Scott County Circuit Court District 8
Scott County sits in Mississippi Circuit Court District 8. The district covers four counties: Leake, Neshoba, Newton, and Scott. Circuit Court is the primary jury-trial court for the area. It handles felony criminal cases. It hears general civil matters that no other court is given by law. It also takes appeals from County, Justice, and Municipal courts. The district attorney who prosecutes felony cases across these counties is Steven Kilgore, reached at 601-656-1991. Most Circuit Court business for Scott County runs through the courthouse in Forest, the county seat.
Mississippi splits its trial courts by subject. Circuit Court covers what lawyers call the law side. Chancery Court covers equity, which means divorce, custody, estates, land titles, and similar matters. That split is old and still shapes where a case goes. A felony or a car-wreck lawsuit lands in Circuit Court. A will contest or a divorce lands in Chancery Court. Scott County uses both channels, and each one keeps its own files and its own clerk.
Courts That Serve Scott County
Four trial courts serve Scott County residents day to day. Each one has its own clerk, address, phone line, and case list. Circuit Court is the top trial court, but most people meet Justice Court first through a ticket or an initial appearance. The table below lists current contact details and the judges or clerk for each bench.
| Court | Address | Phone | Judges / Clerk |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2nd Chancery Court District | PO Box 434, Forest, MS 39074 | 601-469-2447 | Chancellor Hon. Robert M. Logan Jr. |
| Circuit Court District 8 | Scott County Courthouse, 100 E 1st St, Forest, MS 39074 | 601-469-3601 | Hon. Caleb May; Hon. Christopher M. Posey |
| Justice Court | PO Box 371, Forest, MS 39074 | 601-469-4555 | Clerk Betty Odom; Post 1 Hon. Adam McCurdy; Post 2 Hon. Bill Freeman |
| Youth Court | 100 E 1st St, Forest, MS 39074 | 601-469-1922 | Hon. Roy Noble Lee Jr. |
Each court holds a clear lane. Chancery Court handles divorce, custody, property division, adoptions, estates, guardianships, and land disputes. Circuit Court handles felony crime, general civil suits, and appeals. Justice Court handles traffic tickets, DUI, county ordinances, small civil suits, and felony initial appearances. Youth Court handles delinquency, children in need of supervision, and abuse or neglect, and those files stay confidential. The Circuit Court fax line is 601-469-5188 if a filing must be sent that way.
Scott County Circuit Court Judges
Two judges sit on the Scott County Circuit Court bench: Hon. Caleb May and Hon. Christopher M. Posey. Judge Posey was appointed in 2025 after longtime judge Mark Duncan retired. Before he took the bench, Posey served for years as an assistant district attorney for District 8 and tried felony cases across all four counties in the circuit. He took his oath of office during 2025.
Court rosters change. A judge can retire, win election, or move to another seat. Always confirm the current bench before you rely on a name in a filing. The Circuit Clerk in Forest can verify who hears a given case at 601-469-3601. The Mississippi Judiciary publishes appellate and trial-court updates at courts.ms.gov, which is the official source for judge changes and oath dates.
What the Scott County Circuit Court Handles
Circuit Court holds original jurisdiction over civil and criminal matters that no other court owns by statute. Most of its cases reach a jury. On the criminal side, felonies move here for indictment, plea, trial, and sentencing. On the civil side, larger money disputes and many personal-injury claims are filed here. The Circuit Clerk receives and files lawsuits, indictments, motions, summonses, and subpoenas, then keeps a record of judgments and executions.
Felony cases usually begin lower in the system. A person is arrested, then sees a Justice Court judge for an initial appearance and the filing of the affidavit. From there the case can move to the grand jury and into Circuit Court for prosecution. So an arrest-to-charge record may open in Justice Court even when the felony indictment and final outcome belong to Circuit Court. The full case file, with charges, pleas, and sentence, lives in the Scott County court records kept by the Circuit Clerk.
The civil docket here covers many matter types. Common ones include:
- Personal-injury and accident claims
- Contract and business disputes above the lower-court limits
- Property damage and large debt actions
- Appeals from County, Justice, and Municipal courts
- Post-conviction and certain civil-rights filings
Circuit Court vs Justice Court vs Municipal Court
The three trial courts a Scott County resident meets most often are Circuit, Justice, and Municipal. They differ in case type, level, and where a ruling can be appealed. Justice Court and Municipal Court are courts of limited jurisdiction. Circuit Court is the general trial court that also sits above them on appeal. The table sets the three side by side.
| Circuit Court | Justice Court | Municipal Court | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Case Types | Felonies, general civil suits, appeals | Traffic, DUI, county ordinances, small civil suits, felony first appearances | City ordinance and misdemeanor cases inside city limits |
| Court Level | General trial court of record | Limited county court | Limited city court |
| Where Filed | Circuit Clerk, Forest | Justice Court Clerk, Forest | The city that runs the court |
| Appeals Go To | Court of Appeals / Supreme Court | Circuit Court | Circuit Court |
City-issued tickets are a common point of confusion. A ticket written inside a town's limits may belong to that city's Municipal Court rather than Scott County Justice Court. Check the issuing agency on the citation. State Highway Patrol and Sheriff's Department tickets route to Justice Court. A municipal officer's ticket routes to the city bench.
How a Case Moves Through the Scott County System
A case rarely starts and ends in one court. Lower courts handle the first steps, and Circuit Court sits above them. From Circuit Court, a losing party can ask the state appellate courts to review the result. The flow below shows the usual path for a case that climbs the ladder.
Appeal path: Justice or Municipal Court › Scott County Circuit Court › Mississippi Court of Appeals › Mississippi Supreme Court
The criminal and civil tracks move through their own stages before any appeal. A felony begins with arrest and a Justice Court first appearance, then heads to the grand jury and Circuit Court. A civil suit begins with a complaint filed with the Circuit Clerk.
Criminal flow: Arrest › First Appearance › Grand Jury / Indictment › Arraignment › Pretrial › Trial › Sentencing › Appeal
Civil flow: Complaint Filed › Answer › Discovery › Motions › Trial › Judgment › Appeal
Note: Justice Court judges hold jail sessions three times each week so that each arrested person gets an initial appearance within three days.
Scott County Circuit Court and Chancery Court
Mississippi separates law from equity, and that is why Scott County runs two main trial channels. Circuit Court is the law side. It handles felonies, general civil suits, and appeals from the lower courts. Chancery Court is the equity side. It handles divorce, child custody, property division, adoptions, alimony, estates, guardianships, conservatorships, and land-title matters. The two courts do not overlap much, so the first job in any search is to name the right channel.
The clerks follow the same split. The Circuit Clerk keeps Circuit Court civil and criminal files, marriage licenses, and judgments, and you can reach that office through the Scott County Circuit Clerk page. The Chancery Clerk keeps land records, board minutes, and Chancery Court files for divorce, estates, and guardianships. Property disputes valued above $50,000, minor settlements, and mental-health commitments also fall under Chancery Court. Sending a request to the wrong clerk only adds delay.
Federal Court Is Separate from Scott County Courts
Federal cases do not run through the Scott County Circuit Court at all. Scott County falls inside the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Mississippi. You can review that court and its general information on the Southern District of Mississippi site.
That federal court hears federal crimes, civil-rights cases, federal-question lawsuits, and qualifying diversity cases. None of those belong to the state Circuit, Chancery, or Justice courts in Forest.
The Southern District is split into divisions, and each division covers a set of counties. The court's divisional county listing places Scott County in the Northern Division at Jackson.
So a federal matter tied to Scott County is handled in Jackson, not Forest. The division assignment decides where filings and hearings take place.
The Jackson federal courthouse is the Thad Cochran United States Courthouse at 501 E. Court Street, Suite 2.500, Jackson, MS 39201, and the clerk can be reached at 601-608-4000. The court's Jackson location page lists the address and clerk contact.
Bankruptcy filings tied to the county usually go to the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District rather than the county courthouse, so check the federal track first for those matters.
Federal Case Search for Scott County
Federal records are not in the Circuit Clerk's files. They live in PACER, the national federal case system. You can register and search on the official PACER site, which charges $0.10 per page for most viewing.
A single document is capped at $3.00 for many case reports. If a user runs up $30 or less in a quarter, those fees are waived for the period. PACER support answers at 800-676-6856.
To search across courts, use the PACER Case Locator. The national Case Locator looks up federal cases by party name across districts when you do not know where a case was filed.
For state matters, the docket and full case file stay with the Circuit Clerk in Forest, and the Mississippi Electronic Courts system handles remote viewing on a subscription basis. When the online tools fall short, a call to the clerk at 601-469-3601 remains the local fallback.