Many of us believe that the status and health of a marriage are personal and private matters for each couple. However, divorce and dissolution of marriage records are public documents in a large number of states.
This may be an unpleasant reality for many divorcing couples, but they aren’t without recourse. If you have concerns about whether the public can access any of your divorce records, you can typically take steps to make at least some, if not all, your records private.
To answer the question, “Are divorce records public?”, this article explains the laws in different states about accessing records. It also discusses ways you may be able to prevent others from obtaining information about your divorce case.
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Are all divorce records public?
Making divorce records available to the public is the norm and default in many states. Still, not every state allows access to these records, and sometimes the access is limited.
Some states—such as Alaska, Arkansas, Hawaii, Idaho and Oregon—restrict non-party access to divorce records. Some of these states may prohibit public access to divorce information for several decades. Once the time limit expires, the records become public.
In many states that do allow public access to divorce records, only certain records may be obtained. For instance, anyone who wants to see a couple’s divorce records in Delaware or New York can see only a copy of the divorce decree or certificate of divorce. Only someone who is a party to the divorce or an attorney who represented a party in the divorce may obtain additional divorce information.
Understand as well that multiple courts don’t allow the public to see divorce records regarding:
- Children
- Abuse
- Financial matters
In addition to these restrictions, some states don’t allow remote public access to divorce information. In these cases, the requester may have to go to the courthouse or agency building to obtain or inspect family law records.
If you have questions about what divorce court records are available to the public in your state, contact the clerk in the county court where you divorced or the vital records agency in the state where you ended your marriage.
How easy is it for the public to obtain a divorce record?
Depending on where you reside, the process for obtaining a divorce record may be relatively simple. In many cases, record seekers may access divorce information through one of the following:
- A judicial or government website
- A third-party provider for the government
- By requesting or filling out paperwork at a courthouse or agency building
Anyone seeking divorce information often has to provide information to obtain a record. This may include any or all of the following:
- The name of one or both parties in the divorce
- The date of the divorce
- The county where the divorce was finalized
- The docket number of the divorce
Many courts and agencies require payment to conduct a divorce record search and obtain copies of the documents. However, some state courts allow people to inspect divorce records in person without paying a fee.
When can the public access my divorce records?
Depending on where and how an individual seeks divorce records, the access could be immediate, or it could take several months, years or decades.
For example, divorce records in Florida are available approximately 60 days after the marriage is dissolved. If someone needs the record sooner, they might be able to submit a request to the clerk of the court that granted the divorce.
And in California, records on a Central Los Angeles divorce from the County Record Center Archives might not be available for up to three years.
On the other hand, several states that heavily restrict access to divorce records typically don’t release information until multiple generations have passed. Alaska, Arkansas, Idaho and Oregon seal divorce records for 50 years, and New York restricts access for 100 years.
How can I prevent the public from seeing my divorce records?
Even if your state has liberal rules regarding public access to divorce records, you might be able to deny access to your divorce records. You can do this by filing a motion to seal your records with the appropriate court.
With your motion, you might have to include a detailed statement regarding why your records should be sealed. For example, under Florida law, a motion to seal part or all of your records may be granted if you can prove that the information is confidential due to any of the following reasons:
- Revealing the information would violate the privacy rights of and substantially injure a party in the divorce
- The information contains a trade secret that must be protected
- The information could substantially injure an innocent third party if revealed
- Revealing the information could prevent obtaining evidence to determine legal issues in a case
- Revealing the information could violate state or federal law or public policy
- Revealing the information could create an imminent threat to the orderly, impartial and fair administration of justice
- Revealing the information could prevent the protection of a compelling government interest
These standards may vary by state. You may have more leeway to justify sealing your records in another jurisdiction.
How an attorney can help
If you don’t want your divorce records public, you may want to consult legal counsel. During a divorce case, an experienced attorney may prevent unnecessary information that’s embarrassing or sensitive from becoming part of your divorce file. They may also educate you about what divorce information is and isn’t available to the public and then craft convincing arguments to help you seal court records.
