Thomas County Clerk of the District Court
For Thomas County court records, the correct office name is Clerk of the District Court. The 15th Judicial District clerks page lists Kim as Chief Clerk of the District Court for Thomas County and lists deputy clerks Autumn, Jennifer, and Landon. The office supports district court files filed in Thomas County, including criminal, civil, domestic, probate, juvenile where public, small claims, and traffic cases filed at the district level.
Thomas County does not maintain a separate county-branded district court search site. The official online route is the Kansas court system, and the local fallback is the courthouse public terminal or a written request to the Clerk of the District Court. The 15th Judicial District records page says public court records are available online or at each courthouse through a public access portal. It also says each courthouse has a computer reserved for public searches of cases and court records in that court.
Thomas County Clerk of the District Court
Chief clerk: Kim
Deputy clerks: Autumn, Jennifer, Landon
275 N Court Ave
Colby, KS 67701
785-460-4540
Fax: 785-460-2291
Official clerk office hours were not published in the research; call to verify hours.
The 15th Judicial District ADA accommodation page names the district ADA coordinator for Thomas County and nearby district courts.
Accommodation requests should be made as soon as possible, preferably at least five business days before the program, service, or activity.
Thomas County Clerk Duties
The Clerk of the District Court keeps the court record after a case is filed. The office is not the prosecutor, sheriff, judge, Register of Deeds, or County Clerk. Its role is records access, case filing support, court document custody, copy production, certification, and public access administration for district court files. Kansas district court records may include case number, type of case, people involved, attorney names, assigned judge, hearing dates, and the documents filed in the case.
- Maintain district court files for public civil, criminal, family, probate, small claims, and eligible traffic matters.
- Provide public terminal access when a public case is not available online but is available at the courthouse.
- Receive written record requests by mail, hand delivery, email, or Kansas Open Records Request Form.
- Collect copy, certification, postage, fax, staff-time, and third-party production fees when required.
- Apply restrictions for sealed records, adoption files, juvenile records, expunged criminal records, and exempt material.
The Kansas State Board of Indigents' Defense Services is separate from the clerk, but it is part of the broader criminal court system for appointed defense counsel.
Public defense records and attorney appointment questions are not the same as certified court-copy requests from the clerk.
Request Thomas County Certified Copies
A certified copy is a court copy bearing certification that it is a true copy from the court record. Certified copies are commonly needed for divorce decrees, probate letters or orders, judgments, name-change papers, and other documents that must be accepted outside the courthouse. The 15th Judicial District requires requests to go to the Clerk of the District Court in the county where the case was filed, so Thomas County files should be requested from the Thomas County clerk.
- Identify the case number if possible. If not, gather party names, case type, filing date range, and the requested document name.
- Check Kansas CaseSearch or the public access portal first if the user only needs basic case information.
- Submit a written request to the Thomas County Clerk of the District Court by mail, hand delivery, email, or Kansas Open Records Request Form.
- State whether the copy must be certified and how the record should be delivered.
- Wait for the response and pay the required copy, certification, mailing, fax, staff-time, or third-party charges before release.
The district records page says record requests will be responded to within 72 hours. That response is not the same as a promise that every document can be released. Sealed, expunged, juvenile, adoption, criminal investigation, and other exempt records may be withheld or redacted.
Thomas County Request Fields
The research did not expose a local Thomas County PDF form field list because the statewide form page was blocked during automated access. The practical request fields below are inferred from what the 15th Judicial District says a clerk needs to locate and produce a court record. Marking the county where filed is important because requests go to the county clerk where the case was filed.
| Field | Required | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| County where filed | Yes | Use Thomas County only for cases filed in Thomas County District Court. |
| Case number | No, but strongly helpful | Use Kansas CaseSearch or a prior court paper to locate it when possible. |
| Party names | Yes | List full names and known prior names for probate, divorce, civil, or criminal files. |
| Case type | Yes | Examples include criminal, civil, divorce, probate, juvenile where public, small claims, or traffic. |
| Document requested | Yes | Name the decree, order, judgment, probate letters, motion, docket sheet, or other record. |
| Certification request | If needed | State whether a certified document is required before the clerk calculates fees. |
| Delivery method | Yes | Mail, pickup, email if available, or fax subject to the district fax limit. |
| Requester contact | Yes | Include name, phone, mailing address, and email for fee notice and follow-up. |
Thomas County Clerk Fees
The 15th Judicial District court-record fee schedule applies to copy and production requests. The research did not provide every filing fee for every case type, so those amounts are not listed here. For copy requests, the district says the requester will be charged reasonable fees for staff time and expenses, and the cost must be paid before release.
| Item | Amount |
|---|---|
| Copies | $0.25 per page |
| Certified document | $10.00 per certified document |
| Mail first five pages | $0.50 |
| Mail each additional five pages | $0.25 |
| Fax | $0.50 per page, limit of 15 pages |
| Records custodian or clerical preparation | $20.00 per hour, quarter-hour increments |
| Professional employee preparation | $60.00 per hour, quarter-hour increments |
| Third-party assistance | Third-party charges may be imposed when needed |
Court Records vs County Records
The Clerk of the District Court is the court-record office. Thomas County government records are split among other offices. The County Clerk and Election Officer handles board and election functions, voter registration rolls, candidate filing fees, petition verification, election workers, ballots, sites, equipment, and official abstracts of elections. That office does not serve as the district court case-file clerk.
The Register of Deeds is also separate. Register of Deeds Lora Volk maintains and preserves land and related public records at 300 N Court Ave, Colby, KS 67701, with phone 785-460-4535 and Monday-Friday hours of 8:00 a.m.-5:00 p.m. The office says original, signed, notarized documents are required for recording, checks should be payable to Thomas County Register of Deeds, and mailed documents sent to the County Clerk will be delayed.
- Court case records: Thomas County Clerk of the District Court.
- Land and recording books: Thomas County Register of Deeds.
- Election and board records: Thomas County County Clerk/Election Officer.
- Jail roster and warrants: Thomas County Sheriff's Office.
- Criminal prosecution office records: Thomas County Attorney.
The BIDS contact page gives public-defense contact information that may matter in criminal cases, but it does not replace the clerk's court-record copy process.
Use attorney or public-defense contacts for representation issues, and use the clerk for court records and certified copies.
Online Search and ADA Access
Online public case access starts with Kansas CaseSearch or the older public access portal linked by the 15th Judicial District. The district records guidance says a public record not available through the online portal may be available at the courthouse. That courthouse computer is important in Thomas County because the county does not operate a separate court-record portal.
ADA access for court services runs through BreAnna Cech, Court Administrator and ADA Coordinator for the 15th Judicial District, at 275 N Court Ave, phone 785-460-4553, TTY 711, fax 785-460-2291, and email breanna.cech@kscourts.org. Requests should be made as soon as possible or at least five business days before the service, program, or activity.
The Thomas County motor vehicle services page shows another example of county services that are outside the Clerk of the District Court.
The office split prevents misdirected requests: court files go to the clerk, while vehicle, land, election, and sheriff records use different public offices.
Note: Exact Thomas County Clerk of the District Court office hours were not published in the research; verify hours by phone before visiting.