Evangeline Parish Clerk Overview
The Evangeline Parish Clerk of Court is a unified Louisiana parish clerk office, not a split county clerk and district clerk system. The official clerk website identifies Randall "Randy" M. Deshotel as Clerk of Court and ties the office to the 13th Judicial District Court of Louisiana. The clerk describes the office as custodian of records that preserve family history, land purchases, marriage events, birth records, and court proceedings in Evangeline Parish.
The clerk's published service areas include jury duty, recording fees, civil fees, marriage licenses, birth certificates, and holidays. Court case files, succession filings, divorce decrees, civil suits, criminal case records after filing, and many certified copy requests route through this office. Law-enforcement reports, active warrant questions, jail records, and crash reports are separate Sheriff channels, even when those events later appear in a court file.
The official Clerk services page is the source for the office's public service categories.
That services page is useful because it separates court, recording, civil, marriage, birth certificate, jury, and holiday information before a user chooses a request path.
Evangeline Parish Clerk of Court
Clerk: Randall "Randy" M. Deshotel
200 Court Street, Suite 104
Ville Platte, LA 70586
Mail: P.O. Box/Drawer 347, Ville Platte, LA 70586
337-363-5671
Fax: 337-363-5780
Monday-Friday, 8:00 a.m.-4:30 p.m.
Evangeline Parish Clerk Duties
The Evangeline Parish Clerk of Court handles the local records that make a district court case or recorded instrument traceable. In civil matters, the clerk receives pleadings, maintains filing records, accepts civil e-filing through eClerks LA, and provides access to public case material when it is not sealed or confidential. In criminal matters, the clerk's file begins when a charge is filed with the court, so a jail roster entry or arrest report may exist before the clerk has a full criminal case record.
Recording duties are also important in Evangeline Parish. The clerk's recording-fees page says staff handle recording and preservation of legal instruments such as deeds, mortgages, leases, and vital records. Professional users may also need e-recording rather than a walk-in copy request because the clerk links CSC, ePN, and Simplifile as e-recording partners.
The Clerk recording-fees page identifies the recording and preservation side of the office.
The recording page matters for users who are looking for land instruments rather than a case docket or certified court copy.
- Maintain 13th Judicial District Court filings for Evangeline Parish.
- Provide public records search access through the clerk's official online channels.
- Record and preserve deeds, mortgages, leases, and other legal instruments.
- Support civil filing, e-filing, marriage licenses, and certified copy requests.
- Serve as the local source for divorce decrees granted in Evangeline Parish.
Evangeline Parish Clerk Online Search
The clearest online public records channel for the clerk is COTT eSearch. The Evangeline Parish COTT eSearch login is subscription based. The public login page says users can search records without accessing them from the office, but it does not expose detailed case or document search fields before login. That means party-name, case-number, book-page, and date-range fields should not be assumed unless an authenticated search confirms them.
Before searching, the portal advises users to review Good Thru Dates for indexing information and statistics. It also lists technical needs: a current Chrome, Edge, or Firefox browser, HTML5 support, pop-ups allowed, cookies and JavaScript enabled, and Adobe Reader for document image viewing. Unsupported browsers may keep images from working, which is a practical problem when the goal is to print or inspect a record image.
The COTT eSearch page is the official login and subscription path for Evangeline Parish Clerk records.
The login screen is also where new users start account creation, choose an access period, and review print charges before using the system.
| Field Label | Type | Required | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| User ID | Text | Yes for login | Existing account credential. |
| Password | Password | Yes for login | Password is case-sensitive. |
| Password Reminder | Link | No | Account recovery path. |
| Create an Account | Link | No | Registration and subscription setup for new users. |
| Good Thru Dates | Utility link | No | Recommended before searching to review indexing coverage. |
Request Evangeline Parish Certified Copies
Certified copies are official copies issued by the records custodian. They are usually needed for legal filing, title work, immigration, licensing, name changes, probate or succession use, and other matters where an ordinary printout is not enough. In Evangeline Parish, the request should start with the clerk when the record is a court document, marriage record, recorded instrument, succession record, or divorce decree from the 13th Judicial District Court.
If the record is indexed online, COTT access can help identify the document before asking for a certified copy. If the record is older, not digitized, sealed, or not found online, the practical fallback is the clerk counter, phone, fax, or mail. Give the clerk enough detail to locate the file and confirm current fee and payment rules before mailing a request.
- Identify the record type, such as civil judgment, criminal minute entry, marriage record, recorded deed, succession judgment, or divorce decree.
- Check COTT eSearch or the clerk's service pages if online access may help locate the file.
- Contact the clerk with the party names, case or instrument details, approximate filing date, and requested copy type.
- Confirm fee, certification, payment method, pickup, mail, or fax handling before sending money or documents.
- Use the certified copy from the clerk for official use, not an uncertified web printout.
Evangeline Parish Clerk Request Details
Official online sources did not expose a single text-captured clerk records request form for all record types. A good request still follows a consistent field inventory. The goal is to help staff locate the file without guessing. For court cases, include the court and case style if known. For recorded instruments, include names, instrument type, and any book, page, file, or date detail available from the index.
| Field | Required | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Record type | Yes | Civil, criminal, marriage, succession, divorce, deed, mortgage, lease, or other instrument. |
| Party or grantor/grantee names | Yes | Use full names and prior names when known. |
| Case number or recording detail | No | Not always known, but it can speed the search. |
| Approximate filing or recording date | No | Useful when the exact number is not available. |
| Copy type | Yes | State whether plain, certified, or image print is needed. |
| Return method | Yes | Pickup, mail, fax, or other office-approved delivery method. |
Note: Certified records must come from the clerk or official custodian, even if an online image is available.
Evangeline Parish Clerk Fees
The most specific fee figures located in the public research are the COTT subscription and print charges. The clerk site links civil-fee and recording-fee resources, but the browser text did not reveal the full local civil, recording, marriage, or certified copy fee schedule. For those items, call the clerk before mailing payment or relying on an old fee sheet.
The Clerk civil-fees page is the official local entry point for civil filing fee information and e-filing access.
The civil-fees page is relevant when a user is filing or following a civil case rather than only buying an existing document image.
| Item | Amount / status |
|---|---|
| COTT daily subscription | $20.00 for 24-hour access |
| COTT monthly subscription | $75.00 for 30 days |
| COTT six-month subscription | $400.00 for 180 days |
| COTT annual subscription | $750.00 for 365 days |
| COTT printing | $1.00 per page |
| COTT card or PayPal service fee | $0.30 of the purchase price per transaction |
| Civil, recording, marriage, and certified copy fees | Not located in official browser text; verify with the clerk. |
Evangeline Parish Clerk Forms
The clerk's public services pages point users toward several task-specific forms and platforms. The marriage-license page links an application. The civil-fees page links eClerks LA for e-filing. The recording-fees page links e-recording partners for professional recording workflows. These are different paths, so a user filing a civil pleading should not use the marriage-license application, and a user asking for a law-enforcement report should use the Sheriff's records process instead.
The eVault LA portal is a statewide eClerks LA search channel for participating clerks and records.
eVault can help users understand multi-parish clerk search options, but availability still depends on the participating clerk and record type.
- Marriage license application for Evangeline Parish marriage license processing.
- eClerks LA for civil e-filing and statewide clerk services.
- CSC, ePN, and Simplifile for e-recording partners linked by the clerk.
- COTT eSearch account creation for subscription records access.
Evangeline Parish Clerk Filing Channels
Mail and online filing depend on the task. Court records and certified copies can be requested from the clerk by phone, fax, mail, or in person when the record is held by the Clerk of Court. Civil e-filing routes through eClerks LA. E-recording is handled through the clerk's listed recording partners. Older or non-digitized records remain an office request because official sources did not publish a date range for online coverage.
The eClerks LA site supports Louisiana clerk services and filing workflows.
That state-level clerk portal is useful when the local Evangeline Parish page sends users to Louisiana e-filing or related clerk tools.
Public access also has legal limits. Louisiana Public Records Law, including La. R.S. 44:1 and La. R.S. 44:32, supports inspection and copy requests to custodians. Juvenile, adoption, sealed, expunged, and protected identifying information may still be restricted. For general case searching, the broader Evangeline Parish court records page explains how the clerk, city court, municipal court, and federal systems differ.