The clerk of court shall not be liable for any damages caused by any third party to any information included in pleadings or documents filed of record by the clerk of court.
Art. 259.Liability of Clerk of Court
Title I. Courts · Chapter 5. Clerks · Enacted 2017 · no amendments on record · Last verified July 30, 2026
In one sentenceArticle 259 shields the clerk of court from liability for damages a third party causes using information contained in a pleading or document the clerk has filed of record.
Full Text of Art. 259
Amendment History
Added by Acts 2017, No. 173, §5, eff. 8/1/2017.
Plain-English Summary
Court filings are public, and they often contain personal information — names, addresses, account numbers, dates. Article 259 draws a clear line around what the clerk of court answers for when that information ends up in the wrong hands.
If a third party misuses information from a pleading or document the clerk has filed — say, by committing fraud or identity theft using data that was in the filing — the clerk isn't liable for the resulting damage. The clerk's job is to receive, stamp, and preserve what parties submit, not to police what other people do with information the filing itself put into the public record.
The rule doesn't touch the clerk's other obligations. A clerk who neglects a ministerial duty can still face contempt under Article 257, and the redaction requirements in Article 253 still fall on whoever files the document.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I sue the clerk of court if someone misuses information from a filing in my case?
No. Article 259 protects the clerk from liability for damages a third party causes using information contained in a document the clerk filed of record.
Why does this protection exist?
Filed documents are public record, and clerks handle enormous volumes of them. Article 259 keeps the clerk from bearing responsibility for what a third party later does with information a filing party put into the record.
Does this mean the clerk has no responsibility for the filed information?
The filing party, not the clerk, is responsible for keeping protected information like Social Security numbers out of what's filed under Article 253. Article 259 only removes the clerk's liability for a third party's misuse of what's in the record.
Source & verification. Article text is reproduced verbatim from
the vLex (Louisiana Code of Civil Procedure, 2026 Edition). Enacted by the Louisiana Legislature.
Last verified July 30, 2026.
· Official source
Also known as: clerk of court liability Louisianaclerk immunity third party damagesidentity theft court filing Louisianaliability for filed documents