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Frequently Asked Questions

The Hillsborough On-line Viewing of Electronic Records (HOVER) provides remote viewing of court records maintained by the Hillsborough County Clerk of Court and Comptroller, as authorized by the Florida Supreme Court. On this site, attorneys of record, self-represented litigants (Pro Se) and the general public will have access to search case indexes and view case progress dockets and images not sealed or made confidential by Florida Rules of Judicial Procedure or court order.

HOVER is available to the attorneys of record and self-represented litigants (Pro Se) on a case, registered users and anonymous users.

You may not have a compatible Internet browser or your access to the Internet may be constrained by a firewall established by your firm or agency.

If you forget your User Name, on the Log In screen, click Forgot User Name. You will receive a message with your User Name.
If you forget your Password, on the Log In screen, click Forgot Password. You will be instructed to enter your User Name and you will receive an email with instructions on resetting your Password. Please note that you may change your Password at any time by clicking "Change Password". You will be required to reset your password every 90 days.

As a Registered User of HOVER, you agree to certain responsibilities, including "to insure that only Registered User has knowledge of the assigned login ID and password". Please read the Registration agreement carefully.

The case may be sealed or you did not enter the case number correctly.

The Florida Supreme Court has determined the appropriate level of access for each category of user. These access levels are in accordance with Florida Supreme Court Orders that protect confidential information. The Clerk is required to comply with these access levels and uses certain security protocols to protect confidential information and documents. The “Attorney of Record” and a self-represented litigant (Pro Se) will see most case details and the latest version of the court document images, except for those marked as Confidential or Sealed.

Typically, once the document is filed and accepted by the Clerk, it will be available in a reasonable amount of time.

A Self-Represented Litigant (Pro Se) is one who represents oneself in a court proceeding without the assistance of a lawyer.

A Registered User is one who has entered into a subscription agreement to have remote viewing of certain records not sealed, or made confidential by the Court.

You may contact the Clerk’s Office through email or by calling 813-307-7180.

Electronic and paper case files can be viewed at our Tampa and Plant City locations . Paper case files can be ordered through our Hillsborough Online Viewing of Electronic Records (HOVER) website. See below for information about how to know if the court file you want to view is in paper format. Paper case files will be held for 10 business days from the date the file was received. If you are not a party to the case, please allow 4 business days to complete the request in order to provide adequate time for the redaction process. You may also order copies of documents by completing the Obtaining Copies for Court Documents form.

To determine if the court file you want to view is in paper format:
  • Access the court case by performing a Case Search.
  • Click the order File to access the Case Information
  • Go to the Events or File Location tab
    • If you see the order File button on the Events tab this means the court file is in paper format and can be ordered to view at our Tampa, or Plant City location.
    • Click the Paper Court Records Exist button to be taken to the File Location tab to order the court file.
  • Select the location where you would like to view the court file
  • Enter your name
  • Enter your email address
    • By entering your name and email address we will be able to notify you when the court file is ready to be viewed
    • Disclaimer: Name and email addresses entered will be publicly available
  • Click the Order Paper File Viewing button
  • You will be notified by email address, if provided, when the court file is ready to be viewed.
  • We are currently working on expanding information related paper file availability and if the order File is not showing, you may Email us at filesordered@hillsclerk.com with the case number included and we can let you know the current location and availability of the file.
  • Electronic court records are viewable through HOVER, based on your User Role. The below Legend contains the definition of the image icons that are used
    document available

Court Records can be accessed through this link: https://hover.hillsclerk.com/. You can view and print non-certified copies of Hillsborough County Court documents at no charge. You can also purchase electronically certified copies of Hillsborough County Court documents. If you find that the documents you need are not imaged or available for viewing, complete and submit this form to our office. We will compute the cost for the copies and contact you through the method you select.

Print screen instructions for Microsoft based computers: Depending on your hardware, you may use the Windows Logo Key Windows Key + PrtScn button as a shortcut for print screen. If your device does not have the PrtScn button, you may use Fn + Windows logo key Windows Key + Space Bar to take a screenshot, which can then be printed.
To locate your screenshots, open File Explorer from the taskbar. On the side navigation pane, select the Pictures folder, and select Screenshots.

Print screen instructions for Apple computers:

  • Capture the entire screen
    1. Click the Capture Entire Screen button in the onscreen controls. Your pointer changes to a camera.
    2. Click any screen to capture that screen, or click Capture in the onscreen controls.
    3. Use the thumbnail to markup, share, save, or take other actions.
    1. Capture a window
    2. Click the Capture Selected Window button in the onscreen controls. Your pointer changes to a camera.
    3. Click a window to capture that window.
    4. To exclude the window's shadow from the screenshot, press and hold the Option (⌥) key while you click.
    5. Use the thumbnail to markup, share, save, or take other actions.
    1. Capture a selected portion of the screen
    2. Click the Capture Selected Portion button in the onscreen controls.
    3. Drag to select an area of the screen to capture. To move the entire selection, drag from within the selection.
    4. Click Capture in the onscreen controls.
    5. Use the thumbnail to markup, share, save, or take other actions.

You can send the Clerk’s Office a notification about any image that has an issue, whether the inadvertent display of confidential information or some other issue. Processes have been put into place to ensure confidentiality of court document images pursuant to Florida Rules of General Practice and Judicial Administration 2.420 and 2.423. You may contact the Clerk’s Office through email or by calling 813-307-7180

Yes. In order to change/update information on your HOVER user profile, such as your username and/or e-mail address, you must first log in to your HOVER user account. Once logged in, click on your username found in the upper right corner of the page then click on “Profile” to make desired changes/updates.

Access to cases and images is determined by the user’s role, Click here to view a Role Chart.

Court Case Text Messaging Notification

Court Case Text Messaging Notifications is a free service (data charges may apply from your phone carrier) to provide text messages for scheduled hearings or for payment due reminders on a court case in Hillsborough County. Click here for additional information and a user guide is available with step-by-step instruction.

eCertify

Electronically certified court records and official records are now available from the Hillsborough County Clerk of Court & Comptroller. Using a service called Clerk eCertify, the Clerk is able to provide its customers with self-validating, tamper evident, electronically certified records online 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. Click here for additional information and a user guide is available with step-by-step instructions.

Viewing of court records in electronic / paper format is available at any of our locations. Paper court files can be ordered through HOVER in advance and notification will be sent when the files are available for viewing at the selected location.

Images for some criminal and civil cases involving sexual abuse may not be viewable remotely due to sensitive nature of cases and redaction processes. If no images appear on the Events or Judgments tab you will need to visit our office in person for viewing.

Browser Requirements

  • Chrome 97.0.4692.99 +
  • Firefox 96.0.3 +
  • Microsoft Edge 97.0.1072.76
  • JAVA enabled
  • Please note that 30 minutes of inactivity will cause the HOVER site to reset or automatically log you out of your session.

    Click here to view Office Hours and Locations.