How to Find Divorce Papers in British Columbia
In order to find divorce papers in British Columbia, you must visit the court registry where the divorce papers were filed. A search on the Ministry of Attorney General's "Court Services Online" website will give you the location of the papers and the file number and date that the file was opened. Alternatively, you can also obtain the name of the registry by calling the central divorce registry in Ottawa, Ontario. In either case, in order to get access to divorce documents, you will have to visit the registry in person.
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Instructions
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At the Court Services Online "Welcome" page, click on "Search Civil" in the box labeled "E-Search." The "E-Search" box is located in the middle of the page, on the left hand side. This will bring you to the "E-Search Home Page."
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At the "E-Search Home Page," click on "Party Name" in the box "Search Civil By." You also have the option of searching by deceased name, file number or date range.
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At the "Search Civil By Party Name" page, enter part of the name of one of the parties to the divorce. Ensure the radio buttons indicating "Partially" and "Individual" are chosen before proceeding with the search. If you are searching for a common name, choose "Use More Search Fields," located below the name fields. Then choose "Divorce" from the drop-down menu, next to the "Class" field.
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On the "Search Civil by Party Name--Individual Results" page, locate the appropriate file. The search results will include the names of all parties to the divorce, the date the file was opened and the file number and court location. Record all of this information.
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On the website for the Supreme Court of British Columbia, click on the "Court Locations and Contacts" tab on the left hand side of the page. The tab is located below the "Scheduling" tab and above the "Practice and Procedure" tab.
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At the "Court Locations and Contacts" page, click on the city where the divorce was filed on the map of British Columbia. Note that some cities are in a zoom box below the full map of the province. A pop-up box will appear with a list of phone numbers for that court location.
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Locate the phone number for "Divorce" on the list. Call the number to inquire as to whether the papers you are interested in are available for viewing. If so, visit that location to view the papers.
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Tips & Warnings
You can also find out where your papers are located by calling the Central Divorce Agency in Ottawa, Ontario, at 1-613-957-4519. However, viewing of divorce documents still must be done at the location where the documents are filed. If this cannot be done by the parties in person, a proxy can be appointed with written authorization. Copies of divorce certificates can also be obtained from that location for a fee.
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