About the Wagoner County Court Clerk
The Wagoner County Court Clerk is the records office for the county's District Court. Jim Hight serves as District Court Clerk, and the office sits on the first floor of the Wagoner County Courthouse in downtown Wagoner. This is where court files are opened, indexed, and stored, where filers pay fees, and where the public picks up copies of case documents.
Oklahoma keeps the court-record function local to each District Court, so the Court Clerk holds the paper and electronic record for nearly every case heard in the county. The counter handles civil, criminal, family, probate, small claims, and protective order matters. It also issues marriage licenses and provides copies of marriage licenses and divorce decrees. The office stays open through the lunch hour, which helps people who can only come on a work break.
Wagoner County Court Clerk
Clerk: Jim Hight, District Court Clerk
307 E Cherokee, 1st Floor
Wagoner, OK 74467
Mailing: P.O. Box 249, Wagoner, OK 74467
918-485-4508
Fax: 918-485-7929
Mon-Fri 8 AM-4:30 PM (open through lunch)
What the Court Clerk Does in Wagoner County
The Court Clerk's core job is to file and maintain District Court proceedings and the documents tied to them. Every petition, motion, order, and judgment is logged here and kept as part of the case file. The office also handles the money side of the courthouse, collecting filing fees, fines, and court costs and tracking payment plans on open cases.
Beyond storing case files, the office carries several public-facing duties that bring residents to the counter each week.
- File and maintain civil, criminal, family, and probate District Court records
- Process small claims filings such as evictions and money or property affidavits
- Collect fines, court costs, and payment-plan installments
- Accept protective order petitions and service sheets
- Issue marriage licenses on the first floor of the courthouse
- Provide copies of marriage licenses and divorce decrees
Search Court Cases Online
The Court Clerk page links the public to two free case-lookup tools, so you do not always need to visit the counter to confirm a case number or hearing date. The first is On Demand Court Records, the portal the office labels "View Cases Publicly." The second is the Oklahoma State Courts Network, which covers District and appellate dockets across the state.
For a Wagoner County lookup on On Demand Court Records, select Wagoner from the court list, enter a party name in Last, First order or the full case number, and run the search. Clicking a result opens the docket with case updates, hearing dates, and times. The statewide Oklahoma State Courts Network works in much the same way through its Case Search option. Both tools are useful for finding a case before you ask the Court Clerk for a certified copy.
Note: Online dockets are an index for the public and do not replace the court's official case-management record, so verify critical details with the Court Clerk.
Records Request Form Fields
A mailed copy request needs enough detail for the office to find the right file and return the document to you. The most common request is a marriage license copy by mail, and the office asks for the items below. Court file and divorce decree requests use the same building blocks: who is on the record, when it happened, payment, and a way to send it back.
| Field | Required | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Names on the record | Yes | Both persons listed on the marriage license or the parties to the case |
| Date of marriage | Yes | Used to locate the correct license; supply the case number for court files |
| Case number | Conditional | Helpful for court documents and divorce decrees; find it on ODCR or OSCN |
| Payment | Yes | $2 check or money order made out to WC.C.C. for a mailed marriage copy |
| Self-addressed stamped envelope | Yes | Include a SASE so the office can mail the copy back to you |
Court Forms Posted Online
The Court Clerk page posts a set of related documents that residents and attorneys use often, so you can download and prepare paperwork before you arrive. These forms cover bonding, civil service, small claims, fee relief, and protective orders.
- Bondsman List and Process Server List
- Small-claims forms, including the 30 Day Notice for Possession, 5 Day Notice for Failure to Pay Rent, Affidavit for Money, and Affidavit for Property
- Fines and costs extension form for payment relief
- Protective Order Petition pages and the Protective Order Service Sheet
- Beverage-license renewal forms
The same page also links to the Oklahoma State Department of Health and to the court search tools, which makes it a practical first stop before any in-person visit.
How to Request a Certified Copy
A certified copy carries the Court Clerk's seal and proves a document is a true record of the court. People need them for name changes, remarriage, immigration, benefits, and other legal uses where a plain printout will not do. The steps below follow the office's posted instructions for marriage licenses, divorce decrees, and court files.
- Identify the case or record by searching ODCR or OSCN for the party name or case number, or call the office for help.
- Decide what you need, such as a marriage license copy, a divorce decree, or a court document, and how many copies.
- For a marriage license copy by mail, gather the names of both persons, the date of marriage, a $2 check or money order payable to WC.C.C., and a self-addressed stamped envelope.
- Mail the request to the Wagoner County Court Clerk at P.O. Box 249, Wagoner, OK 74467, or bring it to the first-floor counter.
- For divorce decrees or other court files, visit the counter from 8 AM to 4:30 PM weekdays or call 918-485-4508 to confirm the cost and availability first.
- Pick up certified copies in person or wait for the mailed copy to arrive in your stamped envelope.
Note: Wagoner County does not accept fax filing, so plan to submit copy requests and court documents in person or by mail rather than by fax.
Wagoner County Court Clerk Fees
The fees the office publishes are tied mostly to marriage licenses and copy requests. Marriage license cost drops sharply when couples complete premarital counseling, and a judge can perform the ceremony for a small added fee. The amounts below come from the county's official Court Clerk and marriage pages.
| Item | Amount |
|---|---|
| Marriage license (no counseling) | $50 cash |
| Marriage license (4+ hours premarital counseling) | $5 with certificate or letter |
| Judge-performed marriage ceremony | $10 extra, by appointment |
| Marriage license copy by mail | $2 (check or money order to WC.C.C.) |
| Fax filing | Not accepted |
Court-cost and filing-fee schedules for civil, criminal, and probate cases are set by statute and confirmed at the counter. The office can quote the current amount when you call or visit, since costs vary by case type and any added service fees.
Marriage and Divorce Copies
The Marriage License Division of the Court Clerk issues licenses on the first floor of the courthouse, and both parties must apply together in person. The office asks license-only applicants to arrive no later than 4 PM so the paperwork can be finished before closing. A license is good for ten days before or on the wedding date.
Copies are a separate service. To get a copy of a marriage license or a decree of dissolution of marriage, you can visit the Court Clerk from 8 AM to 4:30 PM on weekdays or call ahead. A marriage license copy by mail needs the names, the marriage date, a $2 payment, and a self-addressed stamped envelope. Divorce case files themselves are District Court records that you can search online and request from this office. The application steps, ID rules, and the six-month remarriage rule are covered in more detail on the county marriage and divorce records page.
Court Clerk vs County Clerk
Two different offices in Wagoner County both use the word "clerk," and sending a request to the wrong one is a common mistake. The Court Clerk, Jim Hight, holds court case files. The County Clerk, Lori Hendricks, holds land and recorded-instrument records such as deeds and liens. The table below shows which office to contact for each kind of record.
| Feature | Court Clerk (Jim Hight) | County Clerk (Lori Hendricks) |
|---|---|---|
| Records held | District Court case files, marriage licenses, divorce decrees | Land and recorded instruments |
| Examples | Civil, criminal, family, probate, small claims, protective orders | Deeds, mortgages, liens, plats, mechanics liens |
| Location | 307 E Cherokee, 1st Floor | 307 E Cherokee Street |
| Phone | 918-485-4508 | 918-485-2216 |
| Certified copy | Court documents at the Court Clerk counter | $2 per page for recorded documents |
If you need a deed, a mortgage release, or a lien copy, the Wagoner County Clerk is the correct office. The County Clerk also warns residents about a deed-copy mailer that asks for $86, noting that certified copies are available directly from that office for far less. For anything filed in a court case, this Court Clerk page is your starting point.
Courthouse and County Seat History
The Court Clerk works inside a courthouse with deep roots in the county's founding. According to the Oklahoma Historical Society, Wagoner's population was 2,950 at 1907 statehood, and the community's existing courthouse gave it the edge it needed to be named county seat of Wagoner County.
That early courthouse decision is the reason court records for the whole county are centered in the City of Wagoner today. By 1910 the town had grown to 4,018 residents, and the courthouse anchored a busy rail-era downtown of brick civic buildings.
For more on local history, the county maintains a Wagoner County historical links page that points to the Oklahoma Historical Society encyclopedia, the Wagoner Carnegie Library, and state genealogy resources.
These resources help researchers and families trace older estate, marriage, and civil matters back to the same courthouse where the Court Clerk still maintains the county's records.