Summary
Adult adoptees in the District of Columbia do not have access to their original birth certificates, except by court order. The D.C. superior court controls all aspects of releasing an OBC or any identifying information, whether from court records or from vital records. Original birth certificates and adoption court records for adoptions initiated prior to September 1, 1937, however, should be accessible by an adoptee without a court order.
D.C. Superior courts are not in precise agreement about the scope of access an adoptee may have to court adoption records. At least one court decision required the release of information so long as the “welfare of the child will thereby be promoted or protected.” Other court decisions have more strictly interpreted the “welfare of the child” provision and have denied adoptees access to records, including original birth certificates.
U.S. District Court: Adoption Records
Prior to September 14, 1956, the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia had jurisdiction to hear and decide adoption petitions in the District of Columbia. Accordingly, adoptees who were born and adopted prior to 1956 likely have court records on file with the federal court in DC, not with the DC Superior Court. Adoptions initiated prior to 1937, however, are considered public records and should be available and on file with the court.
Petitions to break the seal for records for adoptions between 1937 and 1956 must be made to U.S. District Court. More information is available on the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia website here.
Relevant D.C. Law: Original Birth Certificates
D.C. Code § 16-314. Birth certificates
(a) Upon the issuance of a final decree of adoption, an adoption form shall be sent to the Registrar pursuant to the Vital Records Act of 1981. Unless otherwise requested in the petition by the adopters, the Registrar shall cause to be made a new record of the birth in the new name with the names of the adopters and shall then cause the original birth certificate and the order of the Court to be sealed and filed. The sealed package may be opened only by order of the Court or by the Registrar to properly administer the Vital Records Act of 1981.
(b) If the adoption occurred outside the District either before or after August 25, 1937, a new certificate of birth shall be made pursuant to section 11 of the Vital Records Act of 1981. The Registrar shall seal the original birth certificate. The sealed original birth certificate may be opened only by order of a court of competent jurisdiction or by the Registrar to properly administer the Vital Records Act of 1981.
(c) If the birth of the adoptee occurred outside the District the clerk of the court shall, upon petition by the adopter, furnish him with a certified copy of the final decree of adoption.
(c-1) If the birth of the adoptee occurred outside of the United States, a new certificate of birth shall be made pursuant to section 11 of the Vital Records Act of 1981.
(d) When an adoption in the District occurred prior to August 25, 1937, the court shall, upon presentation of a motion by a party to the proceedings, order the clerk of the court to seal the records in the proceeding. Upon presentation of a certified copy of the order the Mayor shall cause to be made a new record of the birth in the new name and with the names of the adopters and shall then cause to be sealed and filed the original birth certificate with the order of the court. The sealed package may be opened only by order of the court.
Relevant D.C. Law: Adoption Court Records
D.C. Code § 16–311. Sealing and inspection of records and papers
From and after the filing of the petition, records and papers in adoption proceedings shall be sealed. They may not be inspected by any person, including the parties to the proceeding, except upon order of the court, and only then when the court is satisfied that the welfare of the child will thereby be promoted or protected. Such records and papers shall, upon written application to the court, be unsealed and provided to the Child Fatality Review Committee for inspection if the adoptee is deceased and inspection of the records and papers is necessary for the discharge of the Committee’s official duties. The clerk of the court shall keep a separate docket for adoption proceedings.
I am also an adoptee from DC & very much want to find medical info, any family history, etc.
Please advise as to steps I need to take to opening papers.
Thank you.
I petitioned the dc court to break the seal of adoption earlier this year. You can do this yourself (no attorney necessary) and can get the form online. There is an $80 fee and my records were unsealed within 3 weeks. An intermediary has to complete the search. Sadly I have discovered that my bm passed in 2014 but I’m awaiting a reply from my bf. I’d be happy to help you with your journey.
I have just recently seen your message. Thank you so much for the reply.
Could you tell me where to get the forms I would need?
So sorry that your bm has passed. I am pretty sure mine has as well.
Thanks again.
Just google for “break seal adoption Washington DC” and one of the results will contain the form. It’s about 8 pages and must be notarized but overall it’s very easy to complete. My petition was approved in 3 weeks! Hope your search is successful!
You should all be aware of a number of posts I’ve written on the DC process (I’m a DC adoptee). They are on this page and on my personal blog at gregoryluce.com. It is a simple process, sure, and breaking the seal is easy. But getting actual results is time-consuming, at times humiliating, and often with little results. I know of no adoptees who have ever seen their original birth certificate, except those that were not sealed in the first place (those prior to August 1937).
Thanks
Hi, My name is Adrienne and I’m helping a friend who was born in 1964 in D.C and adopted. Can you tell us where to get the forms?
Thanks so much,
Adrienne
Sure. You can find the court forms here. But I would recommend also reading through some of my own posts on my personal blog about the process and what to expect. I’d start with this one: Petitioning the D.C. Court for Your Adoption Records.
That’s correct. I know now that my
birth mother has passed and yet they won’t even tell me her first name. First time I’ve really been angry about anything related to my adoption, however the entire process of petitioning the court to getting this information was less than 5 weeks which was very pleasantly surprising.
Hello, what information were you able to obtain once the records were unsealed? I located the identity of my birth father, and was successful in reuniting with his sister, my older sister and cousins. By there accounts my mother took me away from the family. The man whom my mother stated was my father was never married to her. However, without my birth father’s consent, my name was changed to match a man my mother was dating when I was around 8. The social security administration has confirmed that the identifying birth certificate presented had my birth father’s name. My mother, birth father and the man that “legitimized” me are all deceased. Any advice you can provide to assist me in obtaining my original birth certificate is greatly appreciated. If I were to request an amendment of my current birth certificate will DC vital records permit me to change the name of my father to reflect my birth father? This change is vital as the man my mother had my last name changed to was also responsible for raping me, my two sisters and a younger brother. I thank God his blood is not running through my veins. For my children and grandkids I want our family tree and my records to reflect my real father. Thank you
I recently did the Ancestry.com DNA test and was able to find two 1st cousins. One was able to tell me who my birth mother was (I already knew she had passed away) and provide pictures. She’s the only cousin on that side, so my other match has to be on my father’s side. That cousin seems less accommodating to providing information, but I was at least able to eliminate a couple possibilities about my birth father.
This is just another avenue that you may want to consider. Good luck!
I will be filing a petition in DC to Break the Seal of Adoption this week!
In the past year, thanks to 23andMe, I was able to connect to a maternal half-brother, also born in DC. We’re currently on separate coasts, and have gotten together a few times over the past year. As we were both adopted through the same agency, we’re hoping by unsealing records, we may be able to find other family members, and get some medical information as well.
The information on this site tuned us into the Petition process.
Thank you for being here!
Hi, I’m a birth mother to add her 2 cents. I’m not sure why DC is so extreme compared to other states, it is quite frustrating. In addition, the maternity home I went to lost all their records in a fire, although it sounds like a gothic novel, I guess it is true.
I used 2 DNA tests to put myself out there and see if I get a match, and tried a third, 23 and me. For some reason, 23 and me could not read my DNA, they tried twice and refused to try a third time saying it would not work. Just to let everyone know, don’t settle for only one test, please!
Wishing everyone luck with their searches.