How to Find out If a Divorce Is Final
He says he is officially divorced. But how can you know for sure? Different states have different laws concerning divorce and whether the proceedings are still in the waiting process, which can keep either party from remarrying for up to six months after the divorce is final. Also, different situations--such as whether there are children involved, whether property needs to be divided or whether the other spouse is contesting the divorce–can greatly effect the time it takes for a divorce to become final after the initial petition is filed, even before the waiting period. But divorce records are part of the public domain and you can find out whether a person is legally divorced.
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Instructions
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Begin by calling your local licensing department at the courthouse and asking. Public records are free, but you may have to go in person to make the request.
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Perform a divorce records search at http://www.abika.com/reports/divorcerecords.htm. There are fees involved, but if you know where the divorce filings were supposed to have been filed and the names of the people involved, the site may be able to tell you when the divorce was finalized.
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Hire a lawyer to look into the matter. Having an attorney perform the simple search may be cheaper than a private investigator.
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Hire a private investigator if you don't know pertinent information such as the name of the other party involved or the county in which the divorce was supposed to have taken place. A professional investigator can easily find divorce information with much less starting information than you'd need to do it yourself, and a pro can also uncover other information you might find useful about a person.
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