Lookup St. Landry Parish District Court

St. Landry Parish District Court Overview

Louisiana uses district courts as primary trial courts of general jurisdiction. The State Court Structure Map for this project identifies the primary trial court as District Court, with St. Landry Parish served by the 27th Judicial District Court. The Louisiana Judiciary source confirms that the 27th Judicial District covers St. Landry Parish, has four judges, and hears civil and criminal cases in Opelousas.

The district court is not the same as the clerk office. The court hears and decides cases. The St. Landry Parish Clerk of Court receives filings, keeps records, supports certified copies, and routes online access through ClerkConnect where available. For a user, that means a District Court question may require both the judge or division contact and the clerk's Court Division for the case record.

The Louisiana court-structure source is shown in the screenshot from the Louisiana State Bar Association court structure page.

That statewide source supports the local map by placing District Court below appellate courts and above limited local courts in Louisiana's trial-court structure.

St. Landry Parish District Court Divisions

The 27th Judicial District Court local-rule appendix states that the court is composed of four divisions designated A, B, C, and D. The divisions do not prevent judges from assisting each other by agreement. Official St. Landry contact research lists each division, judge, and phone number at the same courthouse address. For case records, users should pair this division information with the Clerk's Court Division in Suite 121.

The official district source is shown in the screenshot from the District 27 public defender office page.

That District 27 source is useful for court users because it gives the indigent-defense office tied to the same judicial district and parish court system.

St. Landry Parish District Court vs Lower Courts

St. Landry Parish does not have a county court layer like some other states. The researched lower-court map lists City Court, Justice of the Peace Court, and Mayor's Court. City courts and justice-of-the-peace courts may handle lower-level matters such as local ordinance, traffic, small civil, and ward-level cases. That is why warrant, ticket, and misdemeanor research may need both District Court channels and lower-court contacts.

St. Landry Parish District Court Case Flow

District Court filings move through the court and clerk together. The court controls hearings, allotment, sessions, and orders. The Clerk of Court receives pleadings, keeps the case record, and provides copies. The local rules say all 27th JDC criminal and civil cases are randomly allotted equally among the four judges, with exceptions for traffic, non-support, protective order, and juvenile matters assigned month-to-month to the criminal judge on the bench at the time of allotment.

Criminal flow: Arrest or summons › charging document › allotment › arraignment › pretrial hearings › plea or trial › disposition › sentencing › appeal.

Civil flow: Petition filed with the clerk › service › answer or response › motions or conferences › hearing or trial › judgment › record copy or appeal.

Probate flow: Succession or probate filing › clerk acceptance › court review or hearing if needed › letters or judgment › judgment of possession recordation when property is involved.

Felony matters have an added local rule. When a new felony arrest occurs, the new case is allotted to one of the four divisions. The District Attorney may later elect to consolidate more than one felony case into one division. That detail helps explain why a defendant or party name may appear across related district-court files rather than one simple record.

St. Landry Parish Civil and Criminal Sessions

The 27th JDC local-rule appendix sets annual criminal sessions by division. Division A criminal sessions are in January, May, and September. Division B criminal sessions are in February, June, and October. Division C criminal sessions are in March, July, and November. Division D criminal sessions are in April, August, and December. Civil sessions are held in the other months for each division, but the rules allow judges to schedule civil matters during criminal sessions and criminal matters during civil sessions.

That calendar structure does not replace a docket check. A party should confirm the actual hearing date through the court, counsel, or clerk record. Session months explain the court's operating pattern, while a docket or minute entry gives the case-specific event. The Clerk's Court Division remains the key record source for civil suit filings and records of criminal proceedings.

St. Landry Parish Judicial District

The 27th Judicial District is a one-parish district court. The main district-court contact address is 118 South Court Street, Opelousas, LA 70570, and the court telephone is 337-943-7800. The Louisiana Judiciary page identifies the 27th Judicial District as a Louisiana District Court serving St. Landry Parish with four judges in Opelousas. The courthouse also houses the Clerk of Court and its Court Division, which is why district-court record access often starts with the clerk even when the question is about a judge or case setting.

The local courthouse is a multi-office building. The Clerk's general office is Suite 207. The Court Division is Suite 121 on the first floor. Marriage licenses are listed as Suite 206, and archives are in Room 11 in the basement. For court-record users, Suite 121 matters most because it is the office tied to civil filings and records of criminal proceedings.

St. Landry Parish City and JP Courts

Lower courts remain important because not every local case begins in District Court. The parish contact source lists Opelousas City Court and Eunice City Court. Opelousas City Court, Ward 1, lists Judge Shaunn Caillier-Harden at 337-948-2570 ext. 5100, with City Marshal Paul Mouton at 337-948-2577 ext. 5119 and Assistant Marshal Easton Shelvin at 337-948-2577 ext. 5118. Eunice City Court, Ward 6, lists Judge M. Terrance Hoychick at 337-457-6535 and City Marshal Terry Darbonne at 337-457-6580. The city-court administrator listed by the parish is Jeannine Elliott at 337-948-2577 ext. 5101.

For traffic tickets, city ordinance matters, local bench warrants, small civil matters, or ward-level cases, check the lower-court channel before assuming a District Court case exists. For felony prosecutions, major civil suits, divorce, succession, and district criminal proceedings, the District Court and Clerk of Court are the main channels. Case files and copies flow through the St. Landry Parish Clerk of Court, while hearing settings and judge contacts may require the division or court office.