How Do News Outlets Get Copies of Celebrity Divorce Papers?
In most states, when you file for divorce your personal information and financial declarations become public record unless the documents are sealed.
That would seem to be a pretty good reason to ask a judge to seal your paperwork; however, family court judges do not routinely seal divorce documents unless good arguments showing cause are presented. In other words, unless there’s an extremely good reason, you might as well forget it. Furthermore, even if there is a good reason, in most cases the documents will not be sealed.
A law was passed in California in 2005 to seal divorce documents containing certain financial information but was quickly invalidated in courts because it was found to have violated the First Amendment.
So, it’s all about public record and First Amendment rights. That is how tabloids and news outlets regularly get their hands on the income and expense statements as well as the divorce filings of celebrities.
