Lawrence County Circuit Court Overview
Lawrence County's primary trial court is Circuit Court. Kentucky Circuit Court is the court of general jurisdiction, which means it can hear case types unless the General Assembly gives exclusive jurisdiction to another court. In Lawrence County, Circuit Court hears felony criminal cases, civil matters over $5,000, divorces, adoptions, termination of parental rights, real property title disputes, contested probate matters, injunctions, writs, appeals from District Court, and administrative appeals.
Lawrence County is part of the 24th Judicial Circuit and the 24th Judicial District with Johnson and Martin counties. Circuit, Family, District, and the Circuit Court Clerk's office are housed at the Lawrence County Judicial Center in Louisa. The public records counter is the Lawrence County Circuit Court Clerk, Jodi L. Parsley, and the Kentucky Court of Justice county page is the official source for local court officers, hours, payment notes, accessibility, and record-copy guidance.
The Circuit Court page should not be read as the only trial-court page for every local matter. Kentucky assigns many everyday public-facing cases to District Court, including traffic, misdemeanors, probate of wills, small claims, juvenile matters, and preliminary felony steps. Circuit Court is still the primary trial court for Lawrence County because it is the court of general jurisdiction and handles the most serious civil, criminal, family, and appellate trial-court work.
The Kentucky Court of Justice District Court page explains the lower trial court role that sits beside Circuit Court in Lawrence County.
This District Court source helps explain the lower trial-court role that sits below Lawrence County Circuit Court in Kentucky's structure.
Lawrence County Court Officials
The Kentucky Court of Justice county page lists official Lawrence County judges and officers for the local trial courts. All listed Lawrence County trial-court entries use the Lawrence County Judicial Center address and the Circuit Court Clerk phone for local access. Because Lawrence County shares the 24th circuit and district with Johnson and Martin counties, the judge's division matters when reading a docket, order, or case heading.
| Court / role | Judge or officer | Division / district | Address | Phone |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Circuit Court | John Kevin Holbrook | 24th Judicial Circuit, Division 2 | Lawrence County Judicial Center, 29 River Bend Road, Louisa, KY 41230 | 606-638-4215 via clerk |
| Family Court / Circuit Court | Adam Scott O'Bryan, Chief Circuit Judge Family Court | 24th Judicial Circuit, Division 1 | Same | 606-638-4215 via clerk |
| District Court | John T. Chafin | 24th Judicial District, Division 1 | Same | 606-638-4215 via clerk |
| District Court | D. Brett Butcher | 24th Judicial District, Division 2 | Same | 606-638-4215 via clerk |
| Circuit Court Clerk | Jodi L. Parsley | Lawrence County | Same | 606-638-4215 |
The court page also lists Lawrence County in the 7th Supreme Court District and 7th Appellate District. Appeals from Lawrence County trial courts move through Kentucky's appellate system rather than a county-level appellate court.
Circuit Family District Comparison
Kentucky does not use a Texas-style county court or justice court structure for Lawrence County case routing. The local comparison is Circuit Court, Family Court as a Circuit Court division, and District Court. The court name on the record tells a reader what type of matter it likely is and where an appeal or copy request may go next.
| Topic | Circuit Court | Family Court Division | District Court |
|---|---|---|---|
| Civil scope | Civil matters over $5,000, title disputes, injunctions, writs, administrative appeals, and District Court appeals. | Family civil matters such as divorce, custody, support, paternity, and adoption. | Civil cases of $5,000 or less and small claims of $2,500 or less. |
| Criminal scope | Felonies, capital offenses, and felony cases after indictment or transfer. | Not the main criminal trial division, though related family protective matters may overlap. | Misdemeanors, violations, traffic offenses, arraignments, and felony probable-cause hearings. |
| Family and juvenile | Handles adoption, termination of parental rights, and contested family matters through the Family Court model. | One family, one judge, one court model for dissolution, custody, support, domestic violence, dependency, neglect, abuse, truancy, and related cases. | Handles juvenile matters and domestic violence and abuse proceedings within District Court jurisdiction. |
| Probate | Contested probate matters. | Generally not the primary probate label. | Probate of wills and many probate proceedings. |
| Appeal path | Appeals generally move to Kentucky Court of Appeals. | Appeals from Family Court go to Kentucky Court of Appeals. | Appeals from District Court go to Circuit Court. |
Kentucky Family Court gives family cases priority so they do not compete with criminal and other civil cases for judicial time.
Lawrence County Case Flow
A Lawrence County case may start in District Court or Circuit Court depending on the claim, charge, and amount in dispute. Felony allegations often begin with a District Court arraignment or probable-cause hearing before moving to Circuit Court after indictment or other transfer. Misdemeanors, traffic cases, and many local ordinance matters remain in District Court unless an appeal is filed.
Felony flow: Arrest or complaint › District Court arraignment › Probable-cause hearing › Indictment or information › Circuit Court arraignment › Pretrial events › Plea or trial › Disposition and sentencing › Appeal if filed.
Civil flow: Complaint or petition filed › Service › Answer or response › Motions and discovery › Mediation or settlement talks when used › Hearing or trial › Judgment or order › Appeal if filed.
Family flow: Petition filed › Temporary orders if needed › Service and response › Hearings on custody, support, protection, or property › Final order or decree › Post-judgment motions or appeal.
Online records may show only part of that path. CourtNet may display parties, charges, scheduled events, case documents, or next events when available. The public docket portal is useful for hearing dates, but it warns that results are not an official docket and may change.
For file access, the same case flow creates different search needs. A person checking a next appearance may only need the public docket portal. A person reading a sentence, divorce decree, judgment, or contested probate order needs the case record. A person seeking a certified copy needs the Circuit Court Clerk. When a case moved from District Court to Circuit Court, use the case number, charge, party name, and event history to avoid mixing the early docket with the later felony file.
Civil Family Criminal Divisions
Lawrence County Circuit Court handles the serious civil and criminal work assigned to Kentucky's general-jurisdiction trial courts. Civil Circuit Court cases may include large claims, real property title disputes, injunctions, writs of mandamus and prohibition, administrative appeals, and appeals from District Court. Criminal Circuit Court records are felony case records and may include indictments, arraignments, motions, pleas, trial events, disposition, sentence, fines, and probation-related orders.
Family Court is a Circuit Court division in Kentucky. Its Lawrence County work includes dissolution of marriage, spousal support, equitable distribution, child custody, support, visitation, paternity, adoption, domestic violence, dependency, neglect, abuse, termination of parental rights, status offenses such as runaways and truancy, and beyond-control matters. Some family and juvenile records are restricted, sealed, or visible only to parties, attorneys, or by court order.
District Court handles a large share of everyday public-facing cases in Lawrence County. That includes traffic offenses, misdemeanors, violations, city and county ordinances, probate of wills, small claims, lower-value civil cases, juvenile matters, mental-health commitments, domestic violence and abuse, arraignments, and felony probable-cause hearings.
Judicial Circuit District
Lawrence County belongs to Kentucky's 24th Judicial Circuit and 24th Judicial District with Johnson and Martin counties. Circuit judges serve eight-year terms, while District judges serve four-year terms. The Kentucky Court of Justice county page lists Lawrence County court officers by division and also shows appellate officers tied to the 7th Supreme Court District and 7th Appellate District.
Kentucky Specialty Courts are statewide court programs rather than a separate Lawrence-only trial court. They include drug court, veterans treatment court, and mental health court programs using referral orders, assessment, treatment access, supervision, and team review. Research did not confirm a separate Lawrence-specific specialty court location, so availability should be checked through official court channels.
The Specialty Courts source adds Kentucky-wide context for eligible Lawrence County criminal matters that may be referred for assessment.
District Court and Access
Lawrence County does not use justice of the peace courts or county courts for ordinary state trial-court routing. District Court is the limited-jurisdiction trial court below Circuit Court. It handles traffic, misdemeanors, violations, small claims, lower civil matters, probate of wills, preliminary felony events, juvenile matters, and mental-health or domestic-violence matters. Appeals from District Court go to Circuit Court.
Use Kentucky public docket search for date-based docket checks by selecting Lawrence County, Circuit or District, the date, courtroom when needed, and subdivision when available. Use the Lawrence County Circuit Court Clerk for certified copies, older records, records not visible to guest users, and official verification of a hearing or case status.
Note: Court security details were not located in official Lawrence County court sources, so visitors should call the clerk before bringing restricted items or arriving for a time-sensitive hearing.