Ontario Divorce Records (National Institute)

Divorces Prior to 1867
Divorce prior to 1867, in what is now known as Ontario, was granted by the legislative body in power at the time of the request. It was granted by an Act, the records of which can be found by searching the Acts passed each year up to 1867. There is a publication called Journals of the Proceedings of the Legislative Assembly of the Province of Canada (26 vols.) (remember this was before Confederation).

Divorces Between 1867 to 1929
After 1867 and until 1930 divorces were still granted by the federal government by an Act of Parliament. The proceedings of the granting of these Acts were destroyed; however, you can get a summary of the proceeding from the Clerk of the Senate in Ottawa. The address is shown in the beginning of the Divorce Section of this course.

Divorces from 1930 to 1978
Since 1930, the Supreme Court of Ontario has had the power to grant a divorce. The Archives of Ontario hold all 1931-1978 divorce files. They have a very good finding aid on site to help you find the appropriate divorce records.

Divorces from 1979 to the Present
For divorce records from 1979 to the present you must go to the County or District Court of Justice (General Division) that granted the divorce. The records are only available through those courthouses.

Guide
The Archives of Ontario Research Guide #210 Finding Divorce Files in Ontario lists the location of the indexes for divorce files in each court jurisdiction. It is well worth consulting even if you do not intend to search for the divorce records at the Archives.

Information in Divorce Records

When you have finally accessed whatever source you can that housed your particular set of records you will find that there should be some relevant data for you to examine. You should be able to obtain the names of the parties, their residence, marriage date and place and the date of the judgment absolute or decree.

Archives of Ontario
Archives of Ontario 134 Ian Macdonald Boulevard, Toronto, Ontario M7A 2C5 Telephone: 416-327-1600 Email: [mailto:reference@ontario.ca reference@ontario.ca]

Ontario Court - General Division
Courthouse addresses and telephone numbers for each of Ontario’s Counties and Districts

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