
How to find a divorce record in Ohio?
Divorce abstracts are available from January 1, 1954 to present from the Office of Vital Statistics in person, by mail, or online. Full divorce records are available from the County Clerk of Court in the county where the divorce was finalized. For help in locating Ohio court cases please refer to the Ohio Courts page at CourtReference.com.
Are there public records when people file for divorce?
There is no such thing as a "secret divorce" or "emergency divorce." Divorce proceedings are public records governed by state law. Some details, especially concerning children, may be sealed by the court, but the existence of the divorce, the parties, and the case number are public records and those records can be found.
Can I keep my divorce out of the public record?
You have no other choice. Since every document you file in court automatically becomes a public record, it might seem that there is no way you can keep your divorce private. To a certain extent, that’s true. No matter who you are, or what you do, if you get divorced, there will be a record of your divorce in court.
Should divorce records be public or private?
The general public typically does not have an interest in your divorce records, except for legitimate business reasons. Government agencies also use divorce records for statistical data. Keeping divorce records public also helps maintain the transparency of the court system.

How do I find public divorce records in Ohio?
Certified copies of marriage licenses and divorce decrees can only be obtained from the county where the event was recorded.Marriage certificate copies can be obtained from the specific county probate court. ... Divorce decrees can be requested from the specific county where it was finalized.
How can you find out if someone is married in Ohio?
There are several ways to obtain public marriage records in Ohio. In addition to online searches, interested parties may view and obtain copies of marriage records by visiting the courthouse in the county where the marriage license was issued. Mail requests also go to the same courthouse.
Are divorce proceedings public record?
As a legal document, you can't have a public record erased. However, it's important to note that as only the final order is classified as a public record, all other information pertaining to the divorce file is kept private and retained only by the court and the legal teams involved.
Can you look up marriage license Ohio?
If you know that a person was married in Ohio, but you do not have the exact year of marriage, you can request research for a record of marriage during a ten year time frame. It is necessary to know the county or city in Ohio where the person was married.
Can you see marriage certificates on ancestry?
Marriage records are primary resources for the marriage details, since they were created at the time of the marriage. This collection includes indexes that can help you request the record, and in some cases, actual images of the marriage records.
Can I find out if someone is divorced?
Fortunately, there are ways in which you can access this information, as much like births, deaths and, yes, marriages; divorces are a matter of public record.
How do you find out if you are divorced?
Contact your local courthouse.Most courthouses have a public records computer terminal. You can search by your name or the name of your spouse. Check them carefully and get the right file. ... Ask the court clerk's office for help. The counter clerk can look records up for you and confirm whether a divorce has been filed.
Is the reason for a divorce made public?
The only information that it contains is that you were once married, that the courts gave you permission for a divorce and that the divorce has been made absolute – final, without any condition or incumbrance. Only if you went to court to defend a petition would details of the divorce be available to the public.
How do I find out if my marriage is registered?
You may request for a copy of your Certificate of Marriage (COM) at the LCR of the city or municipality where your marriage was held and registered. If your COM was duly submitted by the solemnizing officer, then the LCR will be able to provide you with the registered copy.
How do I find marriage records in Columbus Ohio?
Request in Person If it is necessary to request an abstract in person, please visit the marriage department at 373 S. High Street, Floor 23, Columbus, Ohio 43215.
Are Ohio birth records public?
Ohio is an "open record" state, and vital records (births and deaths) are considered to be public records by the State of Ohio. This means that anyone who can submit the basic facts of a certificate may request a copy of it.
How do I find marriage records in Hamilton County Ohio?
Copies of all county civil marriage records can be obtained from the Hamilton County Probate Court (HCPC), including those that remain from prior to the courthouse fires. Digital images are available online for free from the HCPC website for certain time periods.
How much does it cost to get divorce records in Ohio?
If you go through the state to search for an Ohio divorce record, you may have to pay a fee of $3 for every ten year search (if you don’t know the date of the divorce). Information you’ll receive in the record search results will likely include the full names of the bride and groom, their ages and dates of birth, who was the petitioner and who was the respondent, the date of filing and current addresses.
How to get a copy of divorce decree?
Personally request a copy of divorce records by going to the office (open Monday through Friday from 8am until 5 pm). Order a copy of the divorce decree online. It may take as long as three weeks to receive an answer.
Is Ohio divorce bad?
Ohio Divorce Records. Although the divorce rate in Ohio is bad ( one in every thousand of the population of eleven million), it’s not the worst state. But, with such a large population, Ohio divorce records are sometimes difficult to locate. You can choose to search through free public divorce records in Ohio.
Where can I find Ohio marriage records?
The Office of Vital Statistics maintains only abstracts of marriages, with an index for marriages after 1950 and for divorces after 1954. Certified copies of these Ohio vital records are then obtained from the county probate court for marriages and from the county Clerk of Court for divorces. Historical marriage records dating to 1790 are available at the Ohio Historical Society and the Ohio Network of American History Research Centers, with several books of Ohio marriage records indexes for 1780-1897. The city of Cincinnati was known as a "Gretna Green" no-questions-asked locale, hosting marriages from Indiana and Kentucky, but many of its historical records were lost in a courthouse fire. Divorces were originally handed in several courts (Supreme Court, Chancery Court, Court of Common Pleas), but since 1851 solely in the Court of Common Pleas, with books of Ohio divorce records indexes 1795-1860 available.
Does the county court office have access to court records?
Note: This office does not provide access to county court records. Except for certain online research capabilities, all trial court record access must be done at the local level.
Do you need a fingerprint card for out of state records?
Record Access Requirements: All out-of-state record requests must include a fingerprint card: name searches are not performed. In state requesters are able to access the web service, which also entails fingerprints.
Where are divorce records kept in Ohio?
Generally, state divorce records are being kept at state vital statistics office or the department of health . Hence, requests for copies of such certificates would go through that government agency. Ohio Divorce Records or decrees however are not issued at the Ohio Dept. of Health, Office of Vital Statistics.
How to get divorce abstracts in Ohio?
Since the Vital Statistics Office just maintains indexes of divorces that occurred in the OH State from January 1, 1954 up to now, they can only provide limited information from divorce abstracts in order to trace the actual decrees from the courts where the events were constituted. The only way to get hold of an actual decree is to contact the local clerk of court in the county of the event occurrence .
Why is it important to seek a divorce decree?
It is vital to seek for a divorce decree since it becomes a valid proof of the divorce’s existence which means that the said divorce has actually been established and ordered by the court of law. In other words, the decree declares the confirmed termination of a marriage.
How to get a divorce decree?
The only way to get hold of an actual decree is to contact the local clerk of court in the county of the event occurrence. It is vital to seek for a divorce decree since it becomes a valid proof of the divorce’s existence which means that the said divorce has actually been established and ordered by the court of law.
What is a divorce certificate?
A Divorce Certificate serves as a document that will be necessary when getting another marriage license and for other legal uses e.g. as an evidence of all the conditions that have been agreed upon by both parties such as child custody, spousal financial support and others.
Is divorce a legal action?
Divorce is not only the dissolution of a vow that used to be a blissful fact in two people’s lives, it could be a shattering event that would ache the parties involved. Nevertheless, it is a legal action that could become an unfortunate ending of a marital union that has been dysfunctional and ‘unworkable’.
Can you look up divorce decrees online?
Advanced online searches make the search for divorce decrees a lot simpler and faster for anybody. It doesn’t just allow you to look into the names of the spouses but also the details of the divorce such as the reasons why they resorted to separation. This will be a good assessment resource for your potential spouse’s character and attitude at the same time.
