There are a number of reasons why people should wish to consult the available archives containing free divorce records. In each US state, divorce is handled by a different agency, so fee schedules, available records, and the process required to obtain them will be different for each. Generally speaking, however, there are at least two types of record available from your local county court's office. These are the original divorce degree, which contains all of the terms of the divorce, and is signed by a judge to certify that the decree has been made binding law. The second is a divorce certificate, which shows simply that a divorce occurred, when, where, and who it involved.
In most cases, to get access to divorce records, you need to be able to show that you're either the husband or the wife, or you have a court order that allows you access (usually reserved for law enforcement.) Most states keep large archives containing all divorce certificates, decrees, and marriage details going back at least twenty years, most at least forty, and some go back nearly a hundred years. You are free to browse these records to see what information is available; however, you will need to show proof of identity and right to view the material to actually get copy of divorce records and certificates. Access to state archives is available in person, by facsimile, phone, by written request, or over the Internet.
Fees for these services vary. Formal requests usually attract fees of between 10 and $30 per copy of the documents requested. In some states, the fees are much lower, for instance, Florida divorce records are available for a $5 fee, and records from Washington DC's archives cost only $2. New York is among the most expensive, charging a minimum of $45 for a single document, while Maryland is the cheapest, which charges no fee for written requests. Finding your records is free in most states, since you do the hard work yourself; however, obtaining copies of online divorce records attracts a fee.
In most states and countries, one of the documents required to obtain a divorce is a marriage certificate. If you have lost yours, or cannot produce a copy of the marriage certificate, you will need to obtain a copy from the relevant department.
Just as it does within the US, the procedures for accessing state and national archives vary between countries outside the US.
In
Australia, access to the Divorce Case Papers, encompassing records from 1873 to the present, is available from the Western Sydney Records Centre. Copies of marriage certificates and other information can be made available from your state registrar of births, deaths and marriages. Each of the countries of the UK maintains a General Register Office, which keeps track of all births, deaths, marriages, and divorce, and access to these records is usually relatively easy.
If you plan to get a divorce in Australia, the
Aussie Divorce Services can guide you.
In the
United Kingdom, registrars may have records going back many hundreds of years. These are not available online. Registrar staff will search the records for people on an individual basis, provided you can provide the name of petitioner, the year of the divorce, and if possible, the name of the respondent. They will not search the archives on vague information, or speculative guessing. The National Archives can provide copies of divorce and marriage certificates; however, these will not be a legally valid "certified copy", which is only available by application to the court itself. Canada and New Zealand have well developed archive retrieval services for people trying to obtain free online divorce records.
Finally, within the
United States of America, you might wish to try a
divorce record search engine. These index all the divorce records from Colorado, Kentucky, Maine, Florida, Texas, Nevada, and California (which each maintain good electronic records databases) and will deliver you a match for every divorce record that matches a name. This can help you for the intermediate step of actually tracking down the specific divorce record you want, so you can then make a quick and easy application to your state or county for the records you want, without having to pay extra fees for incorrect matches and information you don't want or need.
In the US, there's a number of places online where you can carry out a divorce (which is much cheaper than going through the courts and lawyers).
Legal Zoom's 3-Step Divorce Process can provide quick and easy online divorces.
Here are additional resources you might be interested in:
Divorce Information in the USA
Divorce Information in Australia
Divorce Information in the UK
Divorce Information in Canada
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