Chillicothe Circuit Court is the circuit court of Livingston County in the Forty-Third Judicial Circuit of the Missouri Circuit court system. The Municipal court of Chillicothe (US 36, US 65, SR 110 and SR 190) holds its hearings in the Associate division of this court.

Chillicothe had been a town under the Shawnees as early as a round 1774. However, in the Summer of 1837 the county court started laying out the town as Chillicothe as the county seat. For the first twenty years of its existence the town experienced very little activity or growth. When news came of the impending construction of the Hannibal and St. Joseph railroad through Chillicothe; trade and business potential improved and several new enterprises were established in town. The Chillicothe Business college was formed around 1890 and operated until about 1952. The Grand River Historical Society museum exhibit's displays include Native American artifacts, antique guns, an iron jail cell, a soda fountain, mom and pop grocery store, dental office, barber shop, beauty shop and memorabilia from the Chillicothe Business College and Chillicothe High School. In addition there are exhibits of Depression Era glass, military remembrances including uniforms from the Civil War through Vietnam war, collection of model cars, airplanes and ships and farm tools in all shapes and sizes. The annex has in it the Moore Monument wagon, a jalopy, the Churchill Truck Lines, Inc. Ford truck, the Irvinbilt truck and an antique fire truck