Telephone & Walk In Hours: 8:30 AM to 4:30 PM (copies until 4:20 pm)

The Clerk of the Circuit Court Trust and Adoption Department is located in Circuit Court for Anne Arundel County courthouse.

Questions? Please call 410-222-1331.

Case Search

You can now search cases from Circuit Court and District Court online by using the Maryland Judiciary Case Search feature.

Forms

We are pleased to announce that Domestic Relations Forms and other family law forms are now available online via the Family Services pages. For help filling out the Maryland Family Law Forms, call the Legal Forms Helpline, operated by the Women's Law Center of Maryland at 800-818-9888.

Family Self Help

The Family Law Help Center provides legal information and forms to assist unrepresented litigants in matters of divorce, custody/visitation, child support and name changes. The Center is funded through a grant from the Circuit Court for Anne Arundel County, but is staffed entirely by the Maryland Center for Legal Assistance.

Adoption

Adoption cases are filed for individuals looking to establish a legal parent/child relationship where one does not exist. These files are maintained by and remain in the Trust and Adoption Department. All pleadings and other papers in adoption proceedings shall be sealed when they are filed and are not open to inspection by any person, including the parents, except upon an order of court.

Information about adoptions can be found in the Maryland Rules of Procedure in Title 9 (volume 2.) The Family Law article of the Annotated Code of Maryland also contains applicable law. These volumes can be found in the law library at the Circuit Court, or the State Law Library in the Courts of Appeal building, 316 Rowe Boulevard, Annapolis, MD 21401. 

Guardianship

Guardianship cases are filed for individuals who have a disability (which includes minority) and may also have property. This includes guardianship of person, property, or person and property together. These guardianship files are maintained by and remain in the Trust and Adoption Department. 

Pursuant to MD Rule 16-914 all guardianship documents are sealed except for Orders applicable to MD Rule 10-108, such as:

• Order Appointing a Guardian
• Letters of Guardianship
• Orders Assuming Jurisdiction over a Fiduciary Estate other than Guardianship
• Modifications to the orders listed above.

Anyone who is not a party to the case, must petition the court for access to any and all other documents in guardianship cases.

Information about establishing a guardianship can be found in the Maryland Rules of Procedure; guardianship and fiduciary rules are found in Title 10 (Volume 2). The Estates and Trusts volume of the Annotated Code of Maryland also contains applicable law. These volumes can be found in the law library at the Circuit Court, or the Courts of Appeals Library (316 Rowe Blvd, Annapolis). 

The guardianship decree or order establishes the guardianship, names the guardian(s), and states whether the guardian(s) must file a bond and in what amount. The guardian(s) must file an Inventory of Assets within 60 days of appointment. Fiduciary Reports are due each year within 60 days of the accounting period; a fee is charged based upon the value of the assets in the guardianship estate.