San Francisco Divorce Records: Where to Request, Fees, and Access

To get San Francisco divorce records, contact the Civil Records Division of the Superior Court of California, County of San Francisco, at 400 McAllister Street, Room 103. You can request copies in person or by mail using the court’s Civil Records Request Form, and a certified copy of the divorce decree costs $15 plus $0.50 per page.¹

Where to Request the Record

The Civil Records Division maintains all dissolution of marriage files for San Francisco County, including photocopies, certified decrees, and archived files.¹ In-person requests go to the Civic Center Courthouse at 400 McAllister Street, Room 103, San Francisco, CA 94102. The same location has a public viewing room where you can review non-confidential portions of a file for free on a first-come, first-served basis; you only pay if you want copies made.²

Find the Case Number First

Before you submit anything, use the court’s free online case lookup. You can search by case number or by either spouse’s name for family law cases filed from 1987 onward.³ Walking in with the case number means the clerk doesn’t have to run a manual search, which avoids the $15 search fee described below.

What’s Public and What’s Not

California courts operate under a general presumption of public access. The final judgment of dissolution — the divorce decree — is public, and anyone can request it, not just the parties. But a divorce case file usually contains more than the decree, and much of it is restricted.

Under California Family Code Section 2024.6, if either spouse asks, the court must seal any document listing the couple’s assets, liabilities, income, and expenses.⁴ That covers the Income and Expense Declaration (FL-150), property declarations, marital settlement agreements that identify financial details, and supporting paperwork. The seal isn’t automatic, but the request is simple enough that these records are sealed in the vast majority of cases. Opening a sealed record later requires a separate court petition showing good cause.

Documents tied to child custody evaluations, certain domestic violence filings, and restraining orders may also be restricted. If you are not a party to the case, expect to receive the final judgment and other non-confidential filings only.

How to Submit Your Request

Every request begins with the one-page Civil Records Request Form from the court’s website.¹ Provide the full names of both spouses, the case number if you have it, and an approximate divorce date if you don’t. List exactly which documents you want; the clerk’s office will only pull and copy what you identify.

In Person

Bring the completed form to Room 103 at 400 McAllister Street during regular business hours. If you only want to view the file rather than take copies away, head to the public viewing room at the same address.²

By Mail

Mail your form to: San Francisco Superior Court, 400 McAllister Street, Room 103, San Francisco, CA 94102, Attention: Research.⁵ Include payment for the fees — checks or money orders are safest — and a self-addressed stamped envelope so the court can mail the copies back.¹

Older Cases Stored Off-Site

If the case is at least two years old, the physical file has probably been moved to a warehouse. Retrieval costs $6 under Local Rule 2.10, and the court will typically take at least 15 business days to contact you about the file.¹ Plan around that timeline if you have a deadline.

Fees

Fees are set by state statute and must be paid up front:

Certified copy of the divorce decree: $15, plus $0.50 per page for the photocopy. The certified version carries the clerk’s stamp and signature confirming it matches the original, and this is what you’ll need for most legal purposes.⁵
Certification of any other court document: $40, plus $0.50 per page, under Government Code Section 70626(a)(4).
Plain photocopies: $0.50 per page. Fine for personal reference, not accepted where an official copy is required.
Search fee: $15 if the clerk’s search takes longer than 10 minutes. It applies even if the file isn’t found, so pulling the case number online first is worth the effort.
Off-site retrieval: $6 per file for cases stored in the warehouse.

The CDPH Certificate of Record Is Not a Decree

The California Department of Public Health keeps a statewide index of divorces and will mail you a Certificate of Record for $18.⁶ This is not a certified copy of the divorce decree. It contains only the face sheet of the action: the parties’ names, the filing date, the county, and the case number.⁷ It confirms a divorce happened but doesn’t include the terms of the judgment.

Use it when you only need to verify that a divorce occurred, or when you need the case number before requesting the full decree from the court. Mail the application with a check or money order payable to “CDPH-Vital Records” (no cash) to: California Department of Public Health, Vital Records MS 5103, P.O. Box 997410, Sacramento, CA 95899-7410.

If the Record Is Going Abroad

A divorce decree destined for use in another country usually needs an apostille from the California Secretary of State certifying that the document is authentic. The fee is $20 per apostille by mail, or $20 plus a $6 special handling fee in person.⁸ The Secretary of State will only apostille a certified copy from the court, not a plain photocopy. More than 120 countries that participate in the Hague Apostille Convention accept this authentication; if your destination country isn’t a member, the authentication goes through the U.S. Department of State instead.

Order matters: get the certified copy from the San Francisco Superior Court first, then send it on to the Secretary of State. Build in extra time if you’re handling both steps by mail.

1
Superior Court of California, County of San Francisco. Civil Records
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Superior Court of California, County of San Francisco. Records
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Superior Court of California, County of San Francisco. Case Information
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California Legislative Information. California Family Code 2024.6
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Superior Court of California, County of San Francisco. Civil Records Request Form
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California Department of Public Health. Vital Records – Obtaining Certified Copies of Divorce Records
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California Department of Public Health. How to Obtain a Certificate of Record for a Divorce
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California Secretary of State. Apostille Frequently Asked Questions