How to Obtain Filed Divorce Documents

Divorce, or dissolution of marriage, as it is called in many states, is the process by which a marriage is terminated, property is divided among the parties and the custody of minor children is determined. Divorce may also entail quantifying spousal support payments and child support payments. As the divorce process is a legal proceeding, similar to a lawsuit, many documents must be filed with the court. Specifically, these documents are filed with the clerk of the court for processing.

• 1

  Travel to the office of the clerk of the court where the divorce proceeding is pending.

• 2

  Give the deputy clerk of the court a divorce proceeding's case number and name. The case name of a divorce proceeding is usually in one of two styles in the United States: "Marriage of Last Name" or "In re Last Name." For example, the case name may be "Marriage of Jones" or "In re Jones."

• 3

  Show the deputy clerk a form of identification to prove that you are a party to the divorce or are an attorney of record for one of the parties.

• 4

  Ask the deputy clerk of the court to give you a list of the documents filed in the divorce proceeding. Find the documents that you want in the list. Ask the deputy clerk to make copies of the documents for you. You will likely have to pay a fee for the documents.