Berkeley County Court Record Requests
Every record request starts the same way. Identify the court level and the case number. For Circuit Court, the WVPASS circuit search gives public access to cases and documents. For lower-court matters, the Magistrate Case Record Search, known as MCR, lists magistrate case information and describes the documents on file. It does not promise online copies of the papers it lists. Municipal files stay with Martinsburg Municipal Court. One more caution applies to property searches. The county land-record site covers deeds, trusts, liens, and related property records, not trial-court case files.
- Identify the court, case number, party name, approximate year, and exact document needed.
- Search WVPASS for Circuit Court or MCR for Magistrate Court and note the filing date or docket entry.
- Download a public WVPASS image when a plain reference copy is enough.
- Call or visit the correct clerk for a magistrate document, certified copy, older record, or missing item.
- Before mailing funds, confirm the fee, payment method, identification rule, and expected delivery method.
Public terminals at the Circuit Clerk office offer another route during regular business hours. A written mail request works too. Call first for current instructions. The official pages list phone and fax lines, but no general clerk email, no online certification form, no drop box, and no promised turnaround. County FOIA procedures apply to county-held administrative records. They do not override a court seal or a rule protecting a court file.
Three Berkeley Record Layers
A docket, a filed paper, and a certified copy are three different things. The docket is the dated index of case activity. Filed papers include the complaints, motions, orders, judgments, and exhibits tied to those entries. A certified copy is a clerk-authenticated reproduction. It is its own product. A portal image may show the same words as an order. It does not become certified just because it came from an official portal.
| Record layer | Best source | Typical use |
|---|---|---|
| Docket or register | WVPASS, MCR, or clerk terminal | Track filings, hearings, status, and disposition |
| Filed document | WVPASS image or clerk copy | Read the actual motion, order, or judgment |
| Certified copy | Issuing clerk | Supply authenticated proof when a recipient requires it |
When asking for a Berkeley County court record, name the layer you need. A vague request for “the case” can cause delay, since one file may hold many pages and entries.
Kinds of Court Records
Berkeley County court case records span several courts and custodians. The Circuit Clerk keeps Circuit and Family Court material. The Magistrate Clerk keeps lower-court files. These cover traffic, misdemeanor, preliminary felony, and civil matters. Martinsburg court staff hold the city ordinance and municipal traffic files. Federal civil and criminal records are different altogether. They run through the Northern District of West Virginia and PACER, not the state portals.
- Docket sheets and chronological registers of actions
- Complaints, petitions, answers, motions, briefs, and notices
- Signed orders, judgments, sentencing papers, and dispositions
- Public hearing and setting records
- Transcripts and exhibits when available from the proper custodian
Family files need care. Public orders and indices may be available. Pleadings, exhibits, recordings, and transcripts are confidential under Family Court Rule 6. A party seeking divorce information in person should bring photo identification. A remote request needs more. The Circuit Clerk requires notarized authorization plus a notarized copy of photo identification.
Berkeley Clerks Split the Files
The current state directory identifies Michelle R. “Shelly” Schoppert as Circuit Clerk. Her office receives and preserves papers. It serves Circuit and Family Courts, issues process, and maintains civil, criminal, and family records. Megan Moler is listed as Magistrate Clerk. Her office is the local document source. That matters when MCR displays a magistrate entry but no image.
Berkeley County Circuit Clerk
Judicial Center, Suite 2200
380 West South Street
Martinsburg, WV 25401
304-264-1918
Berkeley County Magistrate Clerk
Berkeley County Judicial Center
380 West South Street
Martinsburg, WV 25401
304-264-1957
Bring the case number and filing date when possible. Staff can provide records and process information. The clerk does not give legal advice or decide which filing a person should use.
Court Records: What They Contain
A Berkeley County court record can be much broader than its search result. MCR samples show a case location, number, type, filing date, parties, hearings, costs, disposition, and a line-by-line register. Circuit results may add public document links. Case-number styles vary. Copy the exact value rather than rebuilding it from memory.
| Case Number | The court identifier, including prefixes and dashes such as ##-M##X-##### when shown. |
|---|---|
| Case Header | Court, case type, filing date, status, judge, and public party information. |
| Pleadings | Complaints, petitions, answers, motions, notices, and other filed papers. |
| Orders and Judgments | Signed rulings, final judgments, sentences, and other court directions. |
| Docket Sheet | Dated codes and descriptions forming the chronological register of actions. |
| Hearings | Date, time, court location, judge, event type, and event status when recorded. |
| Financial Fields | Costs, fines, judgment amount, interest, payments, or balance when relevant. |
MCR codes are compact. In one public magistrate sample, MGNCH marked a notice of hearing, MGFJ a final judgment, and MCOJO a civil judgment order. Treat these as examples, not a full official codebook.
Older Berkeley Court Files
WVPASS launched in 2025, and its announcement describes public circuit documents reaching back to 1999. That coverage date is not a destruction date. Older Berkeley County court case records may survive in paper files, bound docket books, index cards, microfilm, or earlier scans. The clerk may hold them. For an older file, give the clerk the parties, the approximate year, the court, and the case type. Include any old case number too. Ask whether the file must be retrieved and whether a visit is needed. Berkeley County courthouse history includes a major 1922 fire, so very old research may also require a discussion of surviving records and archives. A failed portal search does not mean no record exists.
Note: Portal coverage and clerk holdings are different questions, especially for cases created before modern electronic filing.
Copy Fees and Certification
WVPASS searching and registration are free. Public circuit document downloads cost 25 cents per page plus a nominal card-processing fee. The Berkeley Circuit fee schedule lists a $1 per-page photocopy charge and other document-related charges, but it does not publish a separate certified-copy, exemplification, docket certification, or search fee. Call before sending payment for those services.
| Item | Published amount |
|---|---|
| WVPASS public document | $0.25 per page, plus card fee |
| Circuit Clerk photocopy | $1 per page |
| Fax copy | $2 per page, 20-page limit |
| Duplicate CD recording | $5 |
| Abstract of judgment | $5 |
| Certified or exemplified copy | Confirm current fee with clerk |
The county schedule lists cash, money order, Visa, Mastercard, and Discover, with photo ID required for credit-card use. A transcript is separate from an ordinary clerk copy. For transcripts, ask the assigned court or clerk about the court reporter channel, the proceeding date, the judge, and the current charge.
FOIA and Berkeley Court Files
Berkeley County keeps two doors into its records, and picking the right one saves time. For files held by county administrators, the Berkeley County FOIA route is the one to use. The copy form is simple in practice. You mark whether you want to inspect the records or receive copies. Describe what you need, and sign with a mailing address. Court files are different. Those belong with the court clerk. Court access rules govern them rather than the FOIA paperwork.
What FOIA does and does not cover comes from state law. The official West Virginia FOIA exemption page sets out the statute. It treats public records as open unless a listed exemption applies.
That statute cannot open a sealed judicial filing, a confidential family pleading, or a juvenile case. The sealing order and the court rule still control what a docket shows.
Access Rules for Court Records
West Virginia Trial Court Rule 10.04 gives the public a reasonable chance to inspect court records. An exemption or a court limit can apply. Trial Court Rule 15A adds a duty for electronic filings. Personal identifiers listed in the rule must be protected. Family Court Rule 6 keeps most family pleadings, recordings, exhibits, and transcripts confidential. Public orders and indices stay open, though.
Key Rules:
Trial Court Rules 10.04 and 15A govern public inspection and protection of sensitive identifiers.
Family Court Rule 6 separates public orders and indices from confidential family-file content.
West Virginia Code §49-5-103 keeps juvenile records outside ordinary public access.
West Virginia Code §61-11-26 governs eligible expungement petitions and the sealing effect of an order.
The state’s juvenile confidentiality provision is shown in the official source capture.
When a Berkeley County docket search comes back empty, the cause may be a protected case, a sealed document, an expungement order, or a gap in portal coverage. That is not proof the matter never existed.
Expunged Berkeley Case Records
An expungement petition starts in the circuit court of the county where the conviction happened. The statute must permit it. Berkeley County cases follow that same rule. When the court grants relief, the order changes who may see the record, because West Virginia law controls the effect. A public docket search is the wrong tool for rebuilding what a valid order has sealed. Treat removal as removal.
For eligibility, notice, procedure, and what an order actually does, read the official expungement statute itself.
Ask the Berkeley County Circuit Clerk about a sealed file and point to the entered order for the authoritative answer. A routine county records request cannot get around it.