History of Ohio's Clerks

The Office of the Clerk of Courts traces its origin from the ancient position of cleric who maintained the records, was responsible for correspondence, and had powers to issue writs ordered by the court. The cleric was one of the more educated and trusted persons in the community.

In creating a judicial system the 1802 Ohio country's Constitution provided for the appointment of a Clerk of Courts for each county. Originally the Clerk of Courts was appointed by the judges of the Court of Common Pleas for a 7-year term. Under the 1851 Constitution, the office became an independent elective for a 3-year term which was extended to 4 years in 1936.

Our 23rd U.S. President, Benjamin Harrison's grandfather William Henry Harrison, the 9th President of the United States, was a Clerk of Courts in Hamilton County in May, 1836 when he was elected president in 1840. 

The Clerk of Courts office plays a vital role in serving the interests of justice. This role includes filing, docketing, indexing and preserving all court pleadings for civil, felony criminal and domestic relations cases. The Clerk of Courts accou8ntds for all monies collected, issue writs to carry out Court orders including summons, subpoenas, warrants to arrest and sign the death warrant in capital cases.

the Clerk of Courts must preserve our records for use by future generations. Ohio's 88 counties have the most computerized Common Pleas court systems in the United States. Archival quality retention processes must also be followed to permanently preserve the Court records.

The Automobile and Watercraft Title Division of the Clerk of the Court of Common Pleas is linked throughout the State of Ohio by a sophisticated computer network. This Automated Title Processing System (ATPS) provides fast, efficient issuance of millions of Ohio titles annually.  In some counties the Clerk of Courts has also assumed duties as a registrar and many clerks have co-located a Title Office with or near Registrars'  License Bureau creating one-stop service centers.

 For questions or comments, please send e-mail to Administrator.