Legal Question in Family Law in California

I was married in California in 1989, moved to Texas and we divorced in 2011, and both of us remarried to different people. Neither one of us can find our marriage certificate to get our REAL ID. I've requested a certified copy from California and they stated no marriage certificate. I know we had to have had one as my ex was in the Marines and they would require proof to get a military id. I have newspaper clippings showing the date of marriage and where. I have a social security and military id with my former married name. When we divorced, I didn't change my name back as we had two children and wanted to keep it the same.

I am truly baffled on who to talk to since it's been 34 years.

Please somebody assist me.


Asked on 1/14/23, 9:23 am

1 Answer from Attorneys

Unfortunately this is not a legal problem and has no legal solution. If you have a current passport in your current name, you shouldn't need the marriage certificate, but you probably already know that. (I found out because I did a legal name change in 1991 and can't find the paperwork, but have kept my passport current. So I used that for RealID). Your best bet is to keep bugging the county clerk's office in the county where you obtained the marriage certificate. They may have to research archived records that have not been indexed on the current system. They will charge you for that. If you just totally hit a wall with the county clerk, maybe the military has a copy in your ex's records?

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Answered on 1/15/23, 11:06 am


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