Tuesday, March 4, 2014

Massachusetts Public Marriage Records

By Ben Kingsley


Massachusetts Marriage Records are kept at the state's Registry of Vital Records and Statistics. The registry keeps marriage records dating back in the early 1916. The records are initially filed at the county Clerk of Court where the marriage licenses are granted. Requests are accepted at the state registry and the Clerk of Courts as well. Every five years, the earliest five years of records maintained at the registry are transferred to the State Archives so better preserve them.


Marriage files are considered as public files, thus, giving the citizens the right to acquire them. But despite their availability to the public, there are limitations in terms of how they are disseminated because the privacy of the files' owners must be put to consideration. The bride, groom, their respective lawyers, any other entity with consent from the court are allowed to acquire an entire marriage file. Other parties which are not mentioned must explain why he or she wants to acquire the file. If the explanation is acknowledged, the basic details of the file such as the full names of the bride and the groom, when and where their marriage occurred, names of witnesses, and others will be revealed to the requestor. To check the marital history of a partner you intend to marry is considered a valid reason explanation to acquire the file.

In a legal proceeding, only marriage records are accepted by a judge to support the validity of a marriage. If the marriage takes a downfall and the couple decides to end it, they need to provide a copy of their marriage record when they file for a divorce. If there is no record of any marriage between them, then filing for a divorce is no longer necessary.

Before you commence a search, make sure that you are knowledgeable of the name of either the husband or the wife. If their names are too common, add more related information to increase the likelihood of locating the right documents. Also prepare a government-issued ID along with your personal contact details. Placing your request at a particular county is also allowed. Fees may vary depending on which county. Regardless of where you placed you request, whether at the state registry or at a particular county, the fees that you paid will not be returned to you even if the requested documents are not located.

Online service providers can also supply you marriage files. Such service providers have the consent of the court to store and supply the files to any person who places a request. There are a several service providers available on the Web but sadly not all of them are credible. To find out if you are getting your information from a credible source, look for what other customers have to say about the service provider.

Such websites are either fee-based or those that can provide you with Free Public Marriage Records. Fee-based websites can provide you with an extensive amount of information. Those that do not render any amount of fee can only give the basic pieces of information.




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