Lee County Clerk of Court Office
Lee County's Clerk of Court is Teresa A. Brown. The South Carolina Judicial Branch biography says Brown was elected on November 8, 2016, and began service on January 2, 2017. The Judicial Branch lists the Lee County Clerk of Court at PO Box 387, Bishopville, SC 29010-0387, with office phone 803-484-5341 and fax 803-484-1632. The county staff directory places Teresa Brown in Clerk of Court Office Room 104 with tbrown@leecountysc.org and 803-484-5341 ext. 3168.
The Lee County Clerk of Court and Family Court page describes the office's General Sessions, Common Pleas, Family Court, child-support, records-statement, and public defender application functions.
That county page is the main source for what the Clerk does and what the office expressly does not do.
Lee County Clerk of Court
Clerk: Teresa A. Brown
PO Box 387
Bishopville, SC 29010-0387
803-484-5341
Fax: 803-484-1632
Room 104, 106, and 107 contacts in the courthouse
Lee County Clerk Record Duties
The Clerk of Court and Family Court page divides the office by court function. General Sessions is criminal court and houses criminal warrants, bond paperwork, motions, and sentencing sheets. Common Pleas is civil court and includes filing civil disputes, scheduling civil actions and motion rosters, and updating roster reports on the judicial website. Family Court and child support functions also route through the clerk page, with staff contacts listed for Family Court work.
- General Sessions records include criminal warrants, bond paperwork, motions, and sentencing sheets once they are part of the court file.
- Common Pleas records include civil filings, disputes, civil action scheduling, and motion roster work.
- Family Court records and child-support functions route through the Clerk of Court and Family Court office.
- Court rosters are updated through the judicial website for scheduling and docket-calendar needs.
- Public Defender applications may be completed in the Clerk's office with the published application fee.
Lee County also says the county is e-filing, which allows case review anywhere with internet access. That statement should not be stretched into a promise that public users can download every filing image. E-filing and public viewing are related but not identical.
Lee County Clerk Staff Contacts
The county staff directory gives named room and extension details that are more useful than a generic main phone number. Contact the staff member tied to the case type when possible. General Sessions and filed-record statement questions route differently from Common Pleas civil questions or Family Court matters.
| Staff Contact | Role | Room | Phone / Email |
|---|---|---|---|
| Teresa Brown | Clerk of Court | 104 | 803-484-5341 ext. 3168; tbrown@leecountysc.org |
| Caroline Truesdale | General Sessions / Court Coordinator | 107 | 803-484-5341 ext. 3163; cmehm@leecountysc.org |
| Cheryl Watkins | Deputy Clerk of Court / Common Pleas | 107 | 803-484-5341 ext. 3166; cwatkins@leecountysc.org |
| Hope Millwood | Family Court | 106 | 803-484-5341 ext. 3167; hmillwood@leecountysc.org |
Request Lee County Clerk Copies
For a certified copy or file copy, start by identifying the court type and case number if known. The Lee County research did not locate a full court-copy fee schedule, so a requester should contact the Clerk before mailing payment. The office does provide a statement as to anything filed of record for $2.00. The same source says the office does not provide record checks, so a statewide criminal-history request belongs with SLED CATCH rather than the Clerk.
- Search the Public Index or case paperwork for the case number, party names, and court type.
- Contact the correct staff member for General Sessions, Common Pleas, or Family Court.
- Ask whether the record is public, restricted, sealed, expunged, older paper, or available through the state portal.
- Confirm the copy type, certification need, fee, payment method, and whether mail or in-person pickup is required.
- For a filed-record statement, ask about the $2.00 statement and use the contact listed for that service.
Lee County Clerk Request Details
No separate online Lee County Clerk records-request form was located in the accessible research, but the office contacts and public-index workflow make the needed request facts clear. A request with a case number, party name, court division, document type, and copy format is easier for staff to route than a broad name check. Broad record checks are not provided by the Clerk.
| Request Detail | Required in Practice | Lee County Note |
|---|---|---|
| Case number | Best if known | Use the Lee County Public Index or existing papers to identify it. |
| Party names | Yes | Needed when the case number is unknown. |
| Court division | Yes | Common Pleas, General Sessions, or Family Court affects the contact. |
| Document type | Yes | Examples include motion, bond paper, sentencing sheet, decree, order, or civil filing. |
| Copy format | Yes | Ask whether a plain copy, certified copy, or filed-record statement is needed. |
| Return method | Yes | Confirm mail, email, in-person pickup, and payment rules with staff. |
Lee County Clerk Fees
The research found only a limited Clerk fee statement. The $2.00 filed-record statement is useful, but it should not be described as a criminal history, a complete name search, or a certified copy of a case file. The $40.00 Public Defender application fee is also published on the Clerk page. Court copy and certification fees were not located in official Lee County sources, so those amounts must be confirmed with the office.
| Item | Amount | Scope |
|---|---|---|
| Statement as to anything filed of record | $2.00 | Not a record check or criminal background report. |
| Public Defender application through Clerk office | $40.00 | Application can be completed in the Clerk's office. |
| Court case copies | Not located | Confirm with Clerk staff before sending payment. |
| Certified court copies | Not located | Confirm copy and certification procedure locally. |
| ROD certified true copy of recorded document | $10.00 per document | Recorded documents only, not Clerk case records. |
Lee County Clerk and ROD Boundary
The Register of Deeds is related to public records but is not the same as the Clerk's court-records function. The Lee County Register of Deeds page says it can provide certified true copies of recorded documents, onsite access to computers, copy machines, record books, and microfilm, and limited telephone information. It also states that it does not perform title searches, extensive record or lien searches, legal advice, deed preparation, tax checks, Clerk of Court records checks, delinquent tax checks, Probate Court record checks, or other county-office record checks.
The Lee County Register of Deeds page is the source for recorded-document copy fees and the office's limits.
That boundary keeps real-property records from being confused with Common Pleas, General Sessions, or Family Court files.
The separate Lee County Register of Deeds real-property search is for recorded land records and related instruments.
Use that portal for recorded deeds or land records, not for divorce decrees, criminal sentencing sheets, or civil case pleadings.
Lee County Public Defender Applications
Lee County's Clerk page says Public Defender applications can be completed in the Clerk's office with a $40.00 application fee. Public defenders are court-appointed for people who qualify as indigent defendants in criminal court. The Clerk's role is the application channel described locally; representation and appointments follow court and public defender rules.
The South Carolina Judicial Branch public defender overview explains the statewide public defender role.
That state overview helps explain why the Clerk accepts applications without acting as defense counsel.
The SCCID Lee County public defender listing names the circuit and assistant public defenders tied to Lee County.
That listing is the better source for defender contacts after the application and appointment questions move beyond the Clerk's intake role.
Lee County Clerk Online Access
The South Carolina Judicial Branch links Lee County case records to the Public Index and court rosters. Public Index access may require JavaScript, cookies, and pop-up permissions, and not every document image is guaranteed to be available. Roster reports are useful for schedules, motion rosters, and court dates, while the Clerk is the fallback for filed records that are incomplete, restricted, older, or not digitized. For statewide criminal-history reports, use SLED CATCH because the Lee County Clerk does not provide record checks.
Note: E-filing in Lee County supports case review, but public portal access and attorney filing access are not the same service.