Divorce records in Kentucky are public. Court files from a dissolution of marriage sit in the public record by default, and anyone can look up basic case information online or inspect the full file at the courthouse where the divorce was granted. A judge can seal a file, but only on a narrow showing, and certain personal identifiers are stripped out before documents reach the public shelf.
What Ends Up in the Public File
A Kentucky divorce begins with a Petition for Dissolution of Marriage, a standardized court form that lists each spouse’s name, age, occupation, and address, the date and location of the marriage, the date of separation, the number of prior marriages, whether either spouse is pregnant, and whether any domestic violence protective orders are in effect.1Kentucky Court of Justice. AOC-252A Petition for Dissolution of Marriage Kentucky is a no-fault state, so the petition alleges no wrongdoing; it simply states that the marriage is “irretrievably broken.”2Kentucky Legislative Research Commission. Kentucky Revised Statutes 403.140
Motions filed during the case are public too. Requests for temporary spousal support, fights over the house, arguments about parenting schedules, and the judge’s orders responding to them all go into the file. So does the final Decree of Dissolution, which under Kentucky law must address child custody, child support, spousal maintenance, and property division before the court enters it.2Kentucky Legislative Research Commission. Kentucky Revised Statutes 403.140
What Gets Redacted or Sealed Automatically
Kentucky Civil Rule 7.03 requires anyone filing a civil document to strip out certain personal identifiers before it reaches the court. Social Security and taxpayer ID numbers appear only as the last four digits. Birth dates show only the year. Financial account numbers come out entirely. The responsibility sits with the filer, not the clerk, and an unredacted filing made without a sealing request is treated as a waiver of the privacy protection; the court can strike a non-compliant document.3New York Codes, Rules and Regulations. CR 7.03 Privacy Protection for Filings Made with the Court The official divorce petition form reflects the same split: the court holds an unredacted copy in a restricted file, while the public version has the sensitive identifiers removed.1Kentucky Court of Justice. AOC-252A Petition for Dissolution of Marriage
When children are involved, Kentucky Family Court Rule 607 adds more protection. Medical records introduced as evidence for any party or child must be sealed and cannot be released without a court order to anyone other than a party or attorney. The same applies to a minor child’s educational records. If the family case overlaps with a juvenile court matter, that portion of the file is sealed as well.4New York Codes, Rules and Regulations. Rule 607 Sealed Records The custody terms themselves — who the children live with, the visitation schedule, support amounts — stay public. What gets sealed is the underlying evidence: therapy records, school evaluations, juvenile filings.
How to Look Up a Kentucky Divorce Record
At the Circuit Court Clerk’s Office
The fullest view of a divorce file is at the Circuit Court Clerk’s office in the county where the divorce was granted. Bring the full names of both spouses and, if you have it, the case number or approximate year the divorce was finalized. The clerk will pull the physical file for you to review on-site. Photocopies typically run around $0.25 per page, with a certified copy often costing an additional $5.00, and fees can vary by county.5Kenton County Circuit Court. Fee Schedule Courthouses hold files locally for a limited time; after roughly 15 years, cases are transferred to the State Records Center and eventually to the Kentucky Department for Libraries and Archives, so older divorces may require contacting those facilities.
Online Through KYeCourts
Kentucky offers a free public search through KYeCourts. The guest login shows basic case information — party names, case numbers, filing dates, and docket entries — for courts across the Commonwealth.6Kentucky Court of Justice. KYeCourts Guest Login That is enough to confirm whether a divorce was filed and when it was finalized. It will not show you the actual text of the petition or decree. Full online access to case documents is restricted to Kentucky-licensed attorneys and approved media representatives through a separate subscription service called CourtNet.
Through the Office of Vital Statistics
If you only need proof that a divorce happened, Kentucky’s Office of Vital Statistics holds divorce records from June 1958 to the present.7Kentucky Cabinet for Health and Family Services. Marriage and Divorce Certificates A vital statistics certificate confirms the names, date, and county. It does not include the terms of the divorce. This is the right route for a name change, a remarriage, or a benefits application that just needs confirmation the divorce occurred.
Can You Get a Kentucky Divorce Record Sealed?
Sealing is possible but deliberately hard. Courts start from the presumption that the public has a right to see what happens in their courtrooms, and the person asking for closure carries the full burden of overcoming it. Under the standard set by the Kentucky Supreme Court, the party seeking to seal must identify a specific fundamental right that outweighs the public’s right of access so completely that “in no other way can justice be served” except by closure.
The showing does not stop there. The party must also demonstrate that less restrictive alternatives, such as redacting specific details rather than sealing the whole file, will not adequately protect the interest at stake. If the judge agrees to seal, the order must include specific written findings explaining why closure was necessary. A general desire for privacy or a wish to avoid embarrassment will not meet this standard.
In practice, sealing works most often where it tracks protections that already exist, like the automatic sealing of children’s medical and educational records under Rule 607.4New York Codes, Rules and Regulations. Rule 607 Sealed Records Outside those built-in protections, sealing an entire divorce file requires evidence of a serious, concrete threat, such as a documented safety risk or genuinely confidential business information whose exposure would cause real economic harm. Judges grant these requests sparingly. For most people going through a divorce in Kentucky, the file will stay public.