Divorce records are legal documents that are created when a divorce is first filed for, and they are then subsequently updated throughout a divorce case and added to if any other issues such as child custody or spousal support are relevant.
Many courts and organizations keep divorce records on file, but will only release them for a specific fee. This makes it difficult to find free divorce records, but it’s certainly possible if you’re prepared to spend a bit of time looking.
Reasons for Seeking Free Divorce Records
There are many different reasons why a person would want to seek divorce records. This may be because they want their own divorce records as proof of a legal separation, or perhaps to find out something about someone else.
In some cases people seek the divorce records of someone that they are dating or in a long term relationship with. This may seem distrusting and perhaps even an invasion of personal privacy, but we should remember that these records are made public anyway, and the people seeking the divorce records may be doing so in order to protect their children from further heartbreak, if they were to form an emotional bond with the new mother or father figure. It’s not uncommon for someone to find out something about their potential spouse (perhaps that they were violent or neglectful towards their previous family) that had been kept secret. For them, seeking free divorce records is something they’re very glad they did.
Some individuals seek free divorce records because they have lost or damaged their own, perhaps in a flood or had them stolen. These records are also updated very often during divorce cases and even closed divorce cases, so individuals may wish to have a confirmation of what’s going on. For instance, a couple may be legally divorced, but their divorce records will be updated if there are any changes made to the status of the custody of their children, or alimony (financial support paid to one spouse to another following divorce).
What You May Come Up Against
Some types of divorce records are made private (also known as ‘sealed’) to protect people noted in them, or to avoid public outcry over a certain incident. This could be due to the abuse of children, or even of a spouse. If you are told that you cannot view someone else’s divorce papers for this reason then the decision is likely to be final: you will not get to see them.
Another problem you may face when seeking free divorce files is that you may not have the relevant information to complete a search. There are millions of divorce papers across the US and not having enough information to narrow your search down to just a few may mean you cannot find the right one. When you ask to find a specific divorce paper you will at the very least need the surname of the person you’re searching for, and the country or state in which they filed for divorce/had their divorce finalized.
Where to Start
Finding divorce papers is usually easy and can be done at your local council or county office. However, these easily found records are very rarely free. If you are lucky enough o find a company offering free access to divorce records then it’s likely that you will only be provided with certain information. Either this, or that company will claim their service is free, but then forward you to another company’s page who charge.
In the best circumstance, you will be allowed to view the papers and make notes on them, but not make a physical copy without paying a fee. The charges to be able to make a copy, however, are usually no more than $40 and can be as small as $10.