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Public Record Office Victoria holds thousands of record series which relate to criminal cases heard in Victorian courts.
For the most serious crimes, a criminal trial brief was created, compiling the information the Crown used for prosecutions to be heard in either the County or Supreme Court. There are also further records relating to capital cases.
For less serious offences (usually heard in the Magistrates Court / Court of Petty Sessions), the record may instead consist of the summary details of the case.
Follow the links below to identify the type of record you’re looking for.
What do I need to know before I start?
Any of the following information is useful:
- the name of the person accused
- the type of crime the person was accused of
- an approximate year that the case took place
- the locality of the court which heard the case.
The pages linked below describe how to use these pieces of information to identify a specific case file or other record relating to a criminal court hearing.
View online or at the Reading Room?
Look for the icons below to identify if records are viewable online (mouse over globe) or need to be ordered online and then viewed at our Reading Rooms (open book):
Look for these icons to:
View online
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Material in the Public Record Office Victoria archival collection contains words and descriptions that reflect attitudes and government policies at different times which may be insensitive and upsetting
Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Peoples should be aware the collection and website may contain images, voices and names of deceased persons.
PROV provides advice to researchers wishing to access, publish or re-use records about Aboriginal Peoples
