Opinion ID: 1267011
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 4

Heading: Birth Certificate

Text: D & S argues the Master disregarded the plain language of Scrappy Pinckney's birth certificate when he found Scrappy Pinckney's parents were not married at the time of his birth. We disagree. The Master, who was in the best position to judge the credibility of the witnesses and the evidence, found Lorraine Lewis and Silas Knight's testimony more persuasive than the birth certificate. First, the birth certificate was contradicted by every piece of direct testimony in the record. Second, the Court of Appeals recently held in Freeman that in order for Trimble to have retroactive effect, paternity must be conclusively established by the specific documents required in Mitchell. Freeman, supra . Finally, birth certificates, unlike marriage licenses, are not intended or designed to constitute proof of a marriage.