California Marriage Records contain data on names, licenses and counties for marriage applications. All public marriage records in the state of California are kept by the California Department of Public Health Office of Vital Records. Individual counties issue confidential records pertaining to licenses that were issued out of their office. The same is true for divorce records. They will be found only in the county of which the Superior Court ordered the divorce decree. California’s law - The California Public Records Act - mandates that all public records and copies are made available to anyone.

Websites by government agencies provide adequate marriage records free of charge if you are just looking for general information. The same can be accomplished by searching the database on-site at the respective county offices. However, for formal proceedings, you would need professionally packaged official marriage records. The Office of Vital Records is the authorized department to provide official marriage records in California. It can also release divorce Certificates of Record. For both, there is a fee involved when requesting certified copies.

So, we therefore have the choice of going it ourselves in gathering California Marriage Records or hire professional help to perform the task for us. It’s an individual thing and each has its own merits and setbacks. Obviously, marriage records from free sources save money but their standards inevitably won’t match up to those from fee-based ones. Often too, circumstances demand that such information is obtained through certified bodies thus ruling out the DIY (do-it-yourself) option.

Within the state of California, you can view public records at the Public Health office in each county or request them via email or internet. Contact the California Department of Public Health Office of Vital Records to obtain the lists of necessary forms and fees for acquiring official copies of both marriages and divorces. But be forewarned - getting marriage records on your own takes some work and waiting time. The California Office of Vital Statistics has a backlog of up to six months. They advocate going directly to the incumbent county offices in person to view and request copies of all types of public records. It is advisable to enquire ahead through telephone as different counties require different forms and fees for this service.

Alternatively, there are companies you can turn to that will aid you to access and view the desired public records in an optimized manner in terms of time and effort. They can also handle the order placement and delivery of certified copies of marriage records on your behalf. Through the support of their infrastructure, manpower and networking, they are able to invariably get the job done in a shorter time than if you go it yourself.

The public records business is demanding and competitive. Industry leaders are highly professional and have extensive experience in getting public records from county offices. In order to survive in the game, they have to charge affordable rates also. They will get the forms, enquire the fees and advise on applicable state laws. Many of them have in-house databases of marriage and divorce records for existing or potential customers, completely circumventing the need to wait on government agencies to produce those records.

In California, the population is now about 36 million-strong. Official records have been kept and accumulated for well over a hundred years, since around 1850. This means that there are a lot of California marriage records on file and unless you have a lot of time and energy to pursue them, it may be in your interests to hire professionals to spare yourself the hassles of procedures and waiting in lines.