The Cost of a Divorce Record

In Oregon, the Center for Health Statistics is largely responsible for issuing and preserving Divorce Records. Courtesy of Oregon Health Authority

People search for divorce records for a myriad of reasons, ranging from genealogical research and personal use to official or legal purposes. Divorced persons are required to show proof that their previous marriage was legally terminated before entering into a new union. Other reasons may include the authentication of documents as ordered by a court and the comparison of a copy of a document with the original on file.

Why Are Divorce Records Important?

Divorce records contain information about the termination of a marriage between two people. Often, the records also contain vital information on the parties, including; decisions, agreements, and orders of the court on the divorce. Records may also state the financial relationship of the parties after the divorce such as spousal support, care, and custody of their children, distribution of their assets and liabilities. Other information may include the address of the parties involved (as at the time of the divorce), evidence on their life choices (in some cases like drug abuse), etc. These types of information are in many cases considered sensitive and confidential. Still, unless they are sealed by the court, divorce records are public records and are accessible to anyone who has an interest and knows exactly what information they are looking for and where to get them.

Depending on the purpose of the search, an interested person may be able to access divorce records online or view and collect physical copies.

There are two major ways of getting divorce records:

How to Obtain Divorce Records Online

• On the State’s website: Many states have a central archive for vital records and provide access to the information online. Depending on the record of interest (divorce certificate or divorce decree) interested parties may be able to view the basic information relating to a divorce on the official vital records website for the state. The available information may not always be specific or contain any personal identifiers which can make sifting through the records to reach the one of interest a daunting task. In addition, the vital records office of many states may only make divorce records with certain period available. For instance, the California Department of Public Health Vital Records office only keeps divorce records from 1962 to 1984.
  Divorce certificates are restricted from public access for 50 years after the dissolution of the marriage. Authorized persons such as the ex-spouses themselves may apply to the Oregon Centre for Health Statistics for a certified copy of the divorce certificate. Other persons must go through the office of the State Registrar to submit an application to access restricted vital records.

• On the State’s Court Website: Divorce is a court proceeding and is recorded by the courts. In compliance with public access laws, most courts are required to allow free access to court cases. In States like Minnesota, divorce records may be found on the court’s website. However, finding these records will require relevant details such as the case number, first and last names of one or both parties, or the names and or bar number of their attorney.

Where to Find Free Online Divorce Records?

States and Court websites may allow access to free public divorce records but this is often limited to viewing general information on the divorce, such as names of the parties. The information obtained cannot be used for official purposes or for purposes other than to confirm there was actually a divorce between the two people.

Interested parties may also be able to find useful information and divorce records from trusted sites like staterecords.org which provide services that are designed to foster the implementation of public access laws and allow people access to public records with ease within the limits of applicable privacy laws. The interested person may choose from the different states listed on the site if they are not sure of the state in which the divorce was finalized and input names of the divorced spouses. If they are wrong, the website may provide guidance on where else to look by notifying the interested persons of the places where the names they have imputed have showed up. This can be a very useful tool when doing research with no exact information, and the services provides the opportunity to explore and also creates a foundation to collect correct and sufficient information that may support the application or request for a copy of the records from the courts.

Online news outlets were able to gain access to Jesse Watters’ divorce records. This allowed them to confirm infidelity was one of the reasons for his divorce. Courtesy of the NY Daily News

Obtaining Records in Person

Interested persons may visit the State’s Department of Vital Records, its equivalent in the State, or the county recorder office. Records can also be obtained at the office of the court clerk where the divorce was finalized. In certain states like Minnesota, the Vital Records Office does not maintain any divorce records at all. An interested person would have to go to the County District Court Office to obtain them.

When Are Divorce Records Free?

Depending on the state and the county, anyone may be able to take a look at divorce records without a fee, once they have provided the relevant information on the request to access public information form. However, to obtain a copy usually requires paying a fee.

When obtaining a copy of a divorce records online or in person, the interested person is required to properly identify themselves by providing their full names and a valid identification such as a driver's license, voter’s card, state identification card, etc. Some jurisdictions may also require the interested person to specify their relationship with the persons named in the divorce records.

What are the Costs Associated with Obtaining Divorce Records?

Divorce records may be public, but gaining access to them is not always without cost. The cost associated with obtaining divorce records depends on the state, county, type of divorce record requested, and the number of copies.

California

Certified copies of divorce records within the years 1962 and January 1964 may be obtained from the California DPH Vital Records office in person or by mail for a search and copy fee of $14. Acceptable forms of payment include check, money order or international money order for out-of-county orders. The divorce records obtainable at the Vital Records is not the actual divorce documents but information relating to the divorce such as the names of the parties, the date the divorce was filed, case number and the County. Any person looking to obtain the actual divorce documents would have to approach the Superior Court where the divorce was filed and finalized.

The California Superior Court charges a fee of $ 10 for certified copies of divorce records ordered by a public agency and $15 for certified copies of a divorce or dissolution of domestic partnership requested by any other applicant.

Oregon

Oregon has a database for divorces filed between 1961 and 1985. An interested person may be able to find information about the names of the spouses, date of the divorce, divorce certificate number and the County in which the divorce was filed. The Multnomah County Library provides access to Oregon divorce index covering the years from 1946 to 2008. The Multnomah County Circuit Court allows inspection of divorce decrees (except for sealed divorce decrees) through its dissolution of marriage record unit. However, the circuit court does not issue certified copies of divorce decrees.

The Oregon Health Authority is the custodial of restricted vital records such as divorce certificates, from 1925. To obtain a copy of a restricted divorce certificate, the interested person may place an order by telephone, regular mail or just walk into the office of the Authority. For a telephone order, the applicant is required to pay a non-refundable fee of $44.95 by credit/debit card only, for one record search and $25 for any additional copies of the same record within the same time.

To obtain the restricted divorce certificate by regular mail, the applicant is required to make a payment of $25 for one record search by check or money order. An additional $25 is charged for additional copies of the same record ordered at the same. The same charges apply for rush mail.

For walk-ins, the applicant may approach the self-service kiosk at 800 NE Oregon Street, Room 205, Portland 97232, open between 9:00 a.m. and 4.p.m. on Mondays to Fridays to submit an order and pay an applicable non-refundable fee of $28 for one record search and $25 for additional copies.

Illinois

The Illinois Division of Vital Records provides access to divorce indexes from 1962 to date for an index verification fee of $5. For certified copies of the divorce certificates, the applicant may visit the office of the Clerk of the Circuit Court in the County where the divorce decree was granted, the cost for certified copies may vary from county to county. The office of the Champaign County Circuit Clerk in Illinois charges a record search fee of $6 for each year the either of the Ex-couple would like to take a look at and $5 for a copy of the Decree and $7 for a certified copy.

South Dakota

An applicant may request for an informational or a certified copy of a divorce record from the South Dakota Department of Health by mail or in person at

South Dakota Department of Health
VITAL RECORDS
207 E Missouri Ave Suite 1A
Pierre, SD 57501

An application fee of $15 is required to obtain a verification of record, a certified copy of a divorce record or a notification of the divorce requested and searched.

Washington

A fee of $20 is payable to obtain a copy of divorce records from the Washington State Department of Health by mail or in person, An applicant may receive the certified copies of the divorce records on the same day if they walk in within office hours at

101 Israel Road SE
Tumwater, WA 98501

For telephone or online requests for divorce records, the applicant would have to pay a fee of $31.50.

The Washington State Department of Health does not require the applicant to present identification before issuing a certified copy of divorce records like some states do. However, an applicant who is interested in divorce records for any period before 1968, would most likely find them luck at the Office of the Clerk where the divorce was granted.

Finally, when searching for divorce records in any state, it is advisable to provide as much information as possible to help the recorder find the exact documents of interest. The fees paid for searches are usually non- refundable and cannot be applied to other searches. A Certificate of No Record may be issued if records required are not located.

R&B singer R. Kelly is in the midst of a divorce battle with his ex-wife Andrea. Andrea’s choice to unseal their divorce records put pressure on Kelly to reinitiate child support payments. Courtesy of The Atlanta Blackstar

Sealing Divorce Records

Family matters are state matters and laws and regulations relating to divorce are made by each state for its residents. Similar to the Federal Freedom of Information Act, every state has laws providing access to records created and kept by government bodies and organizations including the courts. Information about every divorce filed in any court in the United States is accessible to the public. Some states are more open than others and would allow access to more in depth information relating to a divorce to any member of the public while others may have restrictions on the type of information the public may view or receive. Basically, the extent of public access may not be uniform throughout the US but in the end, the ex-spouses may not necessarily be comfortable with the thought of complete strangers gaining access into a process they may have considered personal and emotionally harrowing.

To restrict the access of the public to their divorce information, either or both of the ex spouses may be able to provide valid reasons and convince a Judge to issue an order for sealing their divorce records thereby shielding it and them from public scrutiny. The application to seal is more likely to succeed if the records contain information about the couple’s finances, their minor children, false claims that may tarnish a spouse’s image, information about a victim of domestic violence and other sensitive matters. A request to seal records is likely to fail if the reason given for application to seal is merely to avoid embarrassment.

What are the Costs Associated With Sealing Divorce Records

Sealing divorce records is a court process that will require filing court documents and making proper legal applications. The spouse(s) submitting the application to seal may do so through an Attorney. Therefore, cost considerations for sealing divorce records will not only include the applicable court filing fees but also the professional fees for the Attorney (if one is engaged). The Court Clerk will generally be able to advise the applicant on the cost for filing a motion to seal, issuing a notice for a motion to seal and serving the notice to all relevant persons and the general public.

A person applying to seal their divorce records in Texas must file a motion to that effect in court and pay the applicable filing fee of $10 to $28 or higher, depending on the County excluding the fees to be calculated by the Court Clerk as payable for the mode of service adopted.