Access Free Maricopa County Divorce Records: Resource

Look up free Maricopa County divorce records today using the convenient tools linked throughout this resource.

Arizona’s Public Records Law guarantees that information relevant to the public will always be readily available to be inspected, checked, and copied when needed.

Divorce records are important to the community because a person’s marital status may affect how others will connect and relate to them. Everyone can feel free to uncover certain information, and this resource will help them do just that by linking and explaining the available tools in Maricopa County, Arizona.

How To Search Maricopa County Divorce Records at No Cost

According to Arizona laws and regulations, the Clerk of the Superior Court of Maricopa County is responsible for keeping the records of divorces handled by them.¹ They’re also responsible for providing citizens with copies and certificates of those records whenever needed.

When what a searcher is looking for is merely information (and not physical copies of records), it’s possible to conveniently uncover information by running an online search with the county. Anyone anywhere can search and view cases online using the Court Docket, also known as Public Access to Court Information.³

To run a search that will yield good results, searchers should choose to search Family Court Cases and not any other source (like Civil or Probate cases). Then, users can start searching by case number or name.

Name searches can be done with only the last name and first initial of one of the parties in the divorce. The system will still give results, even if a full name isn’t known. However, it may show cases from decades ago (along with more recent cases), or if the name is relatively common, it could bring up a large list of names to be checked.

To avoid spending too much time going over results that aren’t pertinent to the search, it’s important to input as much information as possible. The more specific the search, the more on-target the results will be.

The Public Access to Court Information is a free tool. It’ll show details and valuable information regarding the divorce of interest. However, it won’t allow people to see documents or obtain certified copies of the public divorce records they find.

Users who struggle with searching an online divorce index like this one can visit one of the Clerk’s Offices in Maricopa County. They permit searchers to inspect documents kept by their office in person, free of charge. People can come in anytime during business hours and use one of the computer terminals to search for divorce records (and any other public records, for that matter).

Those are the four available addresses for the Maricopa County Clerk of the Superior Court:

Customer Service Center
601 W Jackson
Phoenix, AZ 85003

Northwest Regional Court Center
14264 W Tierra Buena Ln.
Surprise, Arizona 85374

Southeast Court Complex
222 E Javelina Ave.
Mesa, Arizona 85210

Northeast Regional Court Center
18380 N 40th Street – Ste. 120
Phoenix, AZ 85032

Those offices can be visited Monday through Friday, between 8 am and 5 pm, except on observed holidays (when the offices are closed). More on how to obtain copies of documents, certified or not, will be addressed in this guide below.

Conduct a Divorce & Dissolution Record Lookup via Municipal Courts in Maricopa County

Some cities in Maricopa County have their own municipal courts. However, in Arizona, municipal courts mostly handle driving tickets and misdemeanors that carry a sentence of up to 6 months or $2,500 in fines. Divorce records aren’t under their purview and are only available with the county courts.

Still, it’s understandable that some concerned citizens may feel the need to contact those courts or seek them for support. Below, the reader will learn how to contact the largest municipal courts in Maricopa County, which are Phoenix, Mesa and Chandler Municipal Courts.

This is their contact information:

Phoenix Municipal Court⁴
300 West Washington St.
Phoenix, AZ 85003

Phone: (602)-262-6421
Fax: (602)-534-3628 

Mesa Municipal Court
250 East 1st Ave.
Mesa, AZ 85210

Phone: (480)-644-2255
Fax: (480)-644-2927

Chandler Municipal Court
200 East Chicago Street
Chandler, AZ 85225

Phone: (480)-782-4700
Fax: (480)-782-4752
Email: [email protected]

When a Maricopa records search isn’t productive, that may be an indication that the divorce that’s being searched happened in a different county in Arizona. In those instances, searching the whole state may be a good strategy to uncover the needed information.

How To Find Divorce Records Throughout the State via the Arizona Judicial Branch

When a broader search for divorce records is the way to go, the Arizona Judicial Branch offers people a free tool that allows people to search for most court cases in the state, regardless of where the event happened.

There are some exceptions, such as some municipal courts and some courts of appeals. However, since divorce cases are handled by the counties’ Superior Courts, those exceptions mostly don’t affect the results sought by someone searching for an individual’s marital status.

The Public Access Case Lookup is particularly helpful when the users aren’t sure about which county handles the divorce case they wish to uncover.⁵

It allows for searches to be made by case number (often unknown or not available to searchers not directly connected to the case) and by name – including last name only or partial name searches. As mentioned before, the more detailed the search, the more effective the results.

The results will show valuable details about the divorce case in question, including which court handled it. This is quite useful information when it’s necessary to obtain copies of the records (certified or not) because then the searcher would know where to go or who to contact.

To find information about each court, including their address and phone number, users can check the Arizona Court Locator.⁶

Also, if they need support from the Public Access Case Lookup tool, they can contact the Arizona Judicial Branch using the following information:

Arizona Judicial Branch
1501 West Washington
Phoenix, AZ 85007

Phone: (602)-452-3300

Individuals searching for divorce records should bear in mind that Arizona doesn’t recognize common-law marriages. Consequently, the state also doesn’t require that couples who aren’t properly married file for a divorce. In other words, there’s no such thing as a common law divorce in Arizona.

This is a valuable fact to know because someone could be in a relationship for decades and eventually separate, and that would appear in any public records search in Arizona. The Judicial Branch tool will only show information about divorces that were filed to dissolve a marriage officiated with a proper license.

For historical records, concerned citizens can work with the Arizona Archives.⁷ Their resources are very useful for genealogical searches. In general, the Archives have records from 1950 and before, and users can contact them by sending an electronic message.⁸

There are many ways the Arizona Archives supports searchers in their inquiries.⁹ If talking to someone or visiting their office in person is preferred, this is their contact information:

State Archives and History
Polly Rosenbaum Building
1901 E Madison Street
Phoenix, AZ 85009

Phone: (602)-926-3720

Sometimes, just visualizing court cases isn’t sufficient. There are many situations in which obtaining physical copies of records becomes necessary. Let’s discuss, then, how to obtain copies of divorce records in Maricopa County.

Are Divorce Records in Maricopa County Available for Anyone’s Viewing?

Since the Clerk’s Office of the Superior Court is the official repository of public records in Maricopa County, citizens interested in obtaining copies of divorce records have to work with them. The Maricopa County Clerk’s Office accepts requests in person, Monday through Friday, from 8 am to 5 pm.

Non-certified copies of records cost $0.50 per page. Interested citizens have to pay $30 more if they need those copies to be certified.

It’s important to keep in mind that any copies that will be used for official purposes, such as court proceedings, for example, will likely need to be certified. People placing requests should always check ahead of time what exactly is needed of them before requesting their records to avoid wasting time and money.

Something else to consider is that there’s a difference between divorce papers and a divorce decree or certificate. Papers are served to former spouses when they’re being formally informed that their significant other has decided to separate and filed for divorce. It merely lets them know that they should probably hire a lawyer and prepare for the court proceeding ahead.

After those proceedings are finished and the divorce is finalized, that’s when a divorce certificate or decree becomes available. Those are the documents that the Clerk’s Office can assist people with after a divorce is closed (and not before).

Regardless of what type of records will be requested, citizens should know that in Texas, divorce records are public. Based on the Texas Government Code 552, also known as the Public Records Act, information about an individual’s marital status should always be available unless sealed by the courts (which is quite rare).¹⁰

There’s nothing wrong with individuals seeking information about anyone’s marital situation. Anybody can access Maricopa County divorce records and uncover certain information about anyone they may be concerned about.