Divorce papers?
 

A friend is looking to find the divorce papers of her father from his first wife.

I have no clue about this, does anyone else? Are they public documents?

About 20 years ago I looked for a divorce and had to write to High Holborn who did a search for a fee. 5 years or 10 years iirc.

Can't remember the details though.

Don't know if it gives the details of the divorce though - as in the case I was looking for they hadn't divorced. lol

You can only get a copy of the decree nisi. The actual nitty gritty stuff is private and thrashed out between the respective solicitors. The decree nisi will give the legal reason for granting a divorce (adultery etc) but not the details.

I am assuming it is a "modern" divorce. Pre 1970ish, divorces were reported in local or national papers, with any available scurrilous detail.

OC

My OH made an enquiry about his mother's divorce from her first husband which happened in the early 1950s. His enquiry was made in 2004, so I don't know if any of this is out of date, but here's a note he made about it at the time. They send you a copy of the decree absolute if they can find it. I'm assuming he probably had to send death cert copies. - I've just removed the names etc below (my alterations are the bits in brackets):


THE COURT SERVICE PRINCIPAL REGISTRY OF THE FAMILY DIVISION Decree Absolute Searches Room 2.03
First Avenue House 42-49 High Holborn London WC1V 6NP Telephone 020 7947 7016/7017
Switchboard 020 7947 6000
Fax 020 7947 6995
Minicom 020 7947 7602
DX 396 London Ch'ry Lane Internet www.courtservice.gov.uk

D A Search/2004012340/07280 27 October 2004

Dear Sir/Madam,

between (OH's mother's first husband)
and (OH's mother)

A search of the Central Index of Decrees Absolute has been made accordingly and a record of a Decree made Absolute on (date of decree) has been traced.
The records for this divorce are kept in (City) COUNTY COURT and I have asked that Court to provide you with a copy of the certificate of Decree Absolute.
Any further enquiry relating to this case should be addressed to:
(City court address and phone number) quoting their reference (ref)

Yours faithfully,

Rory Cook
for D A Search
Family Administration Branch Manager

Thanks - I'll pass that on. :)

Older ones may be available on TNA's website. I found one on there from the 1930's.

I think there are some on FMP, old ones like 1900s that give all the papers.

We can get similar aged ones in NSW if we go to the archives.

Yes, I got some NSW divorce papers from the 1940s and you got the entire case file with all the gory details. It was fascinating :)

In the case in question, the wife had left home for months, saying that she had to look after her dying mother. I checked it out, and her mother died 20 years later :)

I don't blame her though; her husband wasn't a very nice person.

Divorce files at the National Archives only go up to 1937. For later ones you have to apply for them at Holborn, I believe, but I don't think you get much detail