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OFFICE OF THE ATTORNEY C;fNERAL OF TEXAS
AUSTIN
GROVERSELLERS September 8, 19I&
Honorable ii. k. Dad.8
State Hegietrer
State Eoard of Health
Auetin 2, Texae
Dear Sir:
Your requeet for 0 the herefnrbove oap-
tloned matter bar bee
from your letter a8 f
the district
ia8uenco of certificate8
appreoiate it it
court OonBidOr the
er for a certified oopy
he 1sBuenoe of euoh en order, la
please give me an outline or form
for the petition to be submitted to the oourt in
such oaeee?"
Section (24) of Rule &?a, under Artiole 4.477of the
ReriBed Cirll Statutes, Vernon's Codiflcetion, LB 13s follOWS:
I
574
honorable Pi. 4. ihliB, page 2
"(25) And provided that the name of the fa-
ther or any information by whioh he might be lden-
tifled, shell not be written into the birth or
death oertlficate of any illegitimate ohild, and
provided further, that any statement the father of
en illegitimate ohild wishee to make ea to its
parentage, may, when plaoed in the form of en ef-
fidevit, be etteohed to the original birth record.
Reither the State itagi6trar nor any looel regir-
trar shall issue a certified oopy of any birth or
death oertifioate wherein a ohild or an adult im
stated to be illegitimete, unlees suoh oertified
oopy la ordered by a Court of competent jurisdlo-
ti0n.w
It is thus seen that neither the Stat. Reglrtrar nor
the local registrar may issue a oertified oopy of any birth or
death oertiticate where&n a ohild or an adult la Btotod to be
illegitimate, unless auoh oortliied oopy is ordered by a oourt
2 oomnetent jurladlotion.
How 0 oourt may not ex4rolao its judlolal runeti0n8
in raoetion except where it 18 rpeolally authorized to do 10.
11 Tex. Jur., Sec. 80, p. 816.
We find no authority for the <)ourt*s ordering suoh
oertiried copy in raoatlon.
Artiole 1915 of the R6vised Civil Statutea, however,
provide8 :
“Judges of the diatriot courts may in vaoa-
tion, by consent of the partioa, exerolse all
powers, make all orders, end perform all aats,
aa fully es in term time, and may, by oonaent of
the parties, try any olvil oezlo, exoept diroroe
ceses, without a jury and enter final judgment.
All such pPOOOedhgs shall be oonduoted under the same
rules as if done in term time; ana the right of
appeals end writ of error ehall apply a8 if the
acts had been done in term tims.W
Under this statute, a judge of a distriot oourt, with the oonaent
or all pertiee. would be authorized to order the iesuance of the
oortlfled copy of the oertlfi.oates mentioned. See Seagraves v.
Green, 116 Tex. 220, 288 S.N. 417; Woods v. Lenier, 66 S.W. (26)
575
Honorable Vi.A. 3avi8, page 3
360; Iebill v. Stovell, 92 S.W. (2d) 1067; Weaver v. Humphrey,
95 Y.W. (26) 720, 114 S.W. (26) 609; Dollert v. Pratt-&wit Oil
Corporeti'on,I.79S.W. (26) 346.
M order requiring the iesuanoe of suah a certificate
is in legal essence a mandamus, and the registrar against whom
the order 1s ma;lewould, of cour8e, be the respondent party
whose consent la required.
Other than upon oonaont of the partlee, the oourt
would have no juriediotion to make the order in veoatlon a8
herainebove stated.
Your aeoond qua&ion is anaered In the negative.
Under the statute already dieoussed, any woourt of oompetent
juriBdi8tion" m?mn~ a oourt having Jurlsdlotion w8r the 8ub-
jeot matter and not nsocasarily over the person of th6 parties.
Your queetion 2 pre8ent8 a matter of po88ible venue, but this
do88 not go to ths juri8dlotion of the oourt aa a oourt, but
would preB8nt merely a q~e6tion or privilegs of ths rrspondant
to be sued in hi8 own oounty, in a propar ease, whioh prfrilrge
oould be waived and would, of oour88, b8 waived if he 8hould
consent to the oourt'8 hearing in determining the matter in va-
oetion.
With respcot to question No. 3, we will not undertake
to prepare an outline or form ror the petition since the faota
would ordlner1l.ybe SO peoullerly pertinent 08 to make our ef-
fort mile.
Yours Tory truly,
GENERAL
OF TEXAS
001s Sp8er
ABeistent