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 on September 24, 2026.
Yellowstone County, Montana, has about 172,000 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, cities and common questions.
Related guides: Yellowstone County public records, Yellowstone County arrest records, Yellowstone County warrants, Yellowstone County inmate search, Yellowstone County criminal records, Montana arrest records and Montana inmate search.
The Courts That Hear Cases from Yellowstone County
Court cases from Yellowstone County are filed in 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.
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 Yellowstone County
For Yellowstone County, SearchSystems opened and checked the court records page for the county 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 Yellowstone County
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
Criminal cases, divorces, traffic tickets and evictions all end up as files of these courts, and the file is what the public sees of each.
The other Yellowstone County guides take the kinds of file one at a time: Yellowstone County criminal records, Yellowstone County divorce records, Yellowstone County traffic tickets, Yellowstone County DUI and Yellowstone County property records.
Cities in Yellowstone County
Wherever in the county a case arises, it is filed in the Yellowstone County District Court or the Justice Court; tickets under a city's own ordinances go to its city and municipal court where it has one.
SearchSystems has a guide to the offices of these cities in Yellowstone County, with the 2024 Census Bureau population; a city with its own court records guide opens there:
- Billings (121,483)
Frequently Asked Questions
How do I look up a court case in Yellowstone County?
The court records page SearchSystems verified for the county is at yellowstonecountymt.gov.
Which court hears felonies in Yellowstone County?
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 Yellowstone County?
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 Yellowstone County website?
No. SearchSystems.net is an independent public records guide, online since 1997. It links to the official county, court and state offices described above and does not hold records, charge for them or take requests.