I am on a mission to find my ex-husband's marriage certificate. He's lied about being married for a while now. Even though the children have found out and are very upset about the situation. They were never told. I'm going to court and would like to have this certificate ready. It's a long story, but I would like to know how I can go about getting this information.
Thank you to all in advance.
if you have a lawyer, they can subpena it for you or get it from the issuing county clerk.
if you don't have a lawyer, you can try and see if you can get a copy through VitalChek
http://www.vitalchek.com/
If you know where (what county) he was married in, you can get a copy of the marriage certificate from the county clerk's office. It's public record. I had to call and get a copy of mine, having lost our copy when we moved, and I think it was $5 to get a copy from the county clerk. If you don't know where he was married, then I'm not entirely sure how to go about it. Maybe someone else with better sleuthing skills will answer this question. :)
Yes, marriage certificates are public record and yes, you can get a copy of it. Some counties will only let you purchase a copy if you are on the certificate, but just call and ask. You will want to call the County Clerk, that is where they are stored. Here in my county, they are searchable and viewable on-line. Do a google search for your county's "Official public Records" and see if they have an online search.
The law is different in every state, but here only the married couple (or ex married couple) can obtain a copy of the certificate through the county clerks office.
I think regular marriage certificates with witnesses and everything are publicly available but I got something called a Confidential Marriage. The document even says "License and certificate of a confidential marriage" across the top. We had to get this because we got married at the spur of the moment at the city hall on a Thursday and didn't have anyone with us to sign the document as witnesses. A confidential marriage licence was $50 more than a regular licence but it only required four signatures. My husbands, mine, the person solemnizing the marriage and the deputy clerk.
I was told that because we have a confidential marriage licence, if we need to get a copy, the only two people who can get one are my husband and myself. I do believe that a subpoena from a court trumps that though.
You should be able to call your county court and find out if a marriage certificate is available.
It's been A LONG TIME since I've lived in California so I don't know the state laws about getting access to it. I would assume it's public record.
http://www.cdph.ca.gov/certlic/birthdeathmar/Pages/Marria...
Supposedly this site is FREE...don't know haven't looked.
http://officialrecordsusa.com/marriage-records.html?Keywo...
It should be a matter of public record. Call your city hall, ask them which department can help you, and they'll likely direct your call to the County Clerk's office.
I think they are public record but I have heard of people doing a "confidential marriage." Go to the county entity that issues them and see if you can get a copy.
If you're going to want to use it in court, you will need a CERTIFIED COPY. They are expensive - I think like $25 for the certification and $1.00 for the one page document.
But, if you need it in connection with a court proceeding, your attorney (or you if you don't have an attorney) can subpoena it. That way it won't have to be certified and it probably won't cost you anything.
I'm sorry your children were duped by their own father. Trust issues between he and the children are sure to crop up now. So sorry for the kids!
