The Clerk of the Circuit Court and Comptroller is one of five St. Lucie County constitutional officers directly elected by county citizens and responsible for safeguarding all public records and public funds.

The Office of the Clerk of the Circuit Court was established in the Florida Constitution as a public trustee, managing four primary functions and more than 1,000 individual responsibilities.

The Role of the Clerk

A video by the Florida Court Clerks and Comptrollers

Clerk of the Circuit Court

The Clerk is responsible for processing, recording, filing and guaranteeing the integrity of all court-related documents in St. Lucie County, a part of the 19th Judicial Circuit of Florida. Such documents consist of traffic tickets, divorces, foreclosures, lawsuits, case evidence, wills, domestic violence petitions, and tenant evictions. The Clerk is also responsible for managing the county's jury system. Citizens can represent themselves in court and can download court packets with instructions on the Clerk's Department Forms page.

County Chief Financial Officer, Treasurer and Auditor

In the public's interest, the Clerk provides a necessary check and balance on the county's budget, revenue and spending. The Clerk processes payments on behalf of the Board of County Commissioners and ensures that all taxpayer funds are being used lawfully. Any funds not designated for spending are invested by the Clerk. The interest earned on those investments helps ease the tax burden on citizens in future years. The Clerk's responsible management of public funds has also helped reduce operating costs and generate new forms of revenue through cash back programs.

County Recorder

The Clerk preserves and ensures the integrity of the Official Record Books of St. Lucie County dating back to 1905. Documents such as mortgages, deeds, liens, judgments and marriage licenses are recorded and entered into a computer system. Documents dating back to 1990 are available online through the Official Records Search. The Recording Department issues marriage licenses and processes passport applications.

Clerk of the Board of County Commissioners

The Clerk prepares and maintains the records of Board of County Commissioners' meetings and other government meetings. All the meeting minutes are made available to the public. The Clerk also administers the Value Adjustment Board at its Finance office in County Administration Building in Fort Pierce.