It could not be denied that negative connotations follow the term divorce. As a legal procedure, divorce is a dissolution of a contract, an end as it were, but unlike other contracts, the type of contract that divorce dissolves is something that requires not only a mere casual trust an acquaintance between the parties. Marriage, after all, is a bond that requires more than an acquaintance; it requires love, trust, respect, and commitment by and between the parties. It was supposed to be a bond that would weather through any obstacle that life may put up in front of it.

The bond of marriage, with the right set of circumstance, could bend and finally be broken. Loss of trust, changes in commitment, disappointment with each other and even violence by and between the parties are just a few examples for the bond to sever. For many of those who had undergone the often long and tedious process of the legal process called divorce, finally moving on is akin to being placed upon a new path that he or she must take, this time, relatively free from the burdens of the partnership that the recently dissolved marriage. Once more, the party is free to live his or her life the way that one desires.

Divorce records are records kept and maintained by a competent authority not only because they are mandated to do so by law, but also because of other practical considerations. It is possible for a divorced person to once more become a party to a marriage contract, and this is where these legal documents come into play. Not only that, these records, containing the name of the parties, the reasons for the dissolution of the marriage, and any history of domestic violence, if any, serve as a function for judicial checks. These records certify that the substantial and procedural due process that is required.

Duval County was founded in the year 1858, and their district clerk, that competent authority trusted with divorce records in the state of Texas, has divorce records in their custody that dates back to the year 1877. As a county in Texas, Duval County comes under the Texas Public Information Act which considers all public documents to be available to the public.

This same statute prescribes the procedure to obtain a certified copy of vital records in the state of Texas. Under the Texas Public Information Act, one has to send a request letter to the district clerk. In this letter, the more information about the divorce that could be included, the easier and faster it would be for the district clerk to locate the record being sought. It should be noted that any fees should be settled within ten days after the request for payment is written, otherwise, the request would automatically be considered to have been withdrawn.

In the state of Texas, the state government could not provide certified copies of divorce records, but the Texas Department of State Health Services could provide divorce verification, although these verifications are not meant to be used in lieu of certified copies of divorce records. Divorce verification is affected either through the internet with the use of a credit card, or with a free to download form available from the State Health Services website. The verification could take anywhere between ten to fifteen days to complete and costs twenty dollars.

It may be easier to obtain divorce records from the internet, however. Unlike the two methods discussed above, a resort to the World Wide Web would not require the searcher to leave the comforts of their homes and fall in sometimes long lines. In addition, these specialized online search databases are often free to use, easy to understand and near instantaneous with results that are not limited to divorce records only.