Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts
Comparing Federal & State Courts
Why family-law records generally begin in a state court system.
Family law records
Family law starts with the right state court and the right record
GuideWeSpeakLaw EditorialUpdated August 24, 2026Sources reviewed
Divorce, adoption and other family cases usually belong in state systems. Child-support case questions may also lead to a state or tribal agency rather than a federal courthouse.
Official record
Primary sources
Office of Child Support Services
CSENet, QUICK, and the Child Support Portal Contacts
Official direction to contact the relevant state or tribal agency about a case.
Begin with the state system
The federal judiciary identifies marriages, divorces and adoptions as family-law matters generally heard in state courts. Each state creates its own court system, and some states use courts or divisions devoted to family or juvenile matters.
Start with the official judiciary for the state where the matter is being handled. Find the court locator or clerk, then record the county, court, case number and document date before relying on a docket entry or copy.
Separate orders from allegations
A petition tells you what a party asked for. An order tells you what the court directed at that point. A docket entry may only identify that something was filed. Read the document itself and later entries before describing what happened.
Family records can contain sensitive information or be restricted from public view. If a document is not online, ask the court that maintains the case what access is available instead of guessing from the gap.
Take child-support case questions to the case agency
The federal Office of Child Support Services supports intergovernmental systems, but its own contact sheet says questions about a particular child-support case should go to the relevant state or tribal child-support agency.
That distinction matters: a federal information page is not the case file and cannot establish what an order requires. Use the agency or court named in the actual record, and keep identifying details private when asking for help.
Corrections
Updated August 24, 2026. No corrections are recorded.