Lafourche Parish Court Dockets Defined
A docket is the court's chronological list of case activity. It can show a filing date, hearing date, event type, motion, minute entry, judgment, continuance, arraignment, plea, sentence, or other step in the case. In Lafourche Parish, the docket path depends on whether the matter is in the 17th Judicial District Court, a lower local court, a Louisiana appellate court, or a federal court.
The 17th Judicial District Court handles original civil, criminal, and juvenile matters for Lafourche Parish. It also hears appeals from Thibodaux City Court, Lockport Mayor's Court, Golden Meadow Mayor's or Municipal Court, and justice of the peace courts. That appellate role matters because a local traffic citation, eviction, small civil case, ordinance case, or bench-warrant issue may begin outside the District Court docket.
| Docket source | Best for | Limits |
|---|---|---|
| Clerk Connect Court Date Finder | Upcoming civil and criminal court dates | Not a full document repository |
| Clerk civil or criminal inquiry | Case events, filings, parties, and docket activity | Viewing and printing may depend on account access |
| 17th JDC docket phone lines | Questions about civil or criminal court settings | Best used after checking the official online date tool |
| Lower local courts | Municipal, mayor's court, JP, and city-court matters | May not appear in District Court search unless appealed or related |
Find Lafourche Parish Court Dockets
The most direct channel for an upcoming setting is the Clerk Connect Court Date Finder. The Clerk homepage and the 17th Judicial District Court both promote that tool for civil and criminal court dates. If the issue is a full case history rather than a future appearance, use the civil or criminal inquiry route from the Clerk records-search page.
The official Louisiana.gov Lafourche Parish page is one of the manifest sources tied to local record access.
State and parish resource pages help confirm the local office path, but docket details still come from Clerk Connect, the 17th JDC, or the court that issued the setting.
- Use Court Date Finder first for an upcoming civil or criminal court event in Lafourche Parish.
- If the event is not listed, search the civil or criminal inquiry portal by case information or party name when available.
- For civil docket questions, call 985-447-5550, the number listed by the court contact materials.
- For criminal docket questions, call 985-447-5512, especially when a hearing is tied to arraignment, plea, trial, or sentencing.
- If the case began in a lower local court, contact that court before assuming the District Court docket is incomplete.
Lafourche Parish Docket Entries
The research did not capture a live sample docket from Clerk Connect, but the official inventory lists the fields and event types that a Lafourche Parish court-record user may encounter. A docket entry is usually a short event marker. It is not always the full motion, order, pleading, or exhibit. When a docket line matters for legal use, request the underlying document or a certified copy from the Clerk.
| Field | What It Shows |
|---|---|
| Case or docket number | The number used by the Clerk or court to track the case and docket activity. |
| Entry or filing date | The date a pleading, motion, hearing, order, judgment, or minute entry was recorded. |
| Party or defendant | The plaintiff, defendant, petitioner, respondent, criminal defendant, or other named party. |
| Event type | Examples include petition, answer, exception, rule to show cause, contempt, motion, order, judgment, continuance, arraignment, plea, or sentence. |
| Court or division | The assigned 17th JDC division or the lower court where the event belongs. |
| Result or disposition | A current or final outcome, such as dismissed, granted, denied, guilty plea, sentence, or judgment. |
Note: A docket line can confirm activity, but certified copies come from the Clerk or the issuing court.
Lafourche Parish Courts With Dockets
The 17th Judicial District Court has five elected divisions. The court's official table places divisions A, B, and E at the Old Courthouse, 201 Green Street, Thibodaux, LA 70301, and divisions C and D at the Courthouse Annex, 303 West Third Street, Thibodaux, LA 70301. Civil, criminal, juvenile, domestic, probate, and lower-court appeal docket questions can depend on the division, case type, and building shown on the setting.
- 17th JDC division A, Judge Robichaux, Old Courthouse.
- 17th JDC division B, Judge Richard, Old Courthouse.
- 17th JDC division C, Judge Abel, Courthouse Annex.
- 17th JDC division D, Judge Boudreaux, Courthouse Annex.
- 17th JDC division E, Judge George, Old Courthouse.
Local lower courts are part of the docket search chain. Golden Meadow Municipal Court publishes its own court rules and schedule details. Thibodaux City Court, Lockport Mayor's Court, and justice of the peace courts can hold original local matters that do not start as 17th JDC dockets. The Louisiana Attorney General's Justice of the Peace and Constable directory is the official directory source for JP contacts.
Dockets vs Full Court Records
A docket helps track the case timeline. The full case record may include petitions, motions, pleadings, exhibits, orders, judgments, minute entries, sentencing documents, and certified copies. For a reader who needs proof of outcome, the docket may be enough to find the right case, but a certified judgment or certified criminal disposition usually requires a Clerk copy request.
| Point | Docket | Full case record |
|---|---|---|
| Format | Chronological list of events | Documents, orders, pleadings, and docket entries |
| Use | Track dates and case progress | Review filings, judgments, evidence, or final outcomes |
| Access | Court Date Finder, Clerk inquiry, docket offices | Clerk inquiry, Copy Department, public research computers, or court order if restricted |
| Limits | May omit document text or sealed activity | May require fees, certification, redaction, or restricted access review |
Appellate and Federal Dockets
Lafourche Parish District Court appeals route to Louisiana's intermediate appellate courts, and Lafourche Parish is in the First Circuit Court of Appeal. The manifest assigns the Louisiana First Circuit Court of Appeal as an appellate docket source.
Appeal dockets are separate from trial-court dockets, so a notice of appeal or writ can move the next docket check to the First Circuit.
Federal cases are separate. The U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Louisiana and U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit are not Lafourche Parish courts, but they matter when a party has a federal civil, criminal, bankruptcy-related, or appellate case. Federal docket lookup generally uses PACER, not Clerk Connect.
The federal district court image from the Eastern District of Louisiana is included for docket users who need to separate local and federal case systems.
Federal trial-court dockets can involve parties from Lafourche Parish, but the filings are held by the federal clerk rather than the parish Clerk of Court.
PACER is the federal search path shown by another manifest image.
PACER is the federal account-based record system, while Lafourche Parish court dockets remain tied to Clerk Connect and local court offices.
The manifest also assigns the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals.
That appellate layer applies only after a federal trial-court judgment or appealable order enters the federal appeal system.
Read Lafourche Parish Dockets
Docket terms should be read in context. A motion is a request asking a judge to act. A minute entry is a short record of what happened in court. A rule to show cause orders a party to appear and explain why relief should not be granted. A disposition is the current or final outcome of a case or charge. A continuance means a setting was moved, not that the case ended.
If a Lafourche Parish docket is missing, first confirm the court level. Then check whether the case is sealed, juvenile, adoption-related, expunged, or otherwise restricted. Next, call the civil or criminal docket number listed by the 17th JDC. For lower-court matters, contact the city, mayor's, municipal, or justice court that issued the citation or notice. For complete documents or certified copies, use the Clerk Copy Department rather than relying on a docket screenshot.