Reviewed and updated October 9, 2026 by the SearchSystems.net editorial team. The arrest counts are the ones each agency reported to the FBI, as the FBI held them on October 8, 2026. Every office link was opened and checked against the office's own site between September 24, 2026 and September 26, 2026.
Billings, Montana, in Yellowstone County, has about 121,000 residents (2024 Census Bureau estimate). Its court cases are filed in the Yellowstone County District Court and the Justice Court, and the file of each case, kept by the Clerk of District Court, is the public record of it. This guide says which court hears what, where to look a case up and who keeps the files.
This guide covers the courts, the records page, criminal cases, kinds of files and common questions.
Related guides: Billings public records, Yellowstone County court records, Billings arrest records, Billings warrants, Billings inmate search, Billings criminal records, Montana arrest records and Montana inmate search.
The Courts That Hear Cases from Billings
In Billings, the Yellowstone County District Court hears felonies, civil cases, divorces, probate and juvenile matters.
Below it, the Justice Court takes misdemeanors, traffic cases and small claims.
A city with a city and municipal court of its own tries the tickets written under its ordinances.
Divorces go to the District Court, and the file stays with the Clerk of District Court.
The Clerk of District Court keeps the files, and a copy of anything in a file comes from that office, under the court's own rules rather than the Montana Public Records Act.
Looking Up a Case from Billings
The court records page SearchSystems verified for the county is at yellowstonecountymt.gov/clerk_court/copies.asp (page title: Yellowstone County, Montana), which answered when SearchSystems opened it on September 24, 2026.
Montana has no single public index of every trial court case; each court's records are looked up through that court.
The Montana court page SearchSystems verified is at courts.mt.gov.
What Reaches the Court from Billings
Together, the three agencies in Yellowstone County with all twelve months of 2025 on file reported 4,825 arrests to the FBI that year; the County Attorney decides which of those arrests become cases in the Yellowstone County District Court or the Justice Court.
The County Attorney's page SearchSystems verified is at yellowstonecountymt.gov/Coattorney (page title: Yellowstone County, Montana), phone 406-256-2832, which answered when SearchSystems opened it on September 24, 2026.
The Kinds of Court Files
The court file is one record with several readers: a criminal case from the arrest to the sentence, a divorce from the petition to the judgment, a traffic ticket from the citation to the conviction the court reports to the Montana Motor Vehicle Division, and an eviction or a lien on land.
The other Billings guides take the kinds of file one at a time: Billings criminal records, Billings divorce records, Billings traffic tickets, Billings DUI and Billings property records.
Frequently Asked Questions
How do I look up a court case in Billings?
The court records page SearchSystems verified for the county is at yellowstonecountymt.gov.
Which court hears felonies in Billings?
The Yellowstone County District Court, which hears felonies, civil cases, divorces, probate and juvenile matters. The Justice Court takes misdemeanors, traffic cases and small claims.
Who keeps the court records in Billings?
The Clerk of District Court. Copies come from that office under the court's own rules.
Is there a statewide court case search in Montana?
No. Each court's records are looked up through that court.
Is this the official Billings website?
No. SearchSystems.net is an independent public records guide, online since 1997. It links to the official city, county, court and state offices described above and does not hold records, charge for them or take requests.