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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 

tloned matter bar 

the herefnrbove oapbee 

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?" 

I 

Section (24) of Rule &?a, under Artiole 4.477 of the 

ReriBed Cirll Statutes, Vernon's Codiflcetion, LB 13s follOWS: 
574 

honorable Pi. 4. ihliB, page 2 

"(25) And provided that the name of the father or any information by whioh he might be ldentifled, 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 effidevit, be etteohed to the original birth record. 

Reither the State itagi6trar nor any looel regirtrar 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 jurisdloti0n.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 vaoation, 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.79 S.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;le would, 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 8ubjeot 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 vaoetion. 

With respcot to question No. 3, we will not undertake 

to prepare an outline or form ror the petition since the faota 

would ordlner1l.y be SO peoullerly pertinent 08 to make our effort mile. 

Yours Tory truly, 

GENERAL OF TEXAS 

001s Sp8er 

ABeistent