Hockley County Public Records Search

Hockley County public records are based in Levelland, the county seat on the Llano Estacado in West Texas. The County Clerk and District Clerk in Levelland maintain court filings, property deeds, marriage licenses, and vital records for this agricultural South Plains county. The County Clerk handles property recordings and vital documents, while the District Clerk manages civil and criminal court files. Records are accessible in person at the Levelland courthouse, by mail, or through statewide online search tools. This guide explains where to find records and how to request them from county and state sources.

County Clerk and Property Records

The Hockley County Clerk's office in Levelland handles property records, marriage licenses, and many other official county documents. All deeds, liens, easements, and mortgage records must be filed here to be valid. The clerk's office is also where you go to record oil and gas leases, which are especially common in this part of West Texas.

You can request copies of county clerk records in person or by mail. Plain copies cost $1 per page. Certified copies add a $5 fee. Mail requests should include a written description of the record you need, your return address, and a check or money order made out to the Hockley County Clerk. If you are not sure what the total cost will be, you can call or email the clerk's office to ask before sending payment.

Property records are especially important in Hockley County given the active agricultural land market and oil and gas activity. Mineral rights and surface rights are often held separately here, so records from both the county clerk and the Texas General Land Office may be relevant depending on what you are looking for.

District and County Court Records

Hockley County is in the 286th Judicial District. District court cases -- including felony criminal matters, civil cases over $10,000, and family law proceedings -- are handled by the District Clerk. County court misdemeanor and lower-value civil cases are handled by the County Clerk. Both sets of records are generally open to the public.

The re:SearchTX portal lets you search court records from district and county courts across Texas. You can look up cases by name, case number, or date. For Hockley County cases, the portal will show you the basic case info and parties involved. From there you can contact the clerk to get specific document copies.

Some court records are restricted. Juvenile cases are confidential by statute. Mental health commitment records are also restricted. If a judge has sealed a case file, it is not accessible without a court order. For anything that does not appear in re:SearchTX, it is worth calling the district or county clerk to ask whether the record exists and what the access rules are.

Texas Public Information Act

The Texas Public Information Act (Government Code Chapter 552) gives you the right to request records from any Hockley County government office. This includes the sheriff, the county tax assessor-collector, the road and bridge department, and any other county entity. You can also request records from the City of Levelland or the Levelland Independent School District under the same law.

Requests must be in writing. Submit them to the specific department or office that holds the records. The office has 10 business days to respond. If the records are not confidential, the office must either provide them or send you a cost estimate. Standard PIA copy fees are $0.10 per page for black and white prints. Other formats may carry different rates.

If an office denies your request or claims an exemption you disagree with, you can ask the Texas Attorney General's open government division for a ruling. The AG's office will review the request and the claimed exemption and issue a written opinion. If the AG finds the records should be released and the agency still refuses, legal action may follow. Most disputes are resolved at the AG opinion stage.

Vital Records: Births, Deaths, and More

Certified birth and death certificates for events in Hockley County come from the Texas Department of State Health Services. The DSHS vital statistics unit holds records from the early 1900s to the present. A certified birth certificate costs $23. A certified death certificate costs $21. You can order online, by mail, or in person in Austin.

The county clerk issues marriage licenses and keeps a record of all marriages performed in the county. If you need proof of a Hockley County marriage, contact the county clerk. Divorce records are held by the district clerk in the county where the divorce was filed. The county clerk also maintains a statistical record of divorces for state reporting purposes.

Older vital records that predate state registration may only exist at the county level or in historical archives. The Texas State Library and Archives Commission has a good collection of county records on microfilm going back to the 1800s for many Texas counties.

The Texas electronic filing system is the official portal for court document submissions across the state. The image below shows the eFileTexas site, which also provides public access to many court filings.

Visit eFileTexas to search for recently filed court documents, check filing requirements, and find instructions for submitting your own documents in a Texas court case.

The eFileTexas portal is managed by the Texas Office of Court Administration. It handles filings for district courts, county courts at law, and other courts across the state. Civil cases filed since the electronic filing mandate went into effect will generally have documents available here. Older cases may only be on paper at the courthouse.

Cities in Hockley County

Levelland is the largest city in Hockley County, with a population of roughly 13,000. Anton, Sundown, and Opdyke West are smaller communities in the county. None of these cities meet the 100,000-population threshold for a dedicated records page on this site.

Nearby Counties

These counties border Hockley County.