Before the 19th century, divorce was particularly uncommon and most states including New York had outlawed it completely. However, at the turn of the century, divorce rates went up and various countries began to keep public records detailing births, deaths, marriage and divorce, among others. In New York, divorce records fall under the jurisdiction of New York Vital Records Office.

New York divorce records are filed in the county in which the divorce occurred. This may be different from the state in which the marriage was registered, or even the state in which the people involved live. There is a lot of information to be obtained from a standard divorce record. Details such as names of people involved, addresses, place and date of divorce, ages, children, custody, alimony and more. This is the reason why divorce and marriage records are invaluable to anyone doing background checks.

In New York, divorce records are considered public records and this means that anyone can access and view record provided they comply with various Vital Records Office regulations. The State Center for Health Statistics issues certified copies of divorce records used for various legal reasons such as remarriage and immigration. However, if you simply wish to obtain the information on the divorce record you can do so online at various online divorce record directories.

You can search New York divorce records the county registry via either names or geographical location such as state, county or city through a databases containing upwards of 200 million public records, allowing their members access to a wide range of public record information.