Saturday, February 15, 2014

California Free Divorce Records

By Ben Kingsley


The number of divorce records being filed in California is increasing. CA divorce records are among the documents that the local residents of California can request anytime and because of this it has become one of the most requested documents in the state.

The residents of California request for such document for them to do a lot of legal transactions. Some government processes would call for a copy of a divorce certificate especially if the transactions involve the couple. These transactions include, but not limited to, insurance and the update of the declared properties and assets. Another use of such document is for genealogy. It is used as reference when updating the family tree. It is the last document checked when updating the family tree but it can cause a major problem for the next generations to come if the separation of a couple is not updated. Divorcees who plan to remarry should secure a copy of their divorce certificate since it is one of the required documents during marriage application. If this document is not presented, marriage application may be rejected.

A divorce certificate issued in California would contain only the basic details of the separation such as the date and the place where the divorce was finalized. The complete names of the separated individuals are documented on the certificate along with some of the details of their marriage. Further details about the separation are kept private and visible only to the divorcees. Details such as the reason for the separation and the name of the individual who petitioned for the divorce are kept confidential. One cannot find the agreement about the custody of the children and the division of assets and properties in a public document.

Although, the divorce certificate is a public document, access to it is limited only to the divorcees and their direct family. A court order has to be presented when one needs to access the divorce files of other individuals. One should know the basic details of the record being requested. The requesting individual is required to indicate their contact details on the request form. By doing all of these, the search can be made easier.

One cannot get a certified copy at the office of the Vital Statistics office. Certified copies can only be released at the Clerk of Superior Court in the county where it was filed. Processing fee would differ per county. The state office can help provide information as to where to obtain a copy of a divorce certificate. It would cost $13 to identify the county where the divorce was registered. This is only applicable for records registered between 1962 and 1984 only. Request can also be sent via mail to the county of registration. The requirements and the payment should then be included in the request. Payments can be in the form of a money order or check. It can take several days or two weeks before the result of the search can be sent back.

The Internet has now allowed the retrieval of a divorce certificate electronically. There are several websites now that offer to get copies of the public documents. One can even do a free divorce records search if you know where to look. Most websites offer their service for a reasonable fee which many prefer because of accuracy and completeness.




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