A large number of divorce proceedings happen in secret in Tarrant County, Texas. These are mainly divorce proceedings that relate to high-profile individuals, who are rich or famous, or both. However, when asked why these high profile divorce cases are completely invisible when searching in Tarrant County records, the District Clerk was unable to provide an answer.
The District Clerk said that 99 percent of the cases are searchable. Nevertheless, a select few simply could not be found. It's possible that they were difficult to find as a result of them having sensitive or confidential information. It's also possible that the identities of the litigants had been masked with initials, which is not uncommon in sensitive family court matters.
A family law attorney from Arlington, however, said that it should be easier to locate family law records in Tarrant County than in currently is. "We have public records for a reason," he said.
The fact of the matter is, people who have the financial means and a valid reason, may be able to occult their divorce records in the name of privacy. The ability to do this may have some sound logic and reasoning behind it. Mainly, the divorce of a wealthy person or celebrity can easily turn into a giant publicity stunt that leads to numerous violations of privacy and rampant rumors across U.S. media outlets.
If you're planning to get a divorce and privacy is a concern for you and your family. You may want to talk with your Texas divorce lawyer about the possibility of keeping your legal process as private as possible.
Source: Star-Telegram, "Some high-profile local divorce cases are hidden from the public. Why?," Max Baker, Oct. 20, 2017
