Bates County Circuit Clerk
Shelli White is the Bates County Circuit Clerk. The Circuit Clerk's office is located with the Bates County Circuit Court on the 2nd floor of the courthouse at 1 N Delaware St, Butler, MO 64730. The county lists the Circuit Court phone as 660-386-7776 option 2 and the Traffic Court phone as 660-679-3188. The Court Information page also lists 660-679-5171 for court contact.
The county describes the Circuit Clerk's responsibilities as child support, all circuit court records, civil, criminal, domestic, jury trials, passports, and jury selection. In practical terms, that means public court-record users should treat the Circuit Clerk as the local office for civil files, criminal cases, divorce cases, probate cases, judgments, traffic court questions assigned to the Circuit Court, certified court copies, and courthouse record access when Case.net is not enough.
Bates County Circuit Clerk
1 N Delaware St, 2nd Floor
Butler, MO 64730
660-386-7776 option 2
Traffic Court: 660-679-3188
The Bates County Circuit Court page is the official county source for the Circuit Clerk, court phones, responsibilities, and filing fees. That county court source should be used before calling a similarly named non-court office.
Court Records and Copies
Missouri Case.net is the first online search path for public Bates County Circuit Court records. The Circuit Clerk maintains local court files, but Bates County does not publish a separate county-built case search database. Public users can search Case.net for civil, criminal, domestic, probate, traffic, and public docket information, then contact the Circuit Clerk for copy and certification questions.
Some records are not available as public online documents. Older files, sealed matters, expunged cases, juvenile records, adoption material, confidential financial details, protected identifiers, and non-digitized documents may require courthouse contact or may not be available to the general public. The clerk can explain filing and copy procedures, but the office cannot act as a private title researcher, legal adviser, prosecutor, or defense counsel.
- Search Case.net by case number when a summons, citation, probate notice, judgment, or decree provides one.
- Use litigant name search when the case number is unknown, then narrow to Bates County or the 27th Judicial Circuit.
- Open the matching case and review the docket, parties, charges, hearings, judgments, or public documents.
- Call the Circuit Clerk for copies that are not available online or when a certified copy is required.
- Provide the case number, party names, document name, date range, and whether the copy must be certified.
| Request Field | Why It Matters |
|---|---|
| Case number | Lets the clerk locate the exact file faster than a name-only request. |
| Party name | Helps confirm the right case when numbers or dates are uncertain. |
| Record type | Identifies whether the request is civil, criminal, domestic, probate, traffic, or judgment related. |
| Document needed | Examples include judgment, decree, letters, order, docket sheet, or payment record. |
| Certification need | Certified copies require clerk authentication and may need different handling than plain copies. |
Bates Circuit Filing Fees
The Circuit Court page publishes local filing fees for several case categories. These are filing fees, not complete copy or certification schedules. Some listed fees include an asterisk in the county table, so filers should confirm the final total before submitting a case. Service, publication, certified copies, and other case-specific charges may be separate.
| Filing or Case Type | Published Fee |
|---|---|
| Small Claims up to $5,000 | $20.50* |
| Associate Civil up to $25,000 | $48.50* |
| Trial De Novo Chapter 517 | $48.50* |
| Small Claim Appeals | $57.00* |
| Dissolution, modifications, legal separations, paternity | $102.50* |
| Circuit Civil over $40,000 | $98.50* |
| Circuit Appeal | $70.00 |
| Letters Testamentary / Administration | $133.50* |
For more estate-specific filing amounts, use the Bates County probate records page or confirm directly with the Circuit Clerk.
Clerk, County Clerk, Recorder
Missouri does not use a Texas-style district clerk in Bates County. The court-records clerk is the Circuit Clerk. The County Clerk is a different administrative office led by Jami Page at 103 W Dakota, Room 1, Butler, MO 64730. The County Clerk handles elections, voter registration, accounts payable, budget officer duties, financial statements, personnel and benefits, auction and liquor licenses, and payroll.
The Recorder of Deeds is also separate. Danyelle Baker, the Bates County Recorder of Deeds, is in Room 3 of the Bates County Administration Building. The Recorder handles land transactions, plats, military discharges, tax liens, marriage license applications, and permanent marriage records. Bates County marriage records start in 1860, and land records start in 1840. Recorder records are searched through iCounty after registration, not through the Circuit Clerk.
| Office | Use This Office For | Do Not Use It For |
|---|---|---|
| Circuit Clerk | Circuit civil, criminal, domestic, probate, traffic, jury, passports, and court records. | Marriage license issuance or county election records. |
| County Clerk | Elections, voter registration, payroll, budget, accounts payable, and licenses listed by the county. | Circuit Court certified copies or divorce decrees. |
| Recorder of Deeds | Marriage licenses, recorded marriage records, land records, plats, discharges, and liens. | Divorce case files or criminal court dockets. |
The Bates County Clerk page documents the separate County Clerk office and its non-court responsibilities.
The County Clerk page helps show why election, budget, and payroll work should not be routed to the Circuit Clerk's court-record counter.
Traffic, Jury, and Passports
The county lists traffic court separately from the main Circuit Court phone line. Traffic questions tied to a Bates County Circuit Court or Associate Circuit Court case should begin with the traffic court number or Case.net. Butler municipal citations use Butler Municipal Court's own phone, written request process, payment rules, fine schedule, and warrant information. The issuing court on the citation controls the next step.
Jury trials, jury selection, and passports are also listed by Bates County as Circuit Clerk responsibilities. Jury questions should go to the court office listed on the summons, because reporting location, term, panel status, and excusal procedures are time-sensitive. Passport applicants should call before arriving to confirm current acceptance hours, forms, photo rules, payment methods, and whether an appointment is needed.
Office routing: Traffic court, jury service, passports, and certified court copies all point to the Circuit Clerk, but marriage licenses point to the Recorder.
Prosecutor and Defender Contacts
The Circuit Clerk keeps the court record, but the clerk is not the prosecutor. Bates County uses the title Prosecuting Attorney, not District Attorney. The official county page lists Hugh C. Jenkins as Prosecuting Attorney, with the office on the 1st floor at 1 N Delaware, Butler, MO 64730. The prosecutor is responsible for felony and misdemeanor prosecution, charge decisions, plea negotiations, and victim or witness communication.
Defense services are separate as well. Missouri State Public Defender is a statewide agency, and Bates County is served through the District 17 Harrisonville office grouping with Bates, Cass, Henry, and Johnson counties. People who need appointed counsel should use the public defender application process and the office serving the county where the case is pending.
The Bates County Prosecuting Attorney page is the local source for prosecutor office location, contact, and felony or misdemeanor prosecution responsibility.
The prosecutor source belongs with charge and prosecution questions, while the Circuit Clerk source belongs with filed court records and certified copies.
The Missouri prosecutors directory is a statewide source that confirms Bates County prosecutor contact information.
That source reinforces the distinction between the prosecutor's case role and the Circuit Clerk's record-custody role.
Note: Court staff can explain clerk procedures, but they cannot give legal advice or tell a party how to plead.