LOUISIANA VITAL RECORDS REGISTRY
Release of Documents
Louisiana law (LSA R.S. 40:41) provides that the Vital Records Registry may release
copies of birth, death, and fetal death certificates in accordance with the following guidelines:
? To the registrant, a member of the immediate or surviving
family of said person, or to a person named in a court proceeding
as a member of the immediate or surviving family of said person,
or the beneficiary of an insurance policy or trust.
? The credentials of an attorney at law together with a
written declaration of the record in which he is interested, and
that he is a legal representative of one of the above named parties
at interest, or the name and title of the court proceeding in which
the record is to be used, shall constitute sufficient proof of a direct
interest in the matter recorded.
Louisiana Civil Code indicates that “immediate family” in a limited sense means
mother, father and minor children, and in a broad sense may extend to persons who live
under the authority of one another, such as husband, wife, legal guardian, legal custodian,
who are living in the same household and have a custodial relationship.
Anytime you request a vital records document, you must submit a completed written
and signed Request Form, your state photo ID, and the statutory fees.
Additionally, if you are requesting someone else’s vital record document, you must
submit a copy of the Registrant’s state photo ID to document that you have the Registrant’s
written authorization to obtain his/her vital record.
AND
You must document that you
You must submit in addition to the
are in an “immediate family”
above: A signed authorization from
the Registrant authorizing you to
relationship.
OR
obtain his/her specific vital record
document or a completed and signed
Records Release Authorization Form.