Contra Costa County Public Records Sets
The county record system is broad, but it is not one database. It includes recorded land instruments, court files, parcel and map records, custody and registry lookups, state business and license records, and certificate-level vital records. The practical question is always the same: which custodian holds the record, is there an index, and is inspection, an ordinary copy, or a certified copy needed?
| Record Set | Custodian | Online Index | Coverage | Access |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Recorded deeds, liens, maps, title documents | Contra Costa County Clerk-Recorder | RecorderWorks | Name-linked from 1986-present; older book/page paths | Public index; images/orders use cart workflow |
| Civil, small claims, probate, criminal, family records | Superior Court of California, County of Contra Costa | Court Public Portal plus Court Records Unit | Civil, small claims, probate online; criminal documents/orders offline | Portal, counter, or mail request |
| Property assessment, GIS, maps, tax details | Assessor, GIS/DCD, Public Works, Treasurer-Tax Collector | ParcelQuest Lite, CCMAP, Laserfiche, tax portal | Current parcel data; CCMAP monthly; ePermits from 1/1/1980-current | Online plus counter/request products |
| Birth, death, marriage, divorce certificates | Contra Costa Clerk-Recorder; CDPH; Superior Court for divorce files | No open county birth/death index located | County and statewide certificate systems | Authorized or informational copies |
| In-custody and selected public-safety lookups | Contra Costa Sheriff; California DOJ; CDCR | In-Custody Locator, In-Custody Reports, Megan's Law, CIRIS | Current custody or current registry systems | Free public lookup with statutory limits |
| Business entities, UCC, professional licenses | California Secretary of State; Department of Consumer Affairs | bizfile Online, UCC search, DCA License Search, BreEZe | State filing and license systems | Public searches; copies or certified products may carry separate fees |
Some categories are closed, redacted, or available only through a formal process: sealed cases, juvenile and adoption files, protected voter records, confidential marriage records, certain vital records, DMV-linked data, Safe at Home addresses, and sensitive identifiers. A public index entry is not proof that the record belongs to a particular person; names repeat in a large county.
RecorderWorks Public Records Index
The Clerk-Recorder's RecorderWorks Official Records Index is the strongest county index for names in deeds, liens, easements, court decrees, maps, and other recorded instruments. The county also maintains a recorder search disclaimer page that routes users into RecorderWorks.
RecorderWorks separates an index search from the image or copy order. Its local strength is the linked-name path: after opening a document number, click a name inside the document page to list other documents tied to that name from 1986-present. Older records may require book/page, old-book, fiche, or index-book navigation.
| RecorderWorks Field | How It Works | Contra Costa Note |
|---|---|---|
| All / Grantor / Grantee | Filter the name search by party role or search all indexed parties. | Useful when a person may appear as buyer, seller, lien party, or release party. |
| Person's last name, first name / business name | Enter last-first, a partial name such as smith a, or a business name. | High result counts need narrowing. |
| Allow Partial Match | Optional checkbox for partial-name searching. | Helpful for spelling variations, but it increases false matches. |
| Date from / Date to | Date range fields use MM/DD/YYYY. | Recording date can separate people with similar names. |
| Document number | Search by one or more document numbers. | Best when a deed, lien, or court paper cites the exact instrument number. |
| Book and Page | Book/page path applies to 1986-1993 records. | Maps still use book/page even after the document-number shift. |
| Old Book | Older categories and fiche/index-book steps. | Includes land claims, patents, water rights, homesteads, brands, and tax sales. |
| Add to Shopping Cart | Order or purchase a selected record. | The index can be free to search even when a copy order has a cost. |
Definition box. An index points to a record. An image is the scanned document. A certified copy is official proof from the custodian. A custodian holds the record. An exemption is a legal reason to withhold or redact it.
Contra Costa Public Records Offices
Martinez is the records hub for Contra Costa County. The Clerk-Recorder, court records counter, Assessor, and Clerk of the Board are centered there, while criminal court counters also operate in Pittsburg and Richmond.
Contra Costa County Clerk-Recorder
555 Escobar Street
Martinez, CA 94553
RecorderWorks and Clerk-Recorder services
Contra Costa Superior Court Records
725 Court Street, Room 103
Martinez, CA 94553
925-608-1000
Contra Costa County Assessor
2530 Arnold Drive, Suite 100
Martinez, CA 94553
925-313-7400
Clerk of the Board
1025 Escobar Street, 1st Floor
Martinez, CA 94553
925-655-2000
Contra Costa CPRA Request Steps
The California Public Records Act is codified at Government Code sections 7920.000-7931.000. Under Government Code section 7922.535, an agency generally has 10 days to determine whether a request seeks disclosable records, with a written unusual-circumstances extension of up to 14 more days. Contra Costa County says anyone may request inspection or copies without giving identification or a reason.
- Identify the custodian: Clerk-Recorder, Superior Court, Assessor, Public Works, Sheriff, CDPH, or another agency.
- Check the portal first: RecorderWorks, Court Public Portal, ParcelQuest Lite, CCMAP, Laserfiche, Sheriff locator, DCA License Search, or bizfile Online.
- If the record is not online, ask the likely department by phone, counter visit, email, mail, fax, or another posted channel.
- Give date ranges, keywords, addresses, APNs, case numbers, document numbers, and whether inspection or copies are needed.
- If the wrong department receives it, the county may notify the requester and forward it when another department may hold the record.
- Inspection is free; county copy fees are generally 10 cents single-sided, 20 cents double-sided, and $3 for data CD.
Lawful use. Use these records for personal, family-history, property, estate, consumer-safety, and civic-transparency research. Do not use any record, directory, registry, or address clue to stalk, harass, threaten, or intimidate another person.
Contra Costa Court Records Access
The Superior Court online case information page links the Court Public Portal for civil, small claims, probate, and daily calendar searches. Civil and small-claims documents and minutes can be downloaded at no fee. Probate registers are online, but probate documents require Court Records.
Criminal minutes, case documents, and orders are not available online. Requests go to Martinez Court Records, the Pittsburg Criminal Clerk's Office, the Richmond Criminal Clerk's Office, or by mail to the relevant branch. Valid ID is required to view any court file.
The court is also scanning 12 million paper, microfilm, and microfiche pages for a future document system. The project may expand web access, but criminal and traffic records are not included at that stage and scanning may delay some requests.
The screenshot below shows the court's split between portal research, branch counters, mail request forms, and copy instructions.
Research captured 50 cents per page for copies, $40 for certification plus per-page cost, and $15 for divorce judgment certification including copies.
Contra Costa Property Records Channels
Contra Costa property records do not sit in one unified portal. ParcelQuest Lite searches by APN or street address and displays parcel maps, assessed values, and house details. Vacant parcels may require APN. CCMAP adds county GIS layers and updates on the first business day of each month.
Public Works Laserfiche covers recorded maps, assessor parcel books, archived parcel books, records of survey, and corner records. The local method is to get the APN in CCMAP, use the parcel book and page in Laserfiche under Annotated Assessor Parcel Books, then look for surveys listed in red by LSM or CR book/page. ePermits shows building permit and planning application history from 1/1/1980-current; plans and application documents require a Records Research request.
Vital Records Access Limits
Birth, death, marriage, and divorce records need a different expectation than deeds or ordinary case indexes. Contra Costa County vital-record copies start with the Clerk-Recorder for county birth, death, and marriage certificates, while CDPH Vital Records maintains statewide birth, death, fetal death/stillbirth, marriage, and divorce records. Divorce research should separate the certificate-level state record from the Superior Court divorce case file, judgment, and filings.
California Health and Safety Code section 103526 controls authorized certified copies of birth, death, and marriage records. Authorized requesters may need a sworn statement, and non-authorized requesters may receive an informational certified copy where available. County snippets state that, effective January 1, 2026, birth, death, and marriage certified-copy fees increased by $2 under Assembly Bill 64, but exact line-item totals were not captured.
The CDPH screenshot below supports the statewide side of this workflow: applications, fees, processing times, and copy rules belong with CDPH and county certificate pages, not with the recorder name index.
Use CDPH or the county for certificate copies. Use the court for a divorce case document, judgment, or register entry.
Contra Costa Custody Public Records
The Contra Costa Sheriff provides In-Custody Locator access by name or booking number. The name mode requires first and last name. The related reports page includes Arrest Report and Incident Summary Report options. The Sheriff main office phone is 925-655-0000, and Custody Services Bureau assistance is listed at 925-646-4496 around the clock.
The captured Sheriff locator image shows the official county custody search path and reinforces that this is a current-custody lookup, not a complete criminal-history database.
California's Megan's Law website is a separate state DOJ registry under Penal Code section 290.46. It has its own warning and use restrictions, so treat it as a specialized public-safety record, not as an ordinary people directory.
The captured Megan's Law image shows the state registry warning screen before search access.
CDCR's CIRIS is the state-prison locator for people currently in CDCR custody.
California Business Public Records
Some Contra Costa records questions point to state systems. The California Secretary of State's bizfile Online business search covers business entities, while SOS UCC tools search by debtor name, secured party name, or file number.
The business-search screenshot documents the statewide filing interface for entity status, filing history, agent or service address, officers or managers where filed, and document images when available.
The Department of Consumer Affairs DCA License Search verifies licenses issued by many DCA boards. Results can show whether a license is current, expired, or disciplined. BreEZe is the related DCA licensing and enforcement system.
The DCA screenshot shows the state license-search entry point used for professional-license public records.
Use these state searches for business filing and license verification. Use RecorderWorks for county-recorded liens and releases.
What Contra Costa Records Redact
California privacy law and records law do not make every public-facing clue removable. Recorder, court, assessor, and agency records are governed by their own statutes. Confidentiality paths exist for protected voters, Safe at Home participants, sensitive identifiers, sealed cases, juvenile and adoption files, and confidential marriage records.
RecorderWorks also warns that liens are created by outside agencies and indexed by name. Do not rely on a name match alone; compare dates, addresses, document numbers, APNs, related parties, and custodian confirmation.
Recent Contra Costa Records Changes
Three current items matter. First, county snippets state that birth, death, and marriage certified-copy fees increased by $2 effective January 1, 2026 under Assembly Bill 64; exact totals should be confirmed before ordering. Second, the Superior Court's 2026 modernization project is scanning 12 million paper, microfilm, and microfiche pages, which may expand future portal access while slowing some requests.
Third, the county operates a Real Estate Fraud Notification Program. If someone receives an unauthorized-transfer notice, the research points to the Real Estate Fraud Unit hotline at 866-223-7283 and a formal complaint process.