Pennsylvania Divorce Records

The divorce process in Pennsylvania begins when one spouse files a divorce complaint with the local Court of Common Pleas. The complaint must state the grounds for divorce, which can be no-fault or fault-based. After filing, the complaint is served to the other spouse, who has 20 days to respond. The mandatory waiting period for a no-fault divorce is 90 days from the date of service if both parties consent or a one-year separation period if only one party consents.

Divorce records in Pennsylvania are generally public, but certain sensitive information may be redacted. These records are stored in the Prothonotary's Office of the county where the divorce was filed. Per divorce rate, Pennsylvania has one of the lowest divorce rates in the U.S., with 2.2 divorces per 1,000 residents in 2021. The state recorded 31,600 divorces and annulments in 2021, up from 28,884 in 2020. The 25-29 age group had the highest divorces, while those under 20 had the fewest.

What are Divorce Records?

A Pennsylvania divorce record refers to a collection of documents created during the legal process for the dissolution of a marriage in the state. The divorce records include divorce certificate, divorce decree, and other information generated during the marriage dissolution process. Divorce decrees contain comprehensive information about the divorce, while divorce certificates are summarized documents verifying the dissolution of the union and only contain basic data such as the name, dates, and location of the divorce.

Pennsylvania's divorce records are typically maintained by the Prothonotary’s Office of the Court of Common Pleas where the divorce judgment was issued.

Are Divorce Records Public in Pennsylvania?

Pennsylvania divorce records are part of court records for the Family Divisions of the various Courts of Common Pleas. Therefore, divorce records are public under the state's Right to Know Act. However, the level of accessibility may vary depending on the specific type of information and the circumstances surrounding a divorce. Usually, court documents, such as petitions, motions, and orders, are public records. Conversely, sensitive information such as financial information or information relating to minors may be sealed or redacted to protect the privacy of the concerned parties. Also, in some instances, parties to a divorce request that their divorce records be sealed and made inaccessible to the public. If the court determines their request to be valid and grants the request, such records will only be accessible upon getting a court order mandating the release of the court.

Divorce Stats and Rates in Pennsylvania

Pennsylvania ranks as one of the states with the lowest divorce rates in the United States. In 2021, the state recorded 2.2 divorces per 1,000 residents. In that year, the state saw over 31,600 divorces and annulments, higher than the 28,884 recorded in 2020. In 2015, about 33,600 persons divorced or obtained an annulment, compared to 36,345 in 2012.

In 2015, the age group with the highest number of divorces in the state was those between 25 and 29, with 22,033 divorces. The next highest group was individuals aged 30 to 34, with 13,084 divorces. The age group with the fewest divorces was those under 20, with only 1,292 divorces, likely due to their lower marriage rates. The next lowest divorce rate was among those aged 45 to 49, with 4,187 divorces.

Grounds for Divorce in Pennsylvania

Before you file for a divorce in Pennsylvania, you must have a legal reason or ground for the request. Pennsylvania permits both fault and no-fault grounds for divorce.

For a fault-based divorce, one of the parties to the divorce accuses the other spouse of engaging in misconduct. This accusation must be proved in court with admissible evidence, including photos, emails, videos, or witness testimony. The fault-based grounds for divorce in the state are:

Willful and malicious desertion: This refers to the other spouse leaving the home where they lived together with the plaintiff filing the petition. For this reason, to apply, the defendant must have left home with no justified reason and failed to live with the spouse for at least 1 year
Bigamy: Here, the defendant must have been found to be still married to another person while married to the plaintiff
Imprisonment: This ground applies when one of the spouses has been sentenced to prison for two years or more
Adultery: This is known as infidelity or cheating where the defendant had sex with another person who is not their legally married spouse voluntarily and without the consent of the plaintiff
Cruel treatment: For this ground to be used as a legal reason for divorce, one of the spouses must have treated the other in a way that harms their mental or physical well-being
Indignities: Indignities cover situations where one spouse makes the life of the other unbearable, such as humiliating and verbally abusing them

In a no-fault divorce in Pennsylvania, neither spouse accuses the other of the dissolution of the marriage. This is the more common option in the state. Typical no-fault grounds for divorce in Pennsylvania are:

Irretrievable breakdown: Here, the plaintiff proves that they have lived apart from their spouse for a minimum of one year, the marriage has irretrievably broken down, and the defendant or the court cannot deny that both spouses live apart.
Mutual consent: In mutual consent no-fault divorce, both parties agree that their marriage has irretrievably broken down, agree to the divorce, and sign affidavits acknowledging their agreement.
Mental incapacitation: For this to apply, the other spouse must have been placed in a psychiatric institution for a minimum of 18 months before the beginning of divorce proceedings. Also, the spouse's release date from the mental institution must not be during the 18 months at the beginning of the divorce.

How to File for Divorce in Pennsylvania

If you have one of the legal grounds in Pennsylvania for a divorce and meet the state's residency requirement, you can file for a divorce in an appropriate court in the state. To meet the residency requirement, you or your spouse must have resided in Pennsylvania for at least six months immediately before you file for divorce. You can file for divorce in a Court of Common Pleas in the county where you or the other spouse lives, or where both spouses lived as a married couple.

In Pennsylvania, you can file for a contested or uncontested divorce. In an uncontested divorce, you and your spouse must agree on all matters, such as custody, alimony, and the division of property. In a contested divorce, one spouse disagrees with at least one of the matters in the divorce, and a Pennsylvania court must then decide on the issues in the case.

The first step in filing for a divorce is to complete the required forms in your county. Each court has slightly different procedures and may have its own forms. Hence, you should contact the court where you intend to file the petition to obtain the appropriate forms. You need to pay a filing fee for your petition; however, the fee may be waived if you submit a completed In Forma Pauperis form and the form is approved.

After filing the required forms, your spouse must be notified of the proceedings in court. You may serve your spouse with the papers via personal service or mail. You must provide proof of service to the court via a Certificate of Service or Affidavit of Service. The court may grant you permission to serve your spouse by publication in a newspaper or other media if you are unable to find them.

Upon serving your spouse, you must wait a period before moving forward and finalizing the divorce. The length of the waiting time depends on the type of divorce. For a mutual consent divorce, you must wait 90 days before taking the next step. If it is an irretrievable breakdown divorce and the separation began on or after December 5, 2016, the waiting period is one year. If the separation began after December 5, 2016, the waiting period is two years.

For a mutual consent divorce, 90 days after serving the divorce complaint on your spouse, both of you must sign an Affidavit of Consent and a Waiver of Notice indicating your agreement to proceed with the divorce. These documents must be filed with the Prothonotary's office within 30 days of signing. After filing these documents, you will prepare and file a Praecipe to Transmit the Record and a blank Divorce Decree to finalize the divorce with the Judge.

For an irretrievable breakdown divorce, after the one or two-year waiting period has passed, or if you have already been separated for that long, complete the Affidavit of Separation. Make two copies and file them at the Prothonotary's Office, which will keep the original and return the time-stamped copies to you. Serve one copy of the Affidavit of Separation and a blank Counter-Affidavit to your spouse via first-class U.S. mail. Your spouse has 20 days to respond by completing, filing, and serving you with the Counter-Affidavit and an Answer to the Divorce Complaint.

If your spouse does not respond, serve them with the Notice of Intention to Request Entry of a Divorce Decree and another blank Counter-Affidavit by first-class U.S. Mail. Your spouse then has another 20 days to respond by filing and serving the counter-affidavit and an answer to the divorce complaint. If they still do not respond, you can ask the court to finalize the divorce by filing the Praecipe to Transmit the Record and a blank Divorce Decree. Then, provide the court with self-addressed and stamped envelopes for you and your spouse so the court can mail copies of the final Divorce Decree.

However, if your spouse responds with the Counter-Affidavit and Answer to the Divorce Complaint, you may need to prepare to go to court and file a Motion to Appoint a Divorce Master to decide your case.

Pennsylvania Divorce Decree

A divorce decree is a formal court order that officially ends a marriage. This comprehensive document outlines the court's decisions on all matters related to the divorce, including spousal support, division of property, child custody, and child support. Additionally, it may include restraining orders and specify penalties for their violation. The terms stated in the divorce decree are legally binding on both parties, and failure to comply can result in legal action. Access to copies of a divorce decree is typically restricted to the involved parties and those authorized by law.

How to Find and Access Pennsylvania Divorce Records

You can obtain a Pennsylvania divorce record in the following ways:

Offline Access

You can obtain certified copies of Pennsylvania divorce certificates and divorce decrees from the Prothonotary Officers in the county where the documents were issued. Most counties in the state allow requesters to make their requests in person or by mail. Typically, you must submit an application and pay the applicable fee. For the contact information of county prothonotaries, see the Pennsylvania Court of Common Pleas website.

Online Access

Pennsylvania makes case information for divorce matters filed in the state available statewide through its Unified Judicial System of Pennsylvania portal. You can search divorce record case information via the UJSP portal or the PAeDocket app (Android or iOS) authorized by the state to provide mobile access to case data. The dockets provided on the portal and the app contain the following information:

Name of the parties involved in the divorce
Addresses of the parties
Date of filing the divorce case
Names and addresses of the attorneys
Court order and judgment

You can also use third-party websites to find Pennsylvania divorce records. Though not in partnership with Pennsylvania authorities, such websites aggregate divorce records from multiple sources, making them available online to requesters. Note that the availability and accuracy of Pennsylvania divorce records from such sites are not guaranteed.

References

Counties in Pennsylvania

List of Content

What are Divorce Records?
Are Divorce Records Public in Pennsylvania?
Divorce Stats and Rates in Pennsylvania
Grounds for Divorce in Pennsylvania
How to File for Divorce in Pennsylvania
1. Pennsylvania Divorce Decree
How to Find and Access Pennsylvania Divorce Records
1. Offline Access
2. Online Access