5 Things Your Florida County Clerk Does for Free That People Pay Lawyers For

Before you pay a lawyer, it may be worth calling your county clerk’s office.

Floridians can find some services there for free, though what’s offered can differ from county to county.

Here’s what to look into first, and where the help stops.

Note: This is general information, not legal advice. Clerk services, forms and fees vary by county and are subject to change.

1. Property Fraud Alerts

Palm Beach County’s clerk runs a free Property Fraud Alert service.

Many people pay a lawyer to keep watch over their property records.

The service emails you when a recorded document exactly matches a name, address or parcel number you register.

The page recommends registering every variation of your name, since the alert needs an exact match.

Each person registers separately.

Clerks in Baker, Clay, Duval, Nassau, Putnam and St. Johns counties have teamed up to promote free property fraud alerts at protectyourfloridaproperty.com.

Whether you get an email, phone or text alert depends on the county.

The free noticing service doesn’t prevent a fraudulent action from occurring, but it does give you an early warning.

If an alert points to potentially criminal activity, the site says to contact local law enforcement and notify your clerk’s office.

2. Protective Injunction Filing

Under Florida law, your county clerk can’t charge you a filing fee for a petition for protection against domestic violence.

The clerk also has to assist petitioners in seeking a domestic violence injunction, and clerks’ offices have to provide simplified petition forms with instructions.

Section 784.046 bars filing fees for repeat, sexual and dating violence petitions too.

Section 784.0485 says the clerk of court may not assess a filing fee for a stalking injunction petition.

You can file a stalking petition in the circuit where you live, where the other person lives or where the stalking occurred.

That statute doesn’t require either side in a stalking injunction case to have an attorney.

Under s. 784.046, a clerk also has to give someone without a lawyer a copy of that section, simplified forms and clerical help with the petition.

Palm Beach County’s clerk page points to free injunction forms online at flcourts.gov.

There’s also a free online workshop explaining the injunction process.

You can also file your petition online through the Florida Courts E-Filing Portal.

In person, Palm Beach County’s Domestic Violence Department is in room 3.2200 on the 3rd floor of the Main Courthouse in West Palm Beach.

The department also has branch offices in Delray Beach, Palm Beach Gardens, Royal Palm Beach and Belle Glade.

3. Searching Court Records Online

Court Records View, a free online service from the Pinellas County clerk, lets you look up many court cases and documents.

Court Records Public View lets you anonymously view documents and information in criminal, civil and traffic cases.

Not everything is online.

Documents on cases with special victims, and on juvenile delinquency or dependency cases, aren’t available.

If you want family, juvenile or probate court documents online, you need a subscriber account.

That account takes a completed subscription agreement and a payment.

4. Downloadable Court Forms

Any Florida Supreme Court approved form is a free download from Alachua County’s clerk.

If you’d rather have paper, you can buy printed copies at the clerk’s office.

The clerk also points to DIY (Do-It-Yourself) Florida, which uses interview-style questions to lead you through preparing court forms.

It offers forms for landlord-tenant, small claims, domestic violence, simplified dissolution and domestic relations cases.

Once a form is prepared, you can file it electronically through the E-Filing Portal, and required filing, service and convenience fees may apply.

Palm Beach County’s clerk lists free PDFs of many forms to download.

Its form packets include step-by-step instructions and can be purchased.

Packets are delivered within one business day of receiving payment.

5. Self-Service Center Workshops

The Self-Service Center at Palm Beach County's clerk lists free "How to" workshops on its website.

If you want hands-on help, free document preparation assistance is available by appointment at the West Palm Beach, Palm Beach Gardens and Delray Beach locations.

The Navigator at those offices can help you with court documents and give you procedural information for most family law and county civil actions.

To book, call 561-355-7048.

The Self-Service Center is open Monday through Friday, 8 a.m. to 4 p.m.

Limits on Help

In Escambia County, clerk's office staff can't give legal advice, explain legal rights or remedies, or assist in completing forms.

The Navigator at Palm Beach County's Self-Service Center can't give you legal advice or represent you in court.

Fees That Still Apply

Certified copies of the final disposition of your case cost $1.00 a page plus $2.00 per certification at the Pinellas County clerk.

Printed form packets, individual forms and checklists are for sale at the Escambia County clerk's office.

Orange County's clerk charges $1 a page for documents printed from a case and $2 per certified document through its self-help program.

An attorney consultation through that program costs $1 a minute.

Those consultations come in 15-minute sessions, for up to 1 hour a day per person.

The Orange County Bar Association refers the attorneys, and they can't represent you in court.