Union County Prothonotary Office
The official Union County Prothonotary and Clerk of Courts page lists Diane Miller as Prothonotary and Clerk of Courts. The office is on the first floor of the Union County Courthouse, 103 S. Second Street, Lewisburg, PA 17837. It lists hours of 8:30 AM-4:30 PM, phone (570) 524-8751, and fax (570) 524-8628. The county describes the office as keeper of civil, criminal, and Orphans' Court records for the court.
Prothonotary means the Pennsylvania civil clerk role. That role is distinct from the Union County Clerk of Courts, which handles criminal filings, fines, costs, and criminal appeals. Union County uses one combined office, so a visitor may stand at the same counter, but the records are still sorted by legal function.
Union County Prothonotary
Official: Diane Miller
103 S. Second Street, first floor
Lewisburg, PA 17837
(570) 524-8751
8:30 AM-4:30 PM
Union County Prothonotary Records
The Prothonotary function handles civil and family filings in the Court of Common Pleas. Research section 2 lists civil court filings and dockets, complaints, custody, divorce, judgments, liens, appeals, continuances, motions, petitions, and other civil legal papers. The office also handles filing, recording, storing, and distributing official court documents for its assigned record types.
- Civil actions at law, including complaints and later pleadings.
- Divorce complaints, decrees, and family case papers kept as civil court records.
- Custody complaints and related family filings.
- Judgments, liens, writs, petitions, motions, continuances, and appeals tied to civil cases.
- Certified copies, searches, and docket entries for records held by the Prothonotary function.
The county page also notes marriage licenses and passport applications in the combined office. Passport acceptance has its own schedule, listed as Monday-Thursday 8:30 AM-3:00 PM and Friday 8:30 AM-2:30 PM.
Union County Civil Filing Rules
The Union County record and document filing instructions are unusually specific. The office accepts filings by mail or in person. Filing fees must be paid when the filing is made. The original filing should include an original wet ink signature, and each filing must have a case caption. If a case number has already been assigned, that number must be included in the caption.
| Requirement | Union County Detail |
|---|---|
| Filing channels | Mail or in-person delivery. |
| Return copies | Include a self-addressed stamped envelope if filing by mail and return copies are needed. |
| Fees | All filing fees must be paid at filing. |
| Original signatures | Original wet ink signature required on the original filing. |
| Caption | Filing must have a case caption and case number if assigned. |
| Fax and email | Faxed and emailed documents are not acceptable for filing. |
| Confidential information | Use required UJS confidential forms and attach Union County Certification of Compliance. |
Request Union County Civil Copies
Certified copies are used when a civil order, divorce decree, judgment, or other court paper must carry official proof from the filing office. The request should be clear enough for staff to find the file. If the exact docket number is not known, party names, case type, and approximate filing year help narrow the search.
- Identify the civil, custody, divorce, judgment, or lien record held by the Prothonotary.
- Find the docket number if known, or gather names and filing dates for a search.
- Contact or visit the office to confirm the copy type, certification need, and current fee.
- Submit payment with the request. Mailed requests should include return postage when copies are needed by mail.
- Use the certified copy for the legal or official purpose, not a web printout.
Union County Request Details
The research did not locate a separate public civil-record request form for the Prothonotary. The same practical fields are still needed for a phone, counter, or mail request.
| Field | Required | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Case number | If known | Include the Common Pleas docket number when available. |
| Party names | Yes | Use the names as filed, such as plaintiff and defendant or petitioner and respondent. |
| Record type | Yes | State whether the request is for divorce, custody, judgment, lien, writ, docket, or another civil filing. |
| Copy type | Yes | Specify plain copy, certified copy, exemplification, or search. |
| Return method | For mail | Include a self-addressed stamped envelope when the office must return copies. |
For divorce and custody records, the party names and approximate filing year may be more useful than a broad subject request. For judgments and liens, the name searched should match the filed party name as closely as possible. If the record is old or the party name has changed, providing prior names or known docket details helps the Prothonotary search the correct civil index or file.
Union County Prothonotary Fees
The 2026 Union County Prothonotary fee bill lists civil, divorce, custody, copy, search, writ, and judgment amounts. Copy line items vary, so the fee bill should be checked before treating any one page price as universal.
| Item | Amount |
|---|---|
| Commencement of action at law | $186.75 total |
| Custody complaint | $228.25 total |
| Divorce complaint, one count | $223.75 total |
| Divorce complaint, two counts | $265.00 total |
| Certification or certifying copy | $9.00 shown |
| Exemplification of records | $28.00 |
| Search | $13.00 |
| Subpoena | $6.00 |
Union County Prothonotary Access Channels
Union County's civil online access is more limited than criminal and Magisterial District Court docket access. The 17th Judicial District local rules reference CountySuite Portal for civil e-filing, but the research did not locate an official public Union County civil docket search URL. Pennsylvania UJS Case Search is still useful for Common Pleas criminal, MDJ, traffic, appellate, and related docket work, but civil and family documents often need a Prothonotary request.
For county agency records outside a court file, Union County's Right-to-Know process goes to the Government Center, Attn: Open Records, 155 N. 15th Street, Lewisburg, PA 17837. For case records, the Prothonotary and the UJS public access policy are the more direct route. Note: Union County requires Certification of Compliance with filings even when no confidential form is attached.
Mail is a real access channel, not just a fallback. Union County's filing instructions say mailed filings should include a self-addressed stamped envelope if return copies are needed, and all filing fees must be paid at the time of filing. Fax and email are expressly rejected for filing. That makes the Prothonotary counter or mail process the supported path for civil records that are not visible online.
Confidential filing rules apply even to civil cases that are otherwise public. Social Security numbers, financial account numbers, minor names, and confidential documents must be handled through the UJS public access forms. Union County adds a local Certification of Compliance requirement for all filings. That rule is important for new filings and for copy requests, because a public copy may omit confidential information that was filed with the court.
Union County Prothonotary History
The county's Prothonotary page includes a short history of the office name. It traces "Prothonotary" to a Latin term meaning "First Notary" and to ecclesiastical law as a high administrator of the Court of Rome. The local page also notes that, historically, the Prothonotary notified judges when a case was ready for trial. That history explains why Pennsylvania uses a term that differs from generic "clerk of court" labels used in many other states.
The title still has practical value in Union County. When a user asks for a divorce decree, custody filing, civil judgment, lien, or writ, the Prothonotary function is the better term to use. When the request is for charges, sentencing, criminal costs, or a criminal appeal, Clerk of Courts is the better term. Using the right term helps the combined office route the request to the right record set.