Cle Elum Court Docket Searches
The Washington Courts directory shows Cle Elum Municipal Court at 700 E 1st St., Cle Elum. It also lists Upper Kittitas County District Court at the same address. One roof, two courts. That is why the label you search under matters so much. A Cle Elum municipal case and an Upper District case are distinct records, even though both lead to the same counter and phone number. The strongest docket search starts with a full number. A name alone can pull up several people. Check any match against the court, the case type, and the dates before trusting it.
- Read the complete Cle Elum court name and number from the notice.
- Open the Washington CLJ search.
- Select Cle Elum Municipal Court or Upper District as the source requires.
- For a newer filing, search the Tyler court records portal.
- Confirm the setting or request a copy through Upper District staff.
Cle Elum Is an Upper Court Center
Cle Elum does more than share a name with local cases. County Code section 2.08.010 makes it the main court seat for Kittitas County's Upper District. The precinct also covers Roslyn, South Cle Elum, Ronald, Easton, and several other named communities. So the Cle Elum court docket reaches well past the city limits. People from across the Upper Valley come here for hearings, filings, and case lookup. That wider reach is worth remembering. A docket search can turn up a case you did not expect.
Need contact details? The Upper District page posts them all. Call 509-674-5533 for phone, 509-674-4209 for fax, and upperdistrictcourt@co.kittitas.wa.us for email. County Code section 2.08.010 spells out the precinct geography. One caution applies to faxing. A published fax line does not guarantee that the clerk accepts record requests or filings that way. So call first before you send anything.
Cle Elum routing: The address is shared, but the municipal and Upper District court labels remain distinct in a case search.
Inside the Cle Elum Municipal Court
Cle Elum Municipal Court covers city business within Washington's limited-jurisdiction tier. It handles municipal infractions and lower-level criminal cases. The state directory lists it apart from Upper District. If your ticket or notice names the municipal court, search under that label. Picking Upper District just because it shares the building can bury a valid docket result. Anything above municipal authority goes elsewhere. Felonies, plus broad civil, domestic, probate, and juvenile matters, belong to Kittitas County Superior Court. District Court handles its own statutory work. That work spans civil, criminal, infraction, small-claims, protection-order, vehicle-impound, and name-change matters. The Cle Elum name alone picks nothing. The case type and the court that filed it decide.
Cle Elum Courts Share Local Rules
The Cle Elum municipal rules page says its local rules govern three courts at once. Those courts are Upper District Court, Cle Elum Municipal Court, and Roslyn Municipal Court. Those rules sit on top of the statewide Courts of Limited Jurisdiction rules. Shared rules reflect a real working relationship among Upper Valley courts. Each court keeps its own name.
One rule set does not mean one docket. Choose Cle Elum Municipal Court for a city case and Upper District for a district filing. When procedure matters, read both the local and statewide rules. Washington's rules directory warns that its local links are for convenience. The court itself keeps the official text. For any deadline or filing method, confirm current Cle Elum practice with the clerk.
Finding Cle Elum Court Dates
A Cle Elum hearing date can surface in several places: the statewide limited-jurisdiction search, the Tyler portal, a court notice, or an official future-date tool. Each system can lag. None replaces a direct check with the court. The Find My Court Date service offers one more official route. Match any result to the court name. Confirm it is municipal or Upper District before you rely on it.
| Date | The day assigned to the Cle Elum court event. |
|---|---|
| Time | The listed docket-call or individual start time. |
| Court | Cle Elum Municipal Court or Upper District. |
| Location | The Upper court site or approved remote method. |
| Setting type | Arraignment, pretrial, hearing, trial, or review. |
A reset only moves the event. It does not dismiss the Cle Elum case. Keep the old notice, and ask which date, appearance method, and court now control.
Cle Elum City Hall Is Separate
Cle Elum City Hall sits at 119 W 1st St., and city pages list 509-674-2262 for city services. The courts are at 700 E 1st St. That is a gap of a few blocks and a wall between two very different functions. City Hall runs administration; the courthouse keeps judicial records. A council agenda, a permit file, or a civic request is not a court docket.
| Cle Elum office | Best use | Record distinction |
|---|---|---|
| City Hall | City services and administrative records | Not the judicial case custodian |
| Cle Elum Municipal Court | City case, ticket, or hearing | Municipal judicial record |
| Upper District Court | District case and shared court access | Separate court label at same location |
Pick the office that fits the item you want. The Public Records Act route for city administration does not replace General Rule 31 for court files.
Cle Elum Traffic Ticket Lookups
A Cle Elum ticket should name its issuing court: Cle Elum Municipal Court, Upper District, or another one. Keep every letter of the ticket number intact. The Upper new-ticket page lays out the steps for misdemeanors, gross misdemeanors, and civil infractions. An infraction may let you pay, mitigate, or contest. A criminal citation, though, can require an arraignment before much else happens. Read the paper, because its type and deadline control. Searching the docket does not file a response. Paying a ticket does not show every event or the final outcome. Keep your receipt and check the Cle Elum record afterward. If a deadline or hearing slipped by, contact the court right away. Added consequences can follow. The countywide traffic court records page explains general ticket routes, but a Cle Elum matter keeps its exact municipal or District label.
Cle Elum Records Changed Portals
Kittitas County's limited-jurisdiction courts switched to a newer CLJ-CMS setup in 2026. That change split where a Cle Elum docket lives. Cases filed after May 4, 2026 go to the new court-records portal. Upper District's administrative-records page sends users there. Older matters usually surface faster through Washington's long-running Case Search. So the filing date tells you which tool to try first.
An empty Tyler result does not mean no Cle Elum case exists. Run the statewide search with the exact court selector. If both tools come up dry, call the Upper clerk. Have the court name, full case number, approximate filing date, case type, and party name ready. Share only what is needed. Portal entries may list events without attaching every document. Need the official filing or certified copies? The court office is still the place to go.
Cle Elum Small Claims Explained
Money disputes only: that is small claims. Upper District's small-claims page caps a natural person at $10,000 and a business or other entity at $5,000, and it posts a $50 filing fee. Venue and service rules still apply. A Cle Elum address alone does not make every claim proper in Upper District.
- Plaintiff
- The person or entity filing the Cle Elum-area claim.
- Defendant
- The person or entity against whom relief is sought.
- Venue
- The proper court location under the governing rule.
- Service
- Formal delivery of the claim papers.
- Judgment
- The court's recorded decision, not the same as payment.
Search small claims through Upper District, not Cle Elum Municipal Court. Before filing, ask the clerk for the current form, fee, and service instructions.
Cle Elum Court Activity in Context
Two numbers about Cle Elum answer different questions. The official 2020 Census incorporated-places table counts 2,157 residents. Washington's 2025 limited-jurisdiction report carries a Cle Elum Municipal Court filing row for caseload. Population measures who lived there on the Census date. Caseload measures court activity under the report's own categories. Neither one lists parties or replaces the public docket.
Cle Elum's official history traces a coal-country past. It also lists the Telephone Museum, Carpenter House, the Coal Mines Trail, and the ski-jumping era. That heritage helps explain how the town grew into a central Upper Valley place. Jurisdiction still comes from county code, court directories, and actual filings, not local lore. Treat civic facts as background. Treat court sources as the record.
How Cle Elum Cases Reach County Court
Where a Cle Elum case starts depends on its type, not distance. A city infraction or lower criminal matter opens in Cle Elum Municipal Court. District matters open in Upper District. Same location, separate court. Felonies, major civil cases, domestic, probate, juvenile, and other general-jurisdiction proceedings belong elsewhere. They go to Kittitas County Superior Court and the County Clerk in Ellensburg. Court type controls the file.
Docket flow: Cle Elum Municipal Court › Upper Kittitas County District Court › Kittitas County Superior Court when jurisdiction or an authorized review route requires it.
Those tiers describe possibility, not an automatic climb. Plenty of Cle Elum matters end in Municipal or District Court. For a higher-level filing, use the Kittitas County docket search. Pick Superior from the court list. Appeals follow set procedures. Do not read an appeal into a quiet docket.
Cle Elum Court Record Copies
Copy questions for Cle Elum Municipal Court and Upper District both go to Upper District. Name the exact court, the complete case number, a date range, and the document you want. The Upper records page separates post-transition portal access from administrative records, so ask whether your item is a case record, whether it is public, and which request channel the clerk accepts.
Fees are posted on the Upper fee page. Paper copies run $0.50 per page. Electronic copies run $0.25 per page, with a displayed $2.50 minimum through five pages. Certification costs $5, fax costs $1 per page, and audio costs $20. Confirm live fees before sending payment. A portal printout is not a certified court copy. Phone, mail, the counter, and an approved request form all work. Try them when online access falls short. Keep requests narrow to cut staff-search time and cost.
Who Can See Cle Elum Court Records
Washington General Rule 31 frames who may see court records. Not every Cle Elum filing is online. Some records take a clerk request. Other rules, statutes, or a court order can seal or shield part of a file.
General Rule 15 governs sealing and redaction. General Rule 22 covers certain family, protection-order, guardianship, and therapeutic-court material. Juvenile records carry separate limits.
Cle Elum access rule: A visible index does not make each filing open. Ask the clerk what can be inspected and what must be redacted.
City administrative records follow a separate route. A civic request cannot replace a Cle Elum judicial record request.
Cle Elum History and Court Context
The city view on this page comes from Cle Elum's official civic source. The City of Cle Elum website is the source for this view.
The city scene sets the Cle Elum backdrop. But the state directory and Upper District pages supply the actual court route.
Local history often ties the name Cle Elum to swift water. The Telephone Museum marks how far communication has come. Court technology has shifted too, from the statewide Case Search to a new limited-jurisdiction portal. That parallel is context, not proof of any filing. For a real Cle Elum case, trust the court name and the live portal. Trust the clerk too, and the official document.