The Minnesota Supreme Court and Court of Appeals are appellate courts that hear appeals regarding decisions of lower trial courts, specifically the Minnesota district courts.
The Minnesota Supreme Court, created in 1849 when Minnesota became a territory, is the highest court in the state. It hears appeals from the Court of Appeals, district court decisions in all first-degree murder convictions, and other decisions if the Supreme Court chooses to bypass the Court of Appeals, Tax Court, and Workers Compensation Court of Appeals. Prior to the establishment of the Court of Appeals, the Supreme Court heard all appeals from the lower courts.
The Minnesota Court of Appeals, established in 1983, reviews appeals of final decisions of the district courts, state agencies, and local government.
Case Files consist of records relating to cases appealed from lower courts to the Supreme Court or, after 1982, the Court of Appeals. This can include:
Supreme Court and Appeals Court case files are combined in the same numerical sequence and you need to know the case number (not the North Western Reporter number) to access a file. There is a microfilmed index to case files from 1851 - 1981. Case files from 1850 to 1992 are housed at the Minnesota Historical Society. Contact the Clerk of Appellate Courts for information on accessing more recent case files. Cases regarding attorney discipline (1979-1988) are filed separately from the general case files.
There is an online finding aid that describes the general Case Files in detail.
Supreme Court and Court of Appeals Case Files are stored off-site and may require up to a week to retrieve.
Briefs are legal documents presented to the Court to argue why one side should win the appeal. There is a set of microfiche Briefs from the Supreme Court and Appeals Court (1960 - 1990) in the Library. Briefs from January 2002 to present are available online.
The microfiched briefs are organized by the number assigned by the North Western Reporter law digest and you need the North Western volume and digest number (not the case number) to access the brief.
MNHS Call Number: Digital Finding Aid/List.
From 1858 - 1905 the Minnesota Supreme Court held naturalization proceedings as a "court of record," granting citizenship to immigrants. Most of the naturalizations filed with Supreme Court were for residents of Ramsey, Dakota, Hennepin or other counties near the city of St. Paul. There are print and microfilm indexes to these records.
MNHS call number: Digital finding aid
For more information on naturalizations, please see our Naturalization Records Research Guide.
Judgment books - Decisions of the court as recorded in the order books and information on the party judged liable for court costs.
Minutes - Daily records of court proceedings maintained by the clerk of court, including actions taken regarding case hearings, appointments, and related matters.
Opinions - Judicial opinions of the Supreme Court in litigation cases and other matters of law, as issued for public distribution. Minnesota Court of Appeals and Supreme Court opinions since 1996 are archived online by the Minnesota State Law Library.
Order books - Official statements of the court, affirming, reversing, or modifying the decisions of lower courts that were appealed to the Supreme Court.
Published records and reports - Reports, newsletters, and miscellaneous print and near-print items produced by or concerning the Supreme Court.
MNHS call number: Digital finding aid
Registers of actions - Indexed by Judgment debtor, the registers give the date and brief notation of all actions taken by parties involved in each court case heard by the Supreme Court.
MNHS call number: Digital finding aid
In-Person
Supreme Court and Court of Appeals court records at MNHS are generally open to public use, but a small number of records have restrictions.
Order Online
Copies of Supreme/Appeals Court case files can be ordered online via the Supreme/Appeals Court Case File Research Request page in our online store. Please include any and all information you have about the record you are seeking.
Gale Family Library
Minnesota Historical Society Library
Located on the Second Floor of the Minnesota History Center
345 West Kellogg Blvd.
St. Paul, MN 55102
Library Hours:
Thursday to Saturday: 10am to 4pm
Sunday to Wednesday: Closed
More Information on Visiting the Library
Contact Us:
651-259-3300
