Find Free Bergen County Divorce Records & Obtain Certificates

Look up free Bergen County divorce records today.

These records are available to anyone interested in obtaining information about an individual’s marital status. This resource provides search tools and agencies’ contact information to help streamline the process of finding desired details and documents.

New Jersey’s Open Public Records Act ensures that records regarding dissolved marriages are available to anyone wishing to see them.

Everyone should feel empowered to access public records whenever needed, and this article explains the resources available to accomplish divorce research goals in Bergen County, New Jersey.

How To Look Up Bergen County Divorce Records

Divorce records are public in New Jersey, and there are different tools individuals can utilize to access that information.¹ Divorce records in Bergen County are available to searchers, first and foremost, through the Superior Court.

Records pertaining to marriage dissolutions can be requested for copies or inspections, and two types of records can be obtained: documents about closed divorce cases and archived dissolutions. In New Jersey, after cases are closed, they’re kept for a while at the court. After some time (that varies from county to county), those files are moved and archived at a special location.

For those interested in Bergen County records, divorce cases from 2015 and before are already archived.

In order to request records for dissolutions that are closed but still in the court’s possession, interested citizens must download and complete a Records Request Form.²

Next, they have to create an account with the Judiciary Electronic Documents Submission System (JEDS).

Registering will require users to share some personal information but will allow them to place orders, make payments and receive documents (when the request is for simple copies).

The searcher must include as much information as possible on the request form: names of former spouses, when and where the divorce was finalized, etc. The more information added to the description of the desired records, the more likely the results will be satisfactory. Since the search is requested (and not done by the searcher themselves), it’s important to be thorough to ensure the correct divorce certificate is obtained.

Searchers can request simple or certified copies. Only certified copies can be used for official purposes, while simple copies are usually merely informational. Simple copies cost $0.05 per page when documents are letter-sized and $0.07 when the preference is for legal-size documents.

Certified copies start at $15, and other options are available.

Since prices may vary depending on what is ordered, it’s advisable for interested people to go over the full fee schedule.³

Individuals who need support can contact the Superior Court by email. For support relating to the use of the JEDS system, people can write to [email protected], and for help with general inquiries, they can write to [email protected].

If the desired records are already archived, the searcher should contact the Family Division in Bergen County and work with them to retrieve the information they need. They are located at the Bergen County Justice Center and can be accessed by phone or in person.

Bergen County Justice Center
10 Main St.
Hackensack, NJ 07601

Phone: 201.221.0700

For those who prefer to search for records online, there’s an alternative. Individuals can subscribe to the Electronic Access Program.⁴ This platform costs $4 per minute to use and will allow people to access public divorce records online from wherever they are very conveniently.

How To Search for Divorce Records Throughout New Jersey

The same system that helps individuals find and request divorce records in Bergen County can also assist searchers when the divorce they’re trying to uncover was finalized at a different county in the state.

The Judiciary Electronic Documents Submission System (JEDS) allows citizens to search statewide for records connected to divorce decrees that have already been finalized (or closed).⁵ The only thing that people need to do is complete the Records Request Form appropriately, adding the information about the county the records they want were finalized with all of the other details that will allow them to find the information they need.

If the divorce in question has already been archived, the local Family Division needs to be contacted, just like it’d be done at Bergen County. A complete list of all Family Divisions in New Jersey is available and includes contact information for each and every location.⁶

When unsure about the status of the records they need, concerned citizens can determine if a file is closed or archived by checking the Superior Court page.

If looking for historical records – which are particularly useful for genealogical research – interested people can work with the Bergen County Historical Society.⁷ Their library collection has multiple collections that may contain a divorce index, such as church records, vital records, genealogies and many more resources that can be accessed for free with their support. This is their contact information:

Bergen County Historical Society
Historic New Bridge Landing
1201 – 1209 Main St.
River Edge New Jersey 07661

Phone: 201.343.9492
Email: [email protected]

The New Jersey State Archives also possesses an array of historical records that can be searched online or in person by appointment.⁸

Individuals interested in working with a librarian can schedule an appointment online and rely on their support. Also, the State Archives can be contacted in person or by email, as follows:¹⁰

New Jersey State Archives
225 W State St – 2nd Floor
Trenton, NJ 08625

Email: [email protected]

The Availability of Divorce Records in Bergen County New Jersey

Divorce records are widely available to anyone who wishes to request them in Bergen County. This is determined by the Open Public Records Act, the law that governs how documents and information are made available to people throughout New Jersey.¹¹

However, a few things should be kept in mind. One fact to consider, for example, is that common-law marriages stopped being accepted in New Jersey (and, consequently, Bergen County) in 1939. Consequently, no records for informal marriages or common law divorce proceedings related to those relationships will be found in any official agency.

Only records for official divorces that dissolved properly officiated marriages will be found.

Also, anyone requesting records must choose between obtaining simple or certified copies of documents. Simple copies are usually merely informational and cannot be used for official purposes, while certified copies serve as legal documents. When debating which copy to order, it’s important to consider what it’ll be used for and which form is more adequate to that.

Last, but not least, it’s important to consider that divorce papers are different than certificates or decrees. When someone files for a divorce, their former spouse is served with papers. Those are the pages that will describe what’s in the petition and how that person can respond.

Someone who’s been served papers should certainly retain an experienced attorney, but they’re still far from having their divorce finalized.

Decrees and certificates – or any other kind of official records, for that matter – only become available after the divorce case is closed, which may take some time to happen. That’s why it’s important to differentiate.

It’s a privilege to be able to access and retrieve public records anywhere and determine relevant facts about people in the community. For those who seek Bergen County divorce records, no one should ever hesitate to go after the information they need at any time.