Choctaw County Chancery Clerk Office

About the Choctaw County Chancery Clerk

Steve Montgomery serves as the Choctaw County Chancery Clerk. The Mississippi Judiciary lists him as the clerk for the county's Chancery Court, and the Mississippi Association of Supervisors profile names him as Chancery Clerk, Comptroller, and Purchase Clerk. The role is an elected county office with a wide reach. It mixes court duties with county money and land work, which makes the Chancery Clerk one of the busiest record offices in the county.

The office shares the Choctaw County Courthouse in Ackerman with the Circuit Court and Circuit Clerk, but it keeps a separate set of files and its own mailing box. The Chancery Clerk holds the deeds, the estate cases, the board of supervisors minutes, and the judgment and lien books. That mix of land, money, and equity matters sets this office apart from the Circuit Clerk down the hall.

What the Choctaw County Chancery Clerk Handles

The Chancery Clerk is the record keeper for the court of equity. Chancery Court hears divorce, custody, adoption, guardianship, conservatorship, wills, trusts, and disputes over real property. The clerk files and stores every one of those cases, then tracks each order and decree. The office reaches well beyond the courtroom, though. It is also the county's land office and the recorder for the board of supervisors, so deeds, plats, and county minutes all run through the same counter.

Land deeds, probate files, and judgment records make up the bulk of the daily work. The clerk's core duties break down like this.

• File and keep Chancery Court case papers for equity and domestic matters.
• Record deeds, deeds of trust, plats, and other land and title records.
• Hold probate and estate files, including wills and letters of administration.
• Maintain divorce and domestic-equity files such as custody and support orders.
• Keep guardianship and conservatorship records for minors and adults.
• Index judgments, federal tax liens, and lis pendens notices.
• Record the board of supervisors minutes and serve as county comptroller.

The land role is what brings most people to the counter. Anyone buying, selling, or researching property in Choctaw County passes through the Chancery Clerk, because the office records and indexes every deed and deed of trust. A title search, a boundary question, or a lien check all start in these books. The comptroller and purchase-clerk duties add a county-finance layer on top, so the same office that records a private deed also keeps the public minutes of the board of supervisors. That blend of court files, land title, and county money is unusual, and it is why the Chancery Clerk is a frequent first call for lawyers, lenders, and families settling an estate.

How to Request a Certified Copy

A certified copy is a copy the clerk stamps and signs to prove it matches the original on file. Title companies, lenders, courts, and probate parties usually need a certified copy, not a plain print. The Chancery Clerk certifies deeds, estate papers, divorce decrees, and judgment records. Criminal and civil Circuit Court copies come from the Choctaw County Circuit Clerk instead, so confirm the court before you pay. These steps walk through a request to the Chancery Clerk.

1. Identify the record. For land, have the names and a rough date or book and page; for an estate, have the decedent's name and cause number if known.
2. State what you need and how many certified copies you want.
3. Contact the office by phone at (662) 285-6329, by mail to P.O. Box 250, or at the counter at 22 E. Quinn Street.
4. Ask the fee and the payment type first, since the clerk's copy and recording charges were not posted in official sources.
5. Collect the copy in person or have it mailed once the request and payment are processed.

Estate work is the other heavy source of certified-copy requests. When a person dies, the family often needs certified letters testamentary or letters of administration to act for the estate, and those come from this office. Local legal notices show Choctaw County Chancery Court estate cases styled "In the Matter of the Estate of" a named person, with cause numbers, administrators, and summonses by publication to unknown heirs. A certified copy of the order or the letters is what banks and other parties accept as proof of authority. The same goes for a certified divorce decree, which a person may need to remarry, change a name, or settle benefits.

Note: Land and estate files can stretch back many decades, so an older deed or will search may need extra time at the clerk's counter.

Choctaw County Records Request Fields

Remote access to Chancery Court cases runs through the state electronic court system, and that path starts with a registration form. There is no separate county request form for online case access, so the registration screen is the gateway. The fields below come from the PAMEC registration page that a non-attorney user fills out to open an account. A plain written request to the clerk, by contrast, needs only the record description, the parties, and the dates.

Choctaw County Chancery Clerk Fees

The published charges all come from the state electronic court system. The clerk's own recording, copy, and probate filing fees were not posted in the official sources reviewed, which is why a quick call saves trouble. The table lists the amounts on the record and flags the ones to confirm with the office.

The $0.15 rate is a statewide model figure, not the clerk's posted charge. Use it only as a guide and confirm the real recording or copy fee with the Chancery Clerk before you mail payment.

Choctaw County Land and Court Records

The Chancery Clerk keeps several record sets that the Circuit side never touches. Knowing which book holds your record points you to the right request. Probate and estate matters, for example, are filed and managed through the county Chancery Court probate records, which the same clerk maintains. The main record groups in this office are below, with the state resources that explain each one.

• Land and title records: deeds, deeds of trust, plats, and easements recorded for the county.
• Probate and estate files: wills, letters of administration, inventories, and heirship pleadings.
• Domestic-equity files: divorce decrees, custody and support orders, and adoption matters.
• Guardianship and conservatorship records for minors and protected adults.
• Judgment, lien, and lis pendens books that flag claims against people or property.

The state explains the court's reach on the Mississippi Chancery Court overview, and the Sixth Chancery court information page lists the Choctaw County Chancery Court address, phone, and go-live date.

Mail and Online Chancery Filings

Choctaw County Chancery Court joined Mississippi Electronic Courts on August 11, 2017, which gives it a longer online track record than the Circuit Court. Attorneys file through MEC, and the public reaches non-restricted Chancery case information through PAMEC, the paid public-access side of the system. It is login-gated and carries an annual fee plus a per-page charge, so it is not a free county lookup. Choctaw County sits in the Sixth Chancery District for these filings.

For records that fall outside the online system, mail remains a reliable channel. Send Chancery Clerk requests to Steve Montgomery, P.O. Box 250, Ackerman, MS 39735, and keep the request specific. The office also takes requests at the courthouse counter at 22 East Quinn Street, by phone at 662-285-6329, and by fax at 662-285-3444. A clear request that names the record, the parties or property, the book and page or cause number if known, and a date range moves through the office fastest, whichever channel you choose. Older land and estate files often sit only on paper, so a counter or mail request may be the only path to those records.