Ohio Free Divorce Records

By Ben Kingsley


The Ohio Health Department is the office tasked to preserve the records of Divorce in Ohio. They accept requests for the records but they only keep an index of divorce cases that were filed from 1954 to the present date. If you are looking for divorce decrees, you can go to the specific county Clerk of Court that is in-charge of maintaining the records you want to request for. If you are not aware which county the records can be found, you can ask the Health Department.

The Health Department maintains a database where they store digital copies of the divorce records. A request form can be downloaded from the department's website for free. The request form has specific fields that need to be filled out. If you cannot provide the required details for the form, your request will not be accepted. The form needs to be sent back to the department along with other requirements such as a corresponding fee, which is payable by money order or by check. The requirements and the amount of the fee are determined by the county that is maintains the records. There is a no refund policy even if no records are located.

Divorce files serve a couple of purposes. Primarily, it is the official file that supports the legality of a divorce. If you want to marry someone but you have been involved in a divorce, you will need to show your official divorce file. And if you want to claim a property from a previous marriage, also have to show your divorce file. The files are also needed in the division of assets and liabilities, settlement of child custody, and other divorce-related matters.

To start a search, you must at least know the full name of the person whose documents you want to get your hands on. . In a government office such as the Health Department, transactions usually take a few weeks to complete. It is advantageous if you can provide as much information as you can because it makes the whole process faster.

You can also look for the files on the Internet. There are various websites that disseminate divorce files and other public files to clients, upon request. But since the Internet host a ton of sources, it inevitable that some are bogus ones. However, you can do a quick background check on them if you find out more about their credibility.

The public has the right to access public records. But Are Divorce Records Public? Of course, they are because they are deemed as part of public records. Despite the freedom to access divorce records, it is strictly prohibited by the government to wrongly use them. Anyone that is caught violating will be punished accordingly by the court. Also, if the records that you request for are not your own, you will not be able to view some details about it, specifically those that are deemed as confidential. Instead, you will be given a verification that will prove the validity of a divorce. Confidential details are not disclosed to the public so as to preserve the right to privacy of the owners of the records.




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