y-
OFFICE OF THE AlTORNEY GENERAL OF TEXAS
AUSTIN
Xonorabls k'. A. Gay18
State Registrar
State Boa& of HeaN&
Austin, Texas
Eonorable W. A. DaVl8, page 2
“‘Am3 provided further,
_ . . that _any. - altizen
.
or tile State or Taxes wlehln& to file t&e Fe-
oord of any birth or death, not previously
registered, may submit to the Probate Court
in the oounty where the birth or death oc-
curred, a record of that birth or-death written
on the adopted forms of blrth and death oerti-
fioates. Th8 csrt~ficate shall be subetantlat-
eb by the a?fldavit of the medioal attendant
present at the time of the birth, or in case
of death, the aifidavlt of the physlolan last
in attendance upon the &eceased, or the under-
taker who buried the body. when the affidavit
OS the medioal attendant or undertaker cmnnot
be secured, the certificate shall be supported
by the affidavit of sosm person who waa ao-
quainted with the facts aurroun(lln~: the birth
or death, et the time the birth or death oa-
ourred, with cr seoond afflcIatlt of sow, per-
son who is acquainted with the taots surrounb-
lng the birth or death, and who Is not rel.eted
to the indlvUua1 by blood or msrrlage, The
Frobate Court shall require auoh other ln-
formation or evidence an may be doemed neces-
sary to establish the citieenship of the lndl-
vidual filing the oertlficate, end the truth-
fulness of the statements maas in thet record.
The Clerk OS the said Court shall Forward the
certll’ioate to the State Bureau of Vital rta-
tietics with sn order iron the Court to the
State Registrar thtit the record be, or be
not, acaepted. The 5tate Regfetrar is author-
ized to aooept the oertifloate when verified
LI the above s!anmr, and shall lseur oertliied
oopiee or suoh reoords ss provided ror in
seotlon 21 of thlr Act. such oertirled aopfes
shall be prima Ptxois evidence in all Courts
and plaoes of the facts stated thereon. The
State Bureau of vital 2tatlstios shall furnish
the forms upon which such reoords are filed,
and no other form shell be used for that pur-
pose.‘”
Note that the Probate Court I# required to pass
the facts surrounding the birth or death and may re-
e additional evld~enoa it neoessary.
ho~orab1e W. A. Mvie, Page 3
:;rticle la, Revlsed Civil Statutes, 1925, reads
AS i‘O.llovY :
Vo judge or justice 0:' the peaoe
shall sit in any ease wherein he may be
interested OP where either of the parties
my bo oonnected with him by affinity or
oonsan&nity within the third degree, or
where he shall have b88n couueel in the
0888."
It i5 clear that under Art5018 lb of the Rerfsed
civil Statutes, and Zeotioh ll or krtiole v pi the3 constitu-
tion iron: whloh mtdd.8 16 springa, the County Judge of
Jaak County is not only related to those who wish to prove
the reoords of their birth; he 15 also tnterestml in the
registration of his own birth oertiffaate. Undoubtedly he
is disquallfled to preside over these probate prOo88dinga.
Article 1932 vernon*a Annotated Civil Statutes,
a6 amended, -as enaote & to take oare of just suoh situations.
It reado as follows:
When a county &d&e is diSg,Ualified
to act in any probate !5atter, he shall
forthwith certify his die;ualiflaatlon
therein to the Governor, whereupon the
Governor shall appoint some perem to
aot AS special judge in said oa88, who
ShA1.L A& fXOJIl t8Wi t0 teKX Witil auoh
dls~ualiffcatlon ceases to exist. A
special. judge so appointed shall receive
the same compensation 8s La now or may
hareafter be provided by law for regular
judges in similar cases, and ths Cozm.is-
aioners' Sourt shall, at beginning of
eaoh fisoal year, include In the hdpt
of the county, a sufTloient 9~13.for the
payAmmt of the speaial judge or judges
appointed by the Governor to act for the
re&ar oounty judge, .Ae awn&x? Acts
1939, 46th L8p,., p. 187, 8 1~"
Consequently, it is'the opinion of this department
and you are reapeotfully advised that the County Sudgs of
328
fionorablm W. A. Darie, Page 4
Jaok County who d8SireS to oause to be filed for record
the birth oertifioate or himself, hle brothers and eleters,
as provided for in HOUSEBill No. 614, Acts 1939, 46th
~gislature, Should,as provided in Artiole 1932, eupra,
osrtify hls dlequualifloation to the Cevernor.nhose duty it
all be to appoint 8058 8Uitabl8 peraon to serve ~19 oounty
judge in his place,
Very truly yours
ATTORNhENERALOPTJW3
APPROVEDSEp4, 1940
G-Q-oh4
i'W3RNEYGENERAL
OP TEXAS