Hoke County Clerk of Superior Court
North Carolina has a unified state court system. Hoke County does not split trial-court case files between a district clerk and county clerk. The elected Clerk of Superior Court maintains local court records for District Court and Superior Court. Hoke County identifies Evelyn McLeod as Clerk of Superior Court. The local office is at 304 N Main Street, Raeford, NC 28376, phone (910) 878-4100, fax (910) 878-4101, and is open Monday through Friday, 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m., excluding state holidays.
The Clerk of Superior Court is not only a record keeper. In North Carolina, the clerk also serves as judge of probate for estates, guardianships, and related special proceedings. The office receives filings, maintains indexes and case files, provides public terminal access, handles copies and certifications, collects eligible court costs, and answers local file-availability questions. It does not give legal advice, prepare divorce pleadings, change court dates as a favor, set bond, or decide punishment.
Hoke County Clerk of Superior Court
Clerk: Evelyn McLeod
304 N Main Street
Raeford, NC 28376
(910) 878-4100
Fax: (910) 878-4101
Monday-Friday, 8:30 a.m.-5 p.m.
The CourtListener project is a free legal-research source that may supplement, but does not replace, Hoke County Clerk records.
Opinion and docket databases can help with research, while the Hoke clerk remains the source for local certified court files.
Hoke County Clerk Record Duties
The clerk is the universal fallback for Hoke County court records. eCourts Portal covers public case information and some documents, but paper files, certified copies, older matters, criminal terminal access, and records not online still route through the clerk. The Judicial Branch says criminal case information can be accessed at a public self-service terminal at a clerk's office in any county. Paper files are inspected at the clerk's office in the county where the case is located.
- Maintain District Court and Superior Court case records, indexes, and paper files.
- Provide copies and certified copies when the record is public or release is authorized.
- Process civil, criminal, traffic, special proceeding, estate, and divorce filings.
- Serve as probate judge for estates, guardianships, foreclosures, and related clerk proceedings.
- Collect court costs and eligible payments using the payment methods allowed by Hoke County rules.
- Direct users to online court services such as eCourts Portal, File & Serve, Guide & File, and online payments.
Hoke County Clerk Access Channels
Hoke County adopted eCourts in October 2024, so many public searches now start online. The main online channel is the North Carolina eCourts Portal, with Smart Search for public case summaries, Search Hearings for court dates, Make Payments for eligible citations and court costs, and NC Judgment Search for judgment indexes. Registration is optional for saved cases. Elevated access is limited by statute and requires a verified basis.
| Channel | Use It For | Hoke County Notes |
|---|---|---|
| eCourts Portal | Public case information, hearings, payments, judgment indexes | Filter by Hoke County when searching statewide data. |
| In person | Paper files, certified copies, public terminal searches | Visit the Clerk of Superior Court at 304 N Main Street. |
| Phone | File availability, copy process, local court questions | Call (910) 878-4100. |
| Mail payments | Eligible traffic or court-cost payments | Use PO Drawer 1569, Raeford, NC 28376, with certified check or money order. |
| Public-record request | Judicial Branch administrative records or routed requests | Court case files usually remain a clerk or portal path. |
Note: The clerk is the right office for divorce judgments, while marriage licenses and recorded marriage certificates are Register of Deeds records.
Request Hoke County Certified Copies
Certified copies are used when a plain printout is not enough. Hoke County users may need certified court copies for appeals, benefits, name restoration, business records, title work, immigration packets, or proof of judgment. Start by identifying the case number if possible. If no case number is known, provide party names, case type, filing year, and the document needed. Older files may take more time because staff may need to locate a paper file.
- Search eCourts Portal or use a known case number to identify the exact Hoke County case and document.
- Call or visit the Hoke County Clerk of Superior Court to confirm the file is public, available, and eligible for certification.
- Ask for the current copy and certification fees from the latest Judicial Branch miscellaneous fee schedule.
- Pay using the channel allowed for the transaction. Hoke counter payments use cash or certified funds only.
- Pick up the certified copy or follow the clerk's mail instructions if mail service is available for the request.
Hoke County Clerk Search Fields
The research file captured the eCourts Smart Search fields that matter for clerk-related public records. These fields also tell a requester what to gather before calling or visiting the clerk. A clear case number or full party name reduces the risk of pulling the wrong file.
| Field Label | Type | Required | Options or Format Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Enter a Record Number or Name in Last, First Middle Suffix Format | Text | Yes for basic Smart Search | Case number or name. Wildcard case number requires at least four characters. |
| Enter a Last Name | Text | Conditional | Used in name search. |
| Enter a First Name | Text | Conditional | Used in name search. |
| Name Suffix | Dropdown | Optional | Portal prompts users to select a valid suffix when needed. |
| Filter by Location | Multi-select dropdown/list | Optional but recommended | Choose Hoke County rather than All Locations when possible. |
| Filter by Search Type | Dropdown | Optional | Select Business Name for business party searches. |
| Date of Birth From / To | Date | Optional | Advanced party criteria. |
| Case Type, Case Status, File Date Start, File Date End | Fields/dropdowns/date | Optional | Advanced case criteria. |
Hoke County Clerk Fees
The current North Carolina court costs schedules control filing fees, copies, certifications, estates, special proceedings, and criminal or infraction costs. The research does not provide a single fixed amount for each copy service, so the table identifies the controlling source rather than inventing numbers. Payment rules are more concrete: the Hoke clerk page says no debit cards, credit cards, or personal checks at the counter. Cash or certified funds are accepted. Mail payments use money order or certified check, no cash and no personal checks, payable to Hoke County Clerk of Superior Court.
| Item | Amount or Rule |
|---|---|
| Plain court copies | Current miscellaneous fees schedule controls. |
| Certified court copies | Current copy and certification fee schedule controls. |
| Civil filings | Current Civil Court Costs PDF controls. |
| Criminal and infraction costs | Current Criminal Court Costs PDF controls. |
| Estate and probate filings | Current Estates Court Costs PDF controls. |
| Hoke counter payment | Cash or certified funds only. |
| Hoke mail payment | Money order or certified check payable to Hoke County Clerk of Superior Court. |
Clerk Forms and Limits
The Hoke clerk FAQ says the office does not issue passports, does not have forms to file for divorce, and does not have forms to file a temporary custody action. That local note should not be read to mean statewide court resources do not exist. The North Carolina Judicial Branch publishes forms, a divorce packet, and Guide & File tools for some case types. The clerk can accept filings that comply with court rules, but the clerk cannot choose a form, draft pleadings, or advise a person what to file.
Divorce judgments are obtained from the clerk in the county where the divorce was granted. Estate records and probate orders are also clerk records because the Clerk of Superior Court acts as probate judge. For marriage licenses or recorded marriage certificates, use the Register of Deeds instead of the court clerk. For sheriff incident reports, use the sheriff's report request path rather than the clerk's court-copy counter.
Online and Federal Record Paths
Some records that involve Hoke County people or events are not Hoke County clerk records. Most of Hoke County is in the Middle District of North Carolina for federal court, while portions tied to Fort Bragg and Camp Mackall are assigned differently under federal law. Federal civil, criminal, bankruptcy, or appellate records are not certified by the Hoke County Clerk of Superior Court.
The Middle District counties-served page identifies Hoke County's federal district assignment outside the Fort Bragg and Camp Mackall exception.
That federal district source helps distinguish Hoke County state clerk records from federal court records.
The NCDMV crash report page is a separate record path and not a Hoke County Clerk of Superior Court service.
Crash reports may relate to traffic cases, but the court file and the crash report come from different custodians.
The NC State Highway Patrol collision report search is another non-clerk source for collision reports.
When a collision leads to a citation, use the clerk or eCourts for the court case and the highway patrol system for the crash report.