Dallas County Circuit Clerk
Missouri uses the Circuit Clerk as the practical records office for court case files. The Missouri Association of Counties lists the Dallas County Circuit Clerk at P.O. Box 373, Buffalo, MO 65622-0373, phone 417-345-2243. The Missouri Blue Book county directory identifies the Circuit Clerk as Susan Faulkner, with a courthouse mailing address of P.O. Box 1910, Buffalo, MO 65622, phone 417-345-2243, fax 417-345-5539, and email susan.faulkner@courts.mo.gov. Because elected-office directories can lag, confirm the current name and preferred mailing address before sending payment or original documents.
The two mailing addresses in the research are a practical caution, not a contradiction to hide. Use the phone number before mailing a certified-copy request, filing fee, self-addressed return envelope, or any document with a deadline. For in-person questions, the courthouse building address is 108 S Maple Street, Buffalo, Missouri 65622, but mailed court business should follow the clerk's current instruction.
Dallas County Circuit Clerk
Clerk: Susan Faulkner, subject to current-directory confirmation
Dallas County Courthouse
108 S Maple Street
Buffalo, MO 65622
417-345-2243
Fax: 417-345-5539
Email: susan.faulkner@courts.mo.gov
County hours from MAC: 8:00 a.m.-4:30 p.m. Monday-Friday, closed legal holidays.
Circuit Clerk Record Role
The Circuit Clerk handles court case records for Dallas County's 30th Judicial Circuit. That includes civil, criminal, domestic, probate, juvenile, traffic, and municipal-division case files when those records are filed in the local circuit-court structure. Public users can start with Missouri Case.net for docket and case information, but the clerk is still the point of contact for certified copies, older files, copies that require staff handling, and questions about whether a document is public.
For self-represented users, the clerk can explain filing and copy procedures, but court staff cannot choose claims, draft pleadings, predict outcomes, or give legal advice. Attorneys use Missouri eFiling for supported filings. A nonlawyer who needs to file or retrieve a document should ask what the office can accept, what fee is due, and whether the case type has required forms or court-approved instructions.
- Maintains court case filings and docket records for Dallas County Circuit Court matters.
- Provides copy and certification information for public court documents.
- Supports record access for civil, criminal, domestic, probate, traffic, and public municipal-division matters.
- Works under Missouri court rules and statutes; the office cannot provide legal advice.
Clerk Versus Recorder
Dallas County has several public-facing record offices, and the correct office depends on the record type. Court case files go to the Circuit Clerk. County-government records, elections, and commission records route through the County Clerk and Commission office. Land and marriage records route through the Recorder of Deeds. Jail, arrest, incident, and law-enforcement records route through the Sheriff's Office.
| Office | Use For | Contact From Research |
|---|---|---|
| Circuit Clerk | Court case records, certified court copies, divorce decrees, probate letters | 417-345-2243 |
| County Clerk | County-government, election, commission, and administrative records | 417-345-2632 |
| Recorder of Deeds | Marriage and land records through recorder/iRecord route | Kami Miller listed by iRecord, 417-345-2242 |
| Sheriff's Office | Jail, booking, incident, arrest, and law-enforcement records | 417-345-2441 |
Case.net Copy Route
Case.net is the public online search path for Dallas County court cases in the Missouri state court system. It is useful for locating a case number, confirming party names, reading public docket entries, checking hearing information, and seeing whether a public document is available remotely. It is not the same as a certified-copy system. When a certified docket sheet, judgment, divorce decree, probate letter, or authenticated court document is needed, request it from the Circuit Clerk.
Case.net records can also help a requester avoid vague copy requests. A clerk can work more quickly from an exact case number, docket entry date, and document title than from a common name alone. If the record is too new, too old, sealed, expunged, confidential, or filed in a municipal division in a way that is not obvious online, the clerk can explain the proper next step or limitation.
- Search Case.net by litigant name, case number, filing date, hearing date, or judgment index when available.
- Limit results to Dallas County or the 30th Judicial Circuit when the portal offers county or court filters.
- Record the exact case number, caption, party names, and document or docket entry needed.
- Call the Circuit Clerk at 417-345-2243 to confirm copy availability, certification fee, mailing address, and payment method.
- Request the copy in person, by mail, fax, or email only as the clerk currently permits.
Certified Copy Fields
The research did not identify a Dallas County court-record request form, so use the fields below as a practical inventory of information to have ready before contacting the Circuit Clerk. Including these details reduces the chance that staff must search by incomplete names or guess which document is needed.
| Field | Required | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Case Number | Recommended | Use the full Case.net case number if known. |
| Party Names | Yes | Include all known names and spellings. |
| Case Type | Recommended | Civil, criminal, domestic, probate, traffic, municipal, or juvenile if public. |
| Document Type | Yes | Judgment, decree, docket sheet, letters, order, disposition, or other specific item. |
| Certification Needed | Yes | State whether plain copies are enough or certified copies are required. |
| Delivery Method | Yes | Pickup, mail, email, fax, or another method approved by the clerk. |
| Requester Contact | Yes | Name, phone, mailing address, and email for fee or clarification notices. |
Dallas County Clerk Fees
Research found recorder portal fees and statutory public-record copying guidance, but it did not locate Dallas County official court copy or certification amounts. Do not assume a per-page or certification charge without clerk confirmation.
Payment method is also unresolved in the research. Before sending a check, money order, card authorization, or cash payment through any route, ask the clerk which methods are accepted and whether postage or return-envelope requirements apply. For public governmental records outside court case files, Missouri's Sunshine Law copying rules may guide fees, but court records are handled through court procedures and the clerk's instructions.
| Item | Amount | Source / Note |
|---|---|---|
| Court copy/certification fees | Fee not located in Dallas County official sources | Call Circuit Clerk. |
| Public-record copies | Actual cost / statutory copying rules | RSMo 610.026 applies to public governmental bodies generally. |
| iRecord registered user | $0.00 | Recorder portal, not court case records. |
| iRecord single-day subscription | $10.00 | Recorder portal, not court case records. |
| iRecord monthly subscription | $50.00 | Recorder portal, not court case records. |
| iRecord document/page printing | $1.00/page | Recorder portal, not court case records. |
| Marriage-license additional statutory fee | $20.00 added by statute | RSMo 451.151; county base fee not located. |
| Certified marriage copy additional statutory fee | $7.00 added by statute | RSMo 451.151; county total not located. |
Recorder iRecord Split
The Dallas County iRecord portal is important but belongs to the Recorder of Deeds side of the county record system. It requires login or registration for document viewing and printing. The portal lists a free registered-user option, paid day and monthly subscriptions, and per-page printing where shown. Use it for recorder documents, including land records and possibly marriage records if configured by record type. Do not use it for Circuit Court case files.
The Western District bankruptcy court page appears in the manifest for this clerk page, but federal bankruptcy records are not Dallas County Circuit Clerk records.
Bankruptcy discharge copies use the federal court path; divorce decrees, local judgments, probate letters, and Dallas County Circuit Court copies use the Circuit Clerk path.
Federal Court Is Separate
Federal district and bankruptcy records are not in Case.net and are not held by the Dallas County Circuit Clerk. Dallas County falls in the Western District of Missouri for federal court purposes, with the Springfield/Southern Division listed for county boundary purposes. Federal records use PACER or federal clerk routes, while Dallas County state court records use Case.net and the Circuit Clerk.
The Western District county boundaries page helps explain where Dallas County fits federally.
That federal routing is useful for federal lawsuits and bankruptcy, but it does not change the local Circuit Clerk's role for Missouri state court records.
Circuit Clerk Visit Checklist
Before visiting the courthouse, identify the case number from Case.net, bring the party names and document title, and call the clerk to confirm current counter hours, copy fees, certification charges, accepted payment, and whether the record is public. Official sources did not publish a Dallas County courthouse security, parking, recording-device, or ADA-entry page in the research, so visitors should confirm entry and parking questions by phone instead of assuming local rules.
If the request involves a divorce decree, probate letters, criminal disposition, traffic judgment, or civil judgment, state the exact purpose of the copy. The recipient may require certification, a raised seal or clerk attestation, a current date, or a full docket sheet instead of a single order. Asking that question before ordering can prevent a second trip or second payment.