District of Columbia Birth Records

Birth records like District of Columbia Birth Records are some of the most requested for records from the government owing to the fact that these records are the best evidence that one could present in order to prove the fact of the birth of the person named in the record. One may ask why there is a need to prove the fact of the birth of the person when one could simply prove the existence of the person by the mere presence of that person. The answer to that lies in the fact that the fact of the birth of the person is that which attaches upon that person certain rights that one could exercise only if he or she is indeed that person who is named in the record, and some of these rights are exclusive upon that person only.

District of Columbia Birth Certificates, like all birth certificates, would be submitted by the person when he or she is applying for an identification card or a position in both the public and the private spheres. Birth certificates function as a form of identification even if it actually does not have a picture in it because these records are issued by the government and the only ones that are supposed to have them are either those who are related to the person whose name appears on the record or the person whose name appears on the record himself.

As with all records made ad issued by the government, District of Columbia Vital Records are afforded the presumption of regularity such that the contents of the records are presumed to be true and accurate at all times. This means that there is no obligation on the part of the party presenting the records from having to prove that the contents of the records are true and accurate, but note that the presumption is not absolute and could be overturned through the use of competent evidence that would be presented by the party who would claim that the records are false. Note that the presumption is also not applicable if the records that would be presented were not obtained from the proper sources.

A request for copies of the records could be done from a number of offices, though for the purpose of making sure that the request would have access to all the records from within the district, the requests must be asked at the district or national level. This means the District Health Department and the procedure would be to make the request through the mail. This method of requesting would take longer because the office could not act on the same until and unless they have received copies of the request as well as all the other requirements that may be required by the law when making the request.

It is also possible to find copies of the records online through the use of online databases, but it must be noted that these databases are not official sources for the purpose of the presumption of regularity. In any case, they could present information that would be substantially the same as that which could be found from the official sources.

State Of District of Columbia Birth Records

Given below is a procedure that one could use to make the request for copies of the records

• – Download the necessary form and accomplish the same.
• – Attach upon the form a copy of any government issued identification card
• – Have the form notarized.
• – Determine your required fee and make a money order to answer for the same.
• – Attach the money order upon the required form.
• – Make a self-addressed envelope and attach the same upon the form.
• – Send the form and all other attachments to the department of health for processing.

Other information pertinent to making the request for copies of the records may be seen through the following links

• – District of Columbia
• – Department of Health
• – Vital Records
• – Birth Certificates
• – Methods
• – Where to Write for Vital Records