms Are Separate
The Fountain County court forms page offers blank materials for matters such as protection orders, confidentiality, guardianship, small claims, fee waivers, continuances, proceedings supplemental, garnishment, and exclusion requests. Those forms help someone file or respond. They are not completed case records and do not reveal what was filed in another person’s matter.
The county forms collection is useful for understanding document names. The clerk still identifies which completed documents are public and which request route applies.
Court Records: What They Contain
The contents depend on case type and access status. The CCS gives the procedural spine: dates, event text, settings, and actions. A filed motion is a request, not a ruling. An issued summons is not proof of service. A closed status is a case-management label, not a full account of the result. Read the underlying order when its exact terms matter.
Event dates and entry dates can differ. Indiana CCS guidance also says corrections are made through a new entry, not by silently deleting or rewriting the earlier text. That audit trail is useful when reconstructing the sequence of a Fountain County case. The RJO remains the formal record for judgments and orders, so a short CCS summary should not be quoted as if it were the complete ruling.
| Case number | Fountain court code, filing date code, case type, and sequence. |
|---|---|
| Pleadings | Petitions, complaints, answers, motions, and responses. |
| Orders and judgments | The court’s formal directions and rulings in the RJO. |
| CCS | Chronological summaries of events, settings, and entries. |
| Service and exhibits | Returns, attachments, and evidence where retained and public. |
Online and Official Fountain Copies
The Indiana Judicial Branch public-records guidance directs people to the county clerk for public court documents that are not online. MyCase is a public access copy and data layer. It is not the official court record. This distinction matters when a copy must prove what the court entered or when the public screen lacks an attachment.
Ask for a certified copy when the receiving office requires the clerk’s certification. Otherwise, a plain copy or inspection may meet the need at less cost. Let the receiving body state its requirement.
Copy Fees and Certification
Fountain’s official sources did not publish a complete price list for plain copies, certified copies, searches, postage, or unusual retrieval. Do not assume that online viewing means an official copy is free. Describe the exact product, ask for a current quote, and confirm payment before submitting a mail order.
| Item | Amount |
|---|---|
| Public MyCase view | No remote-access fee unless law or rule permits one |
| Plain court copy | Confirm with the Fountain County Clerk |
| Certified copy | Confirm by record and certification type |
| Search, mail, or retrieval | Ask about current charges and payment |
Older Fountain County Court Books
Current MyCase access is not the best route for every historical record. The Indiana State Library Fountain County guide points researchers toward the Fountain County Clerk for original marriage, divorce, and court records and toward library or microfilm channels for older material. Give the clerk a date range, record type, and known names, then ask where that series is held.
Historical searching can take longer because the request may involve a bound volume, index, microfilm, or archived item rather than a modern Odyssey case. That is different from a current case search and may carry a retrieval or copy charge that must be confirmed.
Access Rules for Court Records
Indiana court access rests on both the Access to Public Records Act and the Indiana Supreme Court’s court-record rules. Rule 4 begins with public access, while Rule 5 excludes protected case categories, documents, and personal information. Rule 9 governs requests for excluded records. A confidential or sealed case may not appear, and a public case may contain an excluded document.
Key rules: Access Rule 4 sets general public access. Access Rule 5 lists excluded records. Access Rule 9 sets the verified-request path for excluded material.
The current rules shown in the research are effective July 1, 2026. An excluded-record request generally calls for a verified writing, notice, a possible public hearing, and a written order. The record stays confidential while that request is pending.
The official Rule 4 image below captures the governing starting point. It also shows why “public” and “available for download” are not the same test.
Rule 5 supplies the exceptions, including protected personal, medical, treatment, juvenile, protection-order, mental-health, sealed, and other confidential material.
Excluded Fountain Record Requests
The current excluded-record rule should be checked before asking the clerk to release a restricted document. A public indication may remain without exposing the content. Party access through a court-issued code is also different from public access.
A no-result search does not prove that no case exists. It may reflect a seal, expungement, confidentiality rule, older coverage, or processing delay. Use the formal court route and do not search unofficial caches for protected material.
Federal Records Beyond Fountain Court
Federal filings are not Fountain County court records. Fountain County lies in the Indianapolis Division of the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Indiana. The official federal locations page identifies that separate court structure.
Search federal district and bankruptcy files through PACER and CM/ECF, not MyCase. Federal search fees may apply under the current PACER policy, and sealed documents are not available to unauthorized users.
The Southern District case-search guidance explains the federal public route.
Use the division and federal case number shown on the filing. A federal docket cannot be found by switching Fountain filters in MyCase.