• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer

Adoptee Rights Law

Legal representation and advocacy for adoptees

  • Home
  • About
  • OBC Laws
    • State List
    • State Maps
    • Current Legislation
  • Latest
  • Contact

Last updated on September 25, 2017

Louisiana

Summary

Adult adoptees in Louisiana do not have access to their own original birth certificates, except by court order. An adult adoptee in Louisiana must demonstrate “compelling reasons” for a court to order release of an original birth certificate. In addition, a court may appoint a “curator ad hoc” (an attorney) to help in “satisfying the requirement that information shall be revealed only to the extent necessary to satisfy the compelling necessity shown.”

Court Petitions in New Orleans. Orleans Parish, which includes New Orleans, provides a packet of information for petitioning the court for information. The court makes it clear that it releases only information and only for compelling reasons. The court is not likely to order the release of an OBC. Filing a petition in Orleans Parish requires a $505 filing fee and may also involve the fees of the curator, which are $500. The information packet and petition form is here.

Louisiana maintains a voluntary adoption registry, which requires mutual consent as well one hour of counseling before an approved counselor will facilitate contact between parties.

Relevant Louisiana Law: Original Birth Certificate

Rev. Stat. § 40:73. Certified copy of the new record; sealing and confidentiality of the original birth record
A. Upon completion of the new record provided for in R.S. 40:72, the state registrar shall issue to the adopted person or to the adoptive parents a certified copy of the new record and shall place the original birth certificate and the copy of the judgment or the copy of the act of adoption in a sealed package and shall file the package in the archives of the vital records registry.

B. This sealed package shall be opened only upon the demand of the adopted person, or if deceased, by his or her descendants, or upon the demand of the adoptive parent, or the state registrar, or the recognized public or private social agency which was a party to the adoption, and then only by order of a Louisiana court of competent jurisdiction at the domicile of the vital records registry, which order shall issue only after a showing of compelling reasons. Information shall be revealed only to the extent necessary to satisfy such compelling necessity.

C. In satisfying the requirement that information shall be revealed only to the extent necessary to satisfy the compelling necessity shown, the court is further authorized to use the services of the curator ad hoc appointment pursuant to Article 5091.2 of the Louisiana Code of Civil Procedure.

D. All motions for records under this Section shall be in accordance with and subject to the provisions of Children’s Code Articles 1188 through 1192 and, if an adoption agency is involved, the agency shall be served with a copy of the motion as provided in Article 1313 of the Louisiana Code of Civil Procedure.

Art. 5091.2. Curator ad hoc in adoption cases
In complying with the provisions of the Louisiana Children’s Code Articles 1011, 1107, or 1190 and related statutes, the judge of the competent court is authorized to appoint an attorney who shall serve as curator ad hoc who will assist the court in complying with the statutory requirements for maintaining the confidentiality of termination, surrender, adoption, and related records and proceedings.

Filed Under: Original Birth Certificates Tagged With: Adoption Registry, Louisiana, Mandatory Counseling, Restricted Access, State OBC Laws

Gregory D. Luce

I am a Minnesota lawyer, DC-born adoptee, and the founder of Adoptee Rights Law Center PLLC. I've been practicing law in Minnesota state and federal courts since 1993. I also have a sense of humor.

Did I Miss Something?

I work hard to get the laws and facts straight in every state---and to keep them regularly updated. If you see something that's not quite right or doesn't fit your experience, let me know with either a quick comment or an email.

 

Reader Interactions

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Primary Sidebar

  • Email
  • Facebook
  • Twitter

Adoptee Rights Law Center

The Adoptee Rights Law Center PLLC is an adoptee-focused legal practice founded by Gregory Luce, a Minnesota lawyer and D.C.-born adoptee. Read more about the center's goals and focus.

Contact Info

Adoptee Rights Law Center PLLC
PO Box 19561
Minneapolis Minnesota 55419
T: (612) 221-3947
E: [email protected]

Legal representation limited to issues involving state and federal law in Minnesota.

Louisiana Advocacy

The Louisiana Adoptee Rights Campaign has been active recently in trying to amend Louisiana law to provide access to an original birth certificate.

State OBC Access Numbers

9unrestricted
17compromised
25restricted
51View All

OBC Access Maps

OBC Access Map - Facebook

Legislative Tracking

OBC Access Legislative Maps Facebook

All State OBC Laws

  • Alabama
  • Alaska
  • Arizona
  • Arkansas
  • California
  • Colorado
  • Connecticut
  • Delaware
  • District of Columbia
  • Florida
  • Georgia
  • Hawaii
  • Idaho
  • Illinois
  • Indiana
  • Iowa
  • Kansas
  • Kentucky
  • Louisiana
  • Maine
  • Maryland
  • Massachusetts
  • Michigan
  • Minnesota
  • Mississippi
  • Missouri
  • Montana
  • Nebraska
  • Nevada
  • New Hampshire
  • New Jersey
  • New Mexico
  • New York
  • North Carolina
  • North Dakota
  • Ohio
  • Oklahoma
  • Oregon
  • Pennsylvania
  • Rhode Island
  • South Carolina
  • South Dakota
  • Tennessee
  • Texas
  • Utah
  • Vermont
  • Virginia
  • Washington
  • West Virginia
  • Wisconsin
  • Wyoming

Footer

Recent Posts

  • It’s Time to End the War Against the AAC
  • Legislative Update: Florida, New York and All Others
  • The Myth of the One-Chance OBC

Contact

Adoptee Rights Law Center PLLC
Gregory D. Luce
PO Box 19561
Minneapolis Minnesota 55419
T: (612) 221-3947
E: [email protected]

Legal representation limited to issues involving state and federal law in Minnesota.

Connect

New York Adoptee Rights Coalition

Adoptee Rights Law Center is part of the New York Adoptee Rights Coalition, a group of organizations committed to enactment of unrestricted OBC access legislation in New York. Join Us

Copyright © 2018 · Adoptee Rights Law Center PLLC · Home · About · Contact