San Luis Obispo County, CA Courts and Public Records

The Superior Court of California, County of San Luis Obispo is the single trial court for the county, handling criminal, traffic, civil, family, probate, and juvenile cases.

Have the full name, the case number if you know it, and the approximate dates ready before you search. Superior Court records for San Luis Obispo County are kept by the court clerk.

San Luis Obispo County's Superior Court received 54,139 new filings in fiscal year 2024-25 and reported 40,366 dispositions. Its filings per authorized judicial position rank 6 of 58 counties.

The largest driver of the change was criminal (+8,917 filings), followed by civil (+576).

Total filings in San Luis Obispo County moved up over the five fiscal years shown; dispositions are shown beside filings.

Total filings changed +44.1% between FY 2020-21 and FY 2024-25, from 37,567 to 54,139. The largest annual change was +21.3% in FY 2024-25. The latest change, FY 2024-25, was +21.3%, led by criminal filings (+8,917).

Criminal cases make up the largest share of San Luis Obispo County filings at 85.9% of the 54,139 filed in FY 2024-25.

Traffic infractions cases were the fastest-growing category at +27.6%, while juvenile dependency cases fell fastest at -16.2%.

San Luis Obispo County accounted for 1.02% of the 5,306,078 cases filed statewide in California superior courts in FY 2024-25, and its filings grew 21.3% while statewide filings grew 8.5%.

San Luis Obispo County's criminal share is higher than the statewide share and its civil share is lower. Its filings per judicial position are above the statewide figure.

These figures cover offenses reported by all law enforcement agencies in San Luis Obispo County, as published by the California Department of Justice (OpenJustice).

Total reported violent and property offenses fell 9.4% from 5,194 in 2023 to 4,706 in 2024.

The county violent crime rate of ~400.6 per 100K compares with 477.1 statewide, and its property crime rate of ~1269.1 per 100K compares with 2069.1 statewide.

San Luis Obispo County has 5 official Superior Court locations listed on the court website. Check your notice or case paperwork for the courthouse and courtroom before you go, because not every location handles every case type.

The Superior Court of California, County of San Luis Obispo hears all case types in the county, and the court divides them into divisions. Parking tickets and federal cases are handled outside this court.

Yes, most Superior Court records in California are public, with exceptions set by the California Rules of Court, rules 2.500 to 2.507 on public access to electronic trial court records.

Public records

Most civil, criminal, traffic, and family case information is open to the public, subject to the restrictions in the rules and any court order.

Restricted or confidential records

Sealed records, juvenile case files, and records the law makes confidential are not available without a court order, and some family, probate, and mental health files are restricted.

Online access

Use Online Case Lookup (re:SearchCA) to look up case information. The court page does not list which case types the lookup covers, registration is required for remote access, and kiosks in the courthouse do not require registration.

In-person access

Visit the courthouse at 1050 Monterey Street, Room 220, San Luis Obispo, CA 93408 to view or request files, and confirm the division with the clerk at (805) 706-3600.

Fees

The court pages reviewed do not state copy or certification fees, so ask the clerk before you request copies.

Use the court's official online portal to search San Luis Obispo County cases by case type, and ask the clerk for documents that are not available online.

1. Identify the case type, such as criminal, traffic, civil, small claims, family law, probate, or juvenile.
2. Open Online Case Lookup (re:SearchCA) for the court's public case information.
3. Search by party name or case number and note the case number from the results.
4. Review the case details for status, parties, and scheduled dates.
5. Contact the clerk at (805) 706-3600 to request documents that are not online.

San Luis Obispo County Superior Court traffic citations can be paid or handled through the court's listed options, which depend on the type of ticket.

1. Online: pay at sanluisobispocountycasuperiorcourt.municipalonlinepayments.com. The court lists a 2.95% convenience fee and a $3.50 online payments fee per transaction.
2. Mail: send a check or money order to the Grover Beach Branch, 214 South 16th Street, Grover Beach, CA 93433, or place it in the drop box at that address. The court recommends mailing payment if the online portal has trouble.
3. In person: pay at the Grover Beach Branch Clerk's Office payment window, 214 South 16th Street, Grover Beach (Monday to Thursday, 8:30 a.m. to 12:00 p.m.); the Paso Robles Branch, 901 Park Street, Paso Robles (Wednesday and Friday, 8:30 a.m. to 12:00 p.m.); or the San Luis Obispo courthouse, 1050 Monterey Street, Room 220 (Monday to Thursday, 8:30 a.m. to 12:00 p.m.). Cash, credit and debit cards, checks and money orders are accepted.
4. Fine reduction for financial need: submit an optional request through MyCitations.
5. Partial payments: the court accepts partial payments only for defendants set up on a recurring monthly payment schedule by the clerk's office.

Phone hours are listed as Monday to Friday, 8:30 a.m. to 12:00 p.m., but the court page does not say that payments can be taken by phone. The court page does not describe a separate ability-to-pay application beyond MyCitations.

Parking tickets are handled by the agency that issued them, not by the Superior Court Traffic Division.