Divorce records are regarded as one of the principal vital records. Together with Marriage, Birth and Death Records, Divorce records are at the core of Public Records departments across the country. Most states have had them centralized since the mid 60’s. Prior to that, they were generated and maintained at the respective district offices of the county where the divorce was granted. County Divorce Records are known to date back hundred over years.
The Freedom of Information Act in 1966 was a key turning point for public records in general, not least Public Divorce Records. Public divorce records under the control of government offices that were previously undisclosed became open to the public and have not looked back since. Except for officially sealed and private information by the courts, anyone has the right to request anybody’s records from the authorities in charge of the function in person, by phone, fax, mail or the internet.
With the advent of the computer age and internet, websites are now a standard feature by government agencies tasked with this function. They make up the largest source of Public Divorce Records. These records are basically scratch and firsthand and are thus accurate and up-to-date but tend to be raw and scattered. State Divorce Records are not linked between states. Hence, assembling the complete divorce history state by state can be tall order especially if the subject has resided in multiple states.
Those seeking the easy way out would literally have to pay for it. However, other than coming at a financial cost, paid divorce records are normally superior in every way to free divorce records. Searches are completed in minutes with extras from private sources on top government databases. All the legwork is done for you even if you get no more than what you would have accomplished yourself. These professional providers are worth the money especially those recommended by review and specialist sites.
