About the Benton County Chancery Clerk
Marlene McKenzie serves as the Benton County Chancery Clerk. The Chancery Clerk is an elected county officer based at the courthouse in Ashland. The county runs two separate clerk offices. The other is the Circuit Clerk. Each clerk guards a different set of records. The Chancery Clerk handles equity, family, probate, and land matters, while the Circuit Clerk handles felony, civil jury, and marriage records.
Few county offices wear as many hats. The same official assists the Chancellors and the Chancery Court. She also serves as clerk of the Board of Supervisors, county auditor, and county treasurer. The office is custodian of all Chancery Court records and the county's public land records. It oversees land redemption too. That is the process that lets owners pay overdue taxes and reclaim land sold at a tax sale. This blend of court, land, and money duties makes the office a central stop for many county affairs.
Benton County Chancery Clerk
Clerk: Marlene McKenzie
190 Ripley Avenue
Ashland, MS 38603
Mailing: PO Box 218, Ashland, MS 38603
662-224-6300
info@bentoncountyms.gov
Monday to Friday, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.
What the Chancery Clerk Does in Benton County
The Benton County Chancery Clerk records and protects documents that often last for generations. Court files, board minutes, and land titles all pass through the office. Staff index new filings, collect copy fees, and help the public find records. The clerk also keeps the financial books for the county. A single visit can touch a court case, a deed, and a tax matter at the same counter.
- Serve as clerk of the Chancery Court and assist the Chancellors
- Keep custody of Chancery Court records: divorce, custody, adoption, probate, guardianship, conservatorship, and equity
- Record and store public land records, such as deeds, deeds of trust, liens, and plats
- Act as clerk of the Board of Supervisors and keep the board minutes
- Serve as county auditor and county treasurer
- Oversee land redemption for property sold at a tax sale
Which Records Route to the Chancery Clerk
The split between the two clerks follows the split between the courts. Chancery Court is a court of equity. It hears divorce, separate maintenance, child custody, child support, adoption, and termination of parental rights. It also handles probate of wills, intestate estates, heirship, guardianship, conservatorship, and minor settlements. Land disputes such as boundary, easement, partition, and tax sale confirmation belong to Chancery Court as well. Every one of those files lives with the Chancery Clerk, and estate matters appear in the county probate records.
The Mississippi Judiciary explains the equity role of these courts on its Chancery Court overview page.
That statewide description matches the local index, where divorce, probate, and land cases fill much of the docket. Some records people expect to find here actually sit with the other clerk. Felony criminal files, civil jury cases, the judgment roll, subpoenas, and marriage licenses all route to the Benton County Circuit Clerk. A marriage record is a common mix-up. Couples apply for a license through the Circuit Clerk, not the Chancery Clerk. Anyone unsure which office holds a file can review the duties on the Benton County Circuit Clerk page before a trip.
Note: Mississippi's Public Records Act, Title 25, Chapter 61, favors inspection, but sealed orders and confidentiality statutes still limit access to some Chancery files.
Search Benton County Chancery Court Cases
Public Chancery cases are searchable for free through the county's Delta Computer Systems portal. Start at the Benton County Chancery Clerk landing page and choose the Chancery Court search. Cases and images run from August 2010 to the present. The system lets a visitor search by name, case number, or other details. Unofficial scanned copies cost $0.50 per page. The portal warns that online data is not official and that the courthouse records control if the two differ.
The Chancery Court case search form offers these fields.
| Field | Required | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Party Name (Last, First) | Optional | Use one search criterion at a time |
| Case Number | Optional | Exact case number if known |
| Styled Defendant | Optional | Defendant named in the case style |
| Styled Plaintiff | Optional | Plaintiff named in the case style |
| Filed Date | Optional | Date a case was opened |
| Final Disposition Date | Optional | Date a case closed |
| Docket (Book/Page) | Optional | Book and page lookup |
| File Number | Optional | File-number lookup |
| Use Refinements | Optional | Yes or No; refinements apply to name searches |
| Filing Date Range | Optional | From and to dates |
| Case Type | Optional | All, Civil, or Criminal |
| Nature of Action | Optional | Long list including Divorce, Custody, Probate, Heirship, Guardianship, Conservatorship, Adoption, and Land Title |
The judges who hear these cases sit in the Eighteenth Chancery District. Its official district site lists chancellor contacts and order-setting rules.
Benton County is one of five counties in that district, alongside Calhoun, Lafayette, Marshall, and Tippah. Two chancellors, Hon. Lawrence Little and Hon. Robert Q. Whitwell, hear its cases.
Note: Chancery cases and images on the Delta portal reach back only to August 2010, so older files need a call or a visit to the Chancery Clerk.
The Benton County Deed and Record Search
Land records are the other half of the Chancery Clerk's online system. The deed and record search covers deeds and recorded instruments from 1994 to the present. A title researcher can search by grantor or grantee name, book and page, filing date, or legal description. The same $0.50 per page price applies to unofficial scanned copies. The form is unusually deep, which is part of why it serves both buyers and abstractors so well.
The deed search fields are listed below.
| Field | Type | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Grantor or Grantee (last first) | Text | Search by party name |
| Partial Name: Last Name | Text | Partial-name search must match the last name |
| Book / Page | Text | Book and page lookup |
| Filing Date | Date | Format printed as mm/dd/yyyy |
| Section / Township / Range | Text | Legal-description lookup |
| Subdivision | Dropdown | Includes Ashland, Bear Creek, Dogwood Farms, Hickory Flat, Lake Holly Forest, Michigan City, Snow Lake Shores, Winborn, and more; Block and Lot fields also show |
| Instrument Number (Year-Number) | Text | Year and number split field |
| Township / Range / Section | Text | Split-field legal description |
| Results Per Page | Dropdown | 25, 50, 75, 100, 150, or 200 |
| Limit to Instrument Type | Dropdown | Includes warranty deed, quitclaim deed, deed of trust, judgment lien, lis pendens, easement, plat, mineral deed, will, and many others |
| Include Grantors / Grantees | Radio | Yes or No for each |
| Book Number Range | Range | From and to book numbers |
| Filing Date Range | Date range | From and to dates |
| Instrument Number Range | Range | From and to instrument numbers |
The subdivision list mirrors the county's own communities, from Ashland and Hickory Flat to Snow Lake Shores and Michigan City. That makes a parcel search faster when a street name is hard to recall.
Delta Search Tips
Delta's databases work best with a light touch. The Delta FAQ explains that each engine searches by only one criterion at a time. Less information often returns more results. A search that fails on a full name may succeed on a last name alone.
- Search one field at a time: name, book and page, filing date, or legal description
- If a name search fails, try fewer letters or only a last name
- Do not add a comma if the courthouse recorded the name without one
- For an address, use the short form a record may use, such as "Sharp Rd" rather than "Sharp Road"
- Remember that any change to a public record must be made at the courthouse
How to Request a Certified Copy
A certified copy carries the clerk's seal and proves a record is genuine. Courts, banks, title companies, and government agencies often demand one. A copy printed from the online portal will not meet that standard. Benton County does not publish a separate certified-copy order form, so the request goes straight to the clerk.
- Identify the record. Note the case number, the book and page, or the instrument number from a Delta search, or have the party names and filing date ready.
- Contact the Chancery Clerk. Call 662-224-6300, visit the counter at 190 Ripley Avenue, or write to PO Box 218, Ashland, MS 38603.
- State your request. Tell the clerk the document type, how many certified copies you need, and whether you will pick up or receive the copy by mail.
- Pay the fee. The clerk confirms the certified-copy cost, which Benton County does not list online. Ask the amount before you submit payment.
- Receive the copy. Collect it at the counter or wait for delivery by mail.
Benton County Chancery Clerk Fees
Benton County does not publish a full Chancery Clerk fee schedule online. The county's general contact form does not list copy prices, certified-copy costs, or probate filing fees. The located prices below come from the online portals and statewide sources. For anything not shown, contact the clerk before a visit.
| Item | Amount |
|---|---|
| Delta unofficial scanned copy (Chancery case or deed) | $0.50 per page |
| PAMEC document viewing | $0.20 per page |
| PAMEC annual public-access registration | About $10 per year |
| Certified copy (Chancery or land record) | Not published; contact the clerk |
| Probate filing fee | Not published; contact the clerk |
| Plain copy at the counter | Not published; contact the clerk |
Important: Online copies from Delta are unofficial. Only certified records from the Chancery Clerk at the courthouse are accepted as official in legal matters.
Mail, In-Person, and Electronic Filing
Several channels reach the same office. In person, the Chancery Clerk counter at 190 Ripley Avenue is open Monday to Friday, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. By mail, send requests to PO Box 218, Ashland, MS 38603. By phone, call 662-224-6300. The official county Chancery Clerk page describes the office and its many duties.
Benton County Chancery Court joined Mississippi Electronic Courts, known as MEC, on May 15, 2023. Attorneys file new cases electronically through that system. The public can view filed documents through Public Access MEC, called PAMEC, after creating an account. Registration runs through the PAMEC registration page and carries an annual fee plus a per-page viewing charge. The statewide MEC portal is the entry point to select Benton County Chancery Court, and the court's listing appears on the Eighteenth Chancery District court information page.
Court scheduling follows a local rule worth noting. The Eighteenth Chancery District calendar page states that a setting order must be placed on the docket. A Notice of Hearing filed with the clerk alone is not enough.
Filers who skip the setting order can find a matter left off the docket, so the clerk's guidance matters before any hearing date. When in doubt, a quick call to the Chancery Clerk confirms the right step.