About the Pontotoc County Chancery Clerk
Ricky Ferguson serves as the Pontotoc County Chancery Clerk. He also serves as County Administrator. The Chancery Clerk is an elected county officer, and the office sits a short walk from the Circuit Clerk in the county seat of Pontotoc.
The office handles chancery case records, the county land index, and county board business. Staff can pull files, prepare certified copies, and explain how to request a record. The clerk keeps the records but cannot give legal advice. Call ahead before a visit, especially for older files that may sit in the vault rather than the electronic system.
Pontotoc County Chancery Clerk
Clerk: Ricky Ferguson (also County Administrator)
34 S. Liberty Street
Pontotoc, MS 38863
662-489-3900
Fax: 662-489-3940
Mon–Fri 8:00 a.m.–5:00 p.m.
What the Pontotoc County Chancery Clerk Holds
In Mississippi, Chancery Court is the equity court. It hears divorce, custody, adoption, probate, guardianship, conservatorship, land, and trust matters. The Chancery Clerk is the custodian for those files. The office is also the deed and land record point for the county. That makes one counter the practical stop for divorce-equity, probate, and land questions.
- Chancery case files for divorce, custody, equity, and family matters.
- The index of Pontotoc County land records, deeds, and chains of title.
- Probate and estate files, including wills, administrations, inventories, and accountings.
- Guardianship and conservatorship files for minors and protected adults.
- County board of supervisors records and county administrative records.
Some content stays restricted. Sealed cases, adoptions, minor-child details, and protected personal identifiers may be withheld or redacted even when the surrounding file is public.
Chancery files carry status flags that explain where a case stands. A docket may show a guardian ad litem appointed, inventory or accounting waived, a trust account, a minor child involved, or a file marked Vault In or Vault Out. Those labels help a researcher read a case at a glance, and a clerk can translate any flag that appears on a file.
Pontotoc County Land Records Portal and Its Disclaimer
The Chancery Clerk offers internet access to the index of Pontotoc County land records through an online portal. The portal lets a user search the land index and purchase copies online with a credit card. It is convenient, but it is not the official record. The clerk states plainly that only the Land Records Index provided at the courthouse should be referenced as official.
Read the access terms before you buy. Online credit-card purchases are final, and the service fee is non-refundable. The fee runs 2.95 percent with a $2.50 minimum. The user also agrees to indemnify and hold harmless the Chancery Clerk and anyone involved in storing, retrieving, or displaying the information for any damage caused by internet retrieval.
| Portal Function | Type | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Official Land Records | Application link | The only visible application option on the landing page; searches the index of Pontotoc County land records. |
| Purchase copies online | Portal function | Credit-card purchase is final; service fee 2.95 percent, $2.50 minimum, non-refundable. |
| Office contact | Informational | Shows office hours, mailing address, and phone for the Chancery Clerk. |
Pontotoc has been the county's only seat since the town was laid out in 1836, so the courthouse holds a long, continuous land and probate index. Older deeds, estates, and divorces may predate the electronic system and live only in the physical vault index. That is exactly why the official courthouse index matters for any deep title or estate search.
Note: the online index can lag or omit entries, so verify any title or boundary question against the official courthouse index before you rely on it.
How to Request a Certified Copy or Search Land Records
A certified copy carries the clerk's seal and proves a record is a true copy of what the court or land index holds. People need certified copies for property closings, estate work, title disputes, and legal filings. The steps below move from finding the record to getting a certified copy in hand.
- Identify the record type first. Divorce, probate, guardianship, and land matters route to the Chancery Clerk; felony and major civil files route to the Circuit Clerk.
- For a land search, open the online portal and search the index, remembering that the online index is not the official record.
- For an official or certified copy, contact the Chancery Clerk counter by phone or in person at 34 S. Liberty Street.
- Give the clerk the case number if you have it, the party names, the document type, and the number of copies you need.
- Pay the copy and certification charge. Online card purchases carry the non-refundable service fee; ask the counter about in-person payment options.
- Pick up the certified copy or arrange to receive it by mail at the address you provide.
Records Request Form Fields
Whether you call, visit, or write, the same details help the clerk find the file fast. A vague request slows everything down. Put the items below in a written request, or have them ready when you reach the counter. Under the Mississippi Public Records Act, a clear, identifiable written request also starts the access timeline.
| Field | Required | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Case or Instrument Number | If known | Speeds the search; not every requester will have it for older files. |
| Party Names | Yes | Full names of the parties, the deceased, the ward, or the property owner. |
| Document Type | Yes | State whether you want a deed, divorce decree, will, order, or full file. |
| Approximate Date or Year | If known | Helps narrow vault and legacy files that predate the electronic system. |
| Number of Copies | Yes | Note whether each copy must be certified. |
| Requester Contact | Yes | Name, phone, and a mailing address if the copy is to be sent. |
Pontotoc County Probate and Estate Records
Mississippi probate is a chancery function. A Pontotoc estate normally begins with a petition in Chancery Court. If there is a will, the filer asks the court to admit it and to appoint an executor. If there is no will, the filer seeks administration under state law. After appointment, the fiduciary may inventory assets, notify creditors, pay claims, and account to the court unless the court waives inventory or accounting. The Chancery Clerk holds the resulting file, and our Pontotoc County probate records page walks through that search in more depth.
Probate filing fees are a known gap. No official Pontotoc Chancery Clerk probate fee schedule was located in this research. Do not assume the Circuit Clerk's civil filing fees apply to a probate matter; those are a separate office and a separate court. For current probate and estate copy charges, call the Chancery Clerk at 662-489-3900 and ask before you file or order copies.
Note: guardianship, conservatorship, and minor-estate files can include sealed medical information and protected identifiers, so expect parts of those records to be restricted.
Pontotoc County Chancery Cases on MEC and PAMEC
Newer Pontotoc Chancery cases are filed electronically. Mississippi Electronic Courts went live for the Pontotoc Chancery Court on March 28, 2022. Attorneys and filers use a MEC login to file and view. Members of the public who want to view case information register for a PAMEC account and sign in through the First Chancery MEC and PAMEC login. Access depends on your role. The system can block a document with a permission message when viewing is limited to attorneys of record, and sealed, juvenile, family, or minor-child content is restricted.
For help with a login, the MEC help desk is helpdesk@mec.ms.gov, and PAMEC support answers at 601-576-4650 or by mail at P.O. Box 117, Jackson, MS 39205. If a case predates MEC, is sealed, or does not appear online, call or visit the Chancery Clerk and ask about clerk-assisted or in-person search of the vault and legacy index.
Online access does not replace the records counter. Many Pontotoc chancery files are older, sealed, or restricted, so the call-first habit still works best. A short phone call confirms whether a file is electronic, whether parts are restricted, and what a certified copy will cost before you make the trip to Liberty Street.
Chancery Clerk and Circuit Clerk in Pontotoc County
Two clerks, two counters, two record sets. Sending a request to the wrong office wastes a day. The Chancery Clerk handles equity, divorce, probate, and land records. The Circuit Clerk handles Circuit criminal and civil files and issues marriage licenses. For the felony, civil-suit, jury, and marriage-license side, see our Pontotoc County Circuit Clerk page. The table sorts the most common requests by office.
| Record or Service | Office |
|---|---|
| Divorce, custody, and equity case files | Chancery Clerk |
| Probate, estates, guardianship, conservatorship | Chancery Clerk |
| Land records index, deeds, chains of title | Chancery Clerk |
| Felony criminal and major civil case files | Circuit Clerk |
| Marriage license issuance and certified copies | Circuit Clerk |
| Voter registration and jury service | Circuit Clerk |
When a record is older or not online, the fallback chain is the same for both offices: ask at the counter, call for instructions, or file a written Mississippi Public Records Act request with the office that holds the file.