State Resources
Alabama
Alabama has a genuinely statewide court system and charges for access to it. The records law is one of the weakest in the country — no deadline, no appeal body, and residency limits. Business and UCC search are free and fine.
At a glance
| Record | Held by | Cost | Online |
|---|---|---|---|
| Business and entity search | Secretary of State | Free to search | Yes |
| UCC filings | Secretary of State — UCC | Free to search | Yes |
| Professional licenses | Individual boards; Licensing Board for General Contractors | Free | By board |
| Property and land records | County probate judge (records) and tax assessor | Free online in most counties | By county |
| Court records | Alacourt (statewide, subscription) | Subscription; free at courthouse terminals | Paid only |
| Criminal records | ALEA — Alabama Law Enforcement Agency | Fee; consent required | Consent required |
| Vital records | Department of Public Health, Center for Health Statistics | Certified copies carry a fee | Yes |
| Unclaimed property | State Treasury | Free | Yes |
| Voter and resident records | Secretary of State | Free | Yes |
Worth knowing about Alabama
Alacourt is statewide and it’s paid
Alabama did the hard part — every county circuit and district court sits on one unified system — and then put it behind a paywall.
Alacourt gives you statewide case search across all 67 counties, criminal and civil, with dockets and images. It works on a subscription, and it’s the official route.
The free alternatives are thin:
- Courthouse terminals in each circuit clerk’s office.
- The clerk, who will run a name search on request.
- Appellate opinions, published free — useful as a back door if a case was appealed.
If you work Alabama more than occasionally the subscription is the answer. There’s no free equivalent and the sites claiming to offer one are lead generation.
The Open Records Act has almost nothing behind it
Alabama’s public records statute is short, old and weak, and you should plan for that rather than be surprised by it.
There’s no response deadline in the statute for most records. There’s no ombudsman, board or administrative appeal. There’s no fee schedule. The only remedy is a lawsuit in circuit court, and attorney fees aren’t routinely awarded.
Recent amendments introduced a defined process for some requests with time frames, but it is layered and slow by design rather than fast.
The Act also runs to citizens of Alabama, which is a further wall for an out-of-state requester.
So in Alabama, lean on the record types that are open by other law: court files, probate court records, and Secretary of State filings. A discretionary FOIA-style request to a state agency here is the least reliable tool in the box.
Record by record
Business and entity search
Open business search →- Held by
- Secretary of State
- Cost
- Free to search
Free entity search returning status, formation date, registered agent and filed documents.
Alabama entities are formed by filing with the probate judge in the county first, then indexed at state level — so the county probate office may hold original formation documents the state index doesn’t show.
UCC filings
Open UCC →- Held by
- Secretary of State — UCC
- Cost
- Free to search
UCC financing statements filed centrally with the Secretary of State and searchable by debtor name.
A UCC-1 names the debtor, the secured party and the collateral. Alabama filings frequently cover timber, farm equipment and poultry operations in useful detail.
Professional licenses
- Held by
- Individual boards; Licensing Board for General Contractors
- Cost
- Free
No single statewide lookup. Boards are separate. The Licensing Board for General Contractors publishes license status and classification free.
Property and land records
- Held by
- County probate judge (records) and tax assessor
- Cost
- Free online in most counties
No statewide property search, and Alabama has an unusual arrangement: the probate judge is the recording officer for deeds and mortgages, not a separate recorder or clerk.
The county tax assessor or revenue commissioner holds ownership and value. Jefferson, Mobile and Madison are the deepest online.
Alabama has a homestead exemption recorded at the county, which is the county’s own note on whether the owner claims to live there.
Court records
Open Alacourt →- Held by
- Alacourt (statewide, subscription)
- Cost
- Subscription; free at courthouse terminals
Statewide circuit and district court records across all 67 counties, on subscription. Free at the courthouse.
Alabama district courts handle misdemeanors, small claims and unlawful detainer (eviction); circuit courts handle felonies and larger civil. Both are in Alacourt.
Criminal records
Open ALEA →- Held by
- ALEA — Alabama Law Enforcement Agency
- Cost
- Fee; consent required
Alabama doesn’t sell a name-based criminal history to the general public. A background check on another person requires the subject’s notarized consent and fingerprints.
Alacourt or the circuit clerk is the practical route to Alabama criminal records.
Vital records
Open vital records →- Held by
- Department of Public Health, Center for Health Statistics
- Cost
- Certified copies carry a fee
Births, deaths, marriages and divorces from the state office, with county health departments also issuing. Alabama restricts certified copies to people with a direct interest.
Unclaimed property
Open unclaimed property →- Held by
- State Treasury
- Cost
- Free
Free name search. The holder named on a reported item is a confirmed bank, insurer or employer relationship with a last known address.
Voter and resident records
Open voter lookup →- Held by
- Secretary of State
- Cost
- Free
Individual registration lookup confirming status and county. Alabama sells the bulk voter list.
Public records requests in Alabama
- Statute
- Ala. Code §§ 36-12-40 et seq. (Open Records Act)
- Response deadline
- Process-based; no simple statutory deadline
- Appeal to
- Circuit court
- Appeal window
- No fixed deadline
One of the weakest records laws in the country. No ombudsman, no administrative appeal, no fee schedule, and the Act runs to citizens of Alabama.
Recent amendments created a defined request process with time frames for acknowledgment and substantive response, which is an improvement, but it’s layered and it builds in delay rather than removing it.
The only remedy is circuit court, and fee awards aren’t routine. That combination means a determined agency can simply outlast a requester.
Practical advice: don’t build an Alabama file around agency requests. Court records, probate records and Secretary of State filings are open under other law and are far more reliable here.
What Alabama will not give you
- Agency records, if you aren’t an Alabamian. The Open Records Act runs to Alabama citizens.
- A free statewide case search. Alacourt is a subscription. Courthouse terminals are free.
- Name-based criminal history. Not sold to the public. Notarized consent required.
- Driver and vehicle records. Closed under the federal Driver’s Privacy Protection Act.
- Juvenile records. Not public.
Course
The Ultimate FOIA and Public Records Course
Every state page here tells you what the law says. The course shows you how to write the request, what to do when it comes back gutted, and how to appeal without a lawyer — the part that decides whether you actually get the records.
See the FOIA courseRelated
- Georgia — GSCCCA covers all 159 counties for land and liens
- Tennessee — the other citizens-only records law nearby
- Florida — the most open state in the region
- UCC filings name the lender
- Property records: finding the owner
Fees and procedures verified August 2026. Clerks change their counter rules more often than the statutes change — call before you drive.