The Clerk of the Superior Court is a Constitutional Officer. The Clerk of the Superior Court, along with the Tax Collector, is the oldest of public servants. The office can be traced back before Biblical times. The title as we know it is derived from the Middle Ages. A "clerk" was a member of a religious order. Since, for all practical purposes, the scholarship of the Middle Ages was limited to the clergy, the name "Clerk" came to be synonymous with "Scholar". In 1272 AD, contained within the Corporation of Old London, the Office of Clerk appears.
Prior to statehood, Herbert Brown in 1910 was elected to the Office of the Clerk of the Superior Court for the area that is now Pima County. Mr. Brown's duties in 1910 and the duties of today are basically the same, although the volume is drastically different. The Clerk of the Superior Court is the record keeper for the Court, as well as the collector of all fees, fines, bonds and restitution. The Clerk's Office is the first stop in initiating any Superior Court action in Child Support, Civil (Passport, Marriage License, Protection Order, Divorce/Dissolution, Legal Records), Criminal (Appeals), Probate (Guardianship and Conservatorship), Mental Health, Tax or Domestic Relations Matters (Conciliation and Mediation, Paternity/Maternity). The Superior Court also oversees Juvenile Court filings such as Adoption, Dependency, Severance and Delinquency Actions.