Morgan County Clerk of Court
The court clerk for Morgan County is Debra Welsch, listed by the Colorado Judicial Branch as Clerk of Court for Morgan County in the 13th Judicial District. Her office serves the Morgan Combined Court, the state court location that houses Morgan County District Court and Morgan County Court functions. The office is the correct starting point for court case records, case-file document requests, divorce decrees, case dispositions, docket assistance, probate filings, jury contacts, and County Court or District Court case questions.
That role is different from Kevin Strauch, the Morgan County Clerk and Recorder. The county clerk and recorder handles recording, elections, motor vehicle services, marriage licenses, civil union licenses, and county CORA coordination. A deed, lien, recorded DD-214, marriage license copy, or county agency open-records request belongs with the County Clerk and Recorder. A divorce decree, felony case disposition, probate filing, County Court docket, or District Court case copy belongs with the Clerk of Court or the Colorado Judicial Branch request channel.
Morgan Combined Court
Clerk of Court: Debra Welsch
400 Warner Street
Fort Morgan, CO 80701
970-542-5200 x4
MorganClerksOffice@judicial.state.co.us
Monday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday 8:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m.; Tuesday 8:30 a.m. to 4:00 p.m.
Morgan County Court Clerk Duties
The Morgan County Clerk of Court maintains court-side records for state District Court and County Court cases filed in Morgan County. The office works within the Colorado Judicial Branch system, not the county recording system. For the public, the most common clerk tasks are helping identify where a case is filed, explaining how to request copies, routing case-file requests, helping with docket questions, and providing the court contact point when an online tool does not show the needed record.
The clerk also connects with specific Morgan Combined Court functions. Debra L. Welsch is listed as Jury Commissioner and Probate Registrar, with jury reporting at 970-542-5201 x1 or the main court line at 970-542-5200 x4. Probate questions route through the same courthouse because Morgan County probate matters are District Court matters. Family and self-help questions may involve Dawn Gerk, the Family Court Facilitator, or Stephanie Mayer, the Self-Represented Litigant Coordinator.
- Case-file records for Morgan County District Court and County Court matters.
- Docket and hearing assistance when a public docket search is not enough.
- Divorce decree, disposition, probate, and document-copy request routing.
- Jury reporting and probate registrar contacts for Morgan Combined Court.
- Coordination with district self-help staff for eligible self-represented users.
Note: Fort Morgan Municipal Court is separate from Morgan Combined Court and handles city ordinance and municipal traffic cases.
Request Morgan County Certified Copies
A certified court copy comes from the court, not from a commercial register-of-actions vendor. Colorado Judicial Branch states that direct online access to court records is not available through its website and that vendor sites do not provide copies of court documents. For Morgan County, that means a person who needs a certified divorce decree, disposition, probate order, judgment, or other court-file document should use the Judicial Branch records request process or contact Morgan Combined Court directly.
- Identify the court and case type. Morgan County District Court handles felony, domestic relations, probate, juvenile, mental health, and broad civil matters; County Court handles limited civil, misdemeanor, traffic, small claims, protection order, and early felony complaint matters.
- Gather the case number if known. If not, use the Colorado Judicial Branch docket search with Morgan County or Morgan Combined Court as a filter.
- Submit a case-file request through the Judicial Branch access guide process or contact Morgan Combined Court.
- Wait for court staff to confirm availability, cost, and delivery options. The research did not locate a Morgan-specific court-copy fee schedule.
- Use the official certified copy for legal filing, name change, proof of disposition, probate administration, or other official use.
For full case searches, the Morgan County court records page explains docket filters, vendor limits, and case-file access channels.
Morgan County Request Fields
Most court-record requests work better when the requester gives the clerk enough detail to find the right file without guessing. The Judicial Branch request path can be used for case dispositions, divorce decrees, and other case-specific records, and the applicable court contacts the requester after submission. Morgan Combined Court can also answer questions by phone or email when the online tools do not identify the file.
| Field | Required | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Case Number | No, but helpful | Colorado docket search exposes the 4-digit year, case class, and sequence number when searching by case number. |
| Party Names | Yes if no case number | Use full first and last names for people or the business name for an entity. |
| Court | Yes | Use Morgan Combined Court, District Court, County Court, or Fort Morgan Municipal Court as applicable. |
| Document Type | Yes | Examples include decree, disposition, order, judgment, probate filing, or docket entry. |
| Copy Type | Yes | State whether a plain copy or certified copy is needed. |
Morgan County Clerk Fee Limits
The research file contains detailed Morgan County Clerk and Recorder fees for recorded documents, but it did not locate a Morgan-specific court-copy fee table for Morgan Combined Court. That difference matters. Recorded-document fees do not automatically set court-document fees. Court-copy costs should be confirmed with Morgan Combined Court or through the Judicial Branch records request response before sending payment.
| Item | Amount or Source |
|---|---|
| Court case certified copy | Confirm with Morgan Combined Court or Judicial Branch records request response. |
| Court case plain copy | Confirm with Morgan Combined Court. |
| Recorded document copy, 8.5 x 11 or 8.5 x 14 | $0.25 per page through County Clerk and Recorder. |
| Recorded document certification | $1.00 certified fee if certified. |
| Marriage or civil union application/license | $30.00 through County Clerk and Recorder, including one certified copy. |
| Research after first free hour | $16.79 first half hour, then $33.58 per hour, for county recording research. |
Note: The fee table separates court records from county recordings because Morgan County has split clerk responsibilities.
Clerk of Court vs County Clerk
Kevin Strauch's Morgan County Clerk and Recorder office is an important record office, but it is not the Clerk of Court. The office at 231 Ensign Street keeps permanent public recordings, runs the Tyler/eagleWeb recorded-document search, issues marriage and civil union licenses, and coordinates county CORA requests except for sheriff, communications, and ambulance records. Recording staff can help a person get started on public computers, but the official research says staff cannot search on behalf of requesters.
The Morgan County recording fee page lists copy charges, certified-copy charges, map fees, marriage and civil union fees, and research charges for recorded documents. The Tyler/eagleWeb recorded document portal is useful for deeds, liens, plats, and other recorded instruments, but it is not a Morgan County court case database. The portal also warns that JavaScript and cookies are needed for full use and that the index is provided without an accuracy warranty.
The eagleWeb subscription services page supports recorded-document access through the county system. That is useful for land and recording research, while court-file records still route through Morgan Combined Court.
The recording fee page is relevant because it shows how county recordings are priced separately from Morgan County Clerk of Court records.
The eagleWeb image documents the county clerk side of Morgan record access, not the court clerk side.
Morgan County Court Forms
Morgan County court forms and filing help come from the Colorado Judicial Branch rather than a local county form library in the research. The court location page links public resources such as ADA accommodations, interpreter services, holidays, an A-Z directory, a glossary of legal terms, and general help topics. For public defenders, the Judicial Branch page says there is no filing fee to apply, and the Colorado State Public Defender reviews the paperwork before the court makes the final eligibility decision.
- Public records access guide for court case records and copy requests.
- Colorado docket search for public hearing and docket lookups.
- Judicial Branch public defender application for criminal cases.
- Judicial Branch sealing information for eligible criminal cases.
- Sterling Public Defender office serving Morgan County and the rest of the 13th Judicial District.
Morgan County Online Access
Online court access in Morgan County is split by function. The Colorado Judicial Branch docket search is the free public tool for finding dockets and hearings. It requires at least one filter in addition to date, so a date-only search is not enough. CoCourts and other Judicial Branch-listed commercial vendors can provide paid register-of-actions access, but the Judicial Branch states that documents are not downloaded from those vendors. Government agencies may use State Courts Data Access with login credentials, but that system contains court data, not case documents.
Mail and in-person court requests should be directed to Morgan Combined Court when the record is a District Court or County Court file. County recordings, marriage license copies, and county agency CORA requests should go to Kevin Strauch's County Clerk and Recorder. Sheriff's Office reports, booking-related records, civil process, and jail records not available through VINE or DOC systems go to the Sheriff's Office records request channel.