La. Rev. Stat. § 9:400
This is the official text of La. Rev. Stat. § 9:400, part of Louisiana’s Rev. Stat — part of the compiled statutory law of Louisiana, published by the state as "Rev. Stat." Browse the sections below, each linked to its official government source.
Not legal advice. This page reproduces the official text of a government statute for reference only. Laws change, and how a statute applies depends on your specific facts. For advice about your situation, consult a licensed attorney in your state.
Putative father registry
Official statutory text
A. The Louisiana Department of Health, office of public health, shall establish a putative father registry which shall record the names and addresses of the following:
(1) Any person adjudicated by a court of this state to be the father of the child.
(2) Repealed by Acts 2006, No. 344, §7, eff. June 13, 2006.
(3) Any person adjudicated by a court of another state or territory of the United States to be the father of an out of wedlock child, where a certified copy of the court order has been filed with the registry by such person or any other person.
(4) Any person who has filed with the registry an acknowledgment by authentic act.
(5) Repealed by Acts 2004, No. 26, §15.
(6) Any person who has filed with the registry a judgment of filiation rendered by a court which recognizes a father as having, either formally or informally, acknowledged a child born outside of marriage and in which the father is adjudged the parent of the child.
B. A person filing a declaration to claim paternity of a child or an acknowledgement of paternity shall include therein his current address and shall notify the registry of any change of address pursuant to procedures prescribed by rules and regulations of the Louisiana Department of Health, office of public health.
C. A declaration to claim paternity of a child may be introduced in evidence by any party, other than the person who filed such notice, in any proceeding in which such fact may be relevant.
D. The Louisiana Department of Health, office of public health, shall, upon request, provide the names and addresses of persons listed with the registry to any court or authorized agency, and such information shall not be divulged to any other person, except upon order of a court for good cause shown.
E. The Louisiana Department of Health, office of public health, shall promulgate all rules and regulations necessary to carry out the purposes of this Part.
Acts 1989, No. 361, §1; Acts 1993, No. 634, §2, eff. June 15, 1993; Acts 2004, No. 26, §§5, 15; Acts 2006, No. 344, §§4 and 7, eff. June 13, 2006; Acts 2013, No. 220, §2, eff. June 11, 2013.
(1) Any person adjudicated by a court of this state to be the father of the child.
(2) Repealed by Acts 2006, No. 344, §7, eff. June 13, 2006.
(3) Any person adjudicated by a court of another state or territory of the United States to be the father of an out of wedlock child, where a certified copy of the court order has been filed with the registry by such person or any other person.
(4) Any person who has filed with the registry an acknowledgment by authentic act.
(5) Repealed by Acts 2004, No. 26, §15.
(6) Any person who has filed with the registry a judgment of filiation rendered by a court which recognizes a father as having, either formally or informally, acknowledged a child born outside of marriage and in which the father is adjudged the parent of the child.
B. A person filing a declaration to claim paternity of a child or an acknowledgement of paternity shall include therein his current address and shall notify the registry of any change of address pursuant to procedures prescribed by rules and regulations of the Louisiana Department of Health, office of public health.
C. A declaration to claim paternity of a child may be introduced in evidence by any party, other than the person who filed such notice, in any proceeding in which such fact may be relevant.
D. The Louisiana Department of Health, office of public health, shall, upon request, provide the names and addresses of persons listed with the registry to any court or authorized agency, and such information shall not be divulged to any other person, except upon order of a court for good cause shown.
E. The Louisiana Department of Health, office of public health, shall promulgate all rules and regulations necessary to carry out the purposes of this Part.
Acts 1989, No. 361, §1; Acts 1993, No. 634, §2, eff. June 15, 1993; Acts 2004, No. 26, §§5, 15; Acts 2006, No. 344, §§4 and 7, eff. June 13, 2006; Acts 2013, No. 220, §2, eff. June 11, 2013.
Status: in_force · Read it on the official government site
Need a lawyer in Louisiana?
Find a Louisiana lawyer
About this page: Statute text is reproduced from official government publishers via the
Open US Law dataset
(Vaquill AI, snapshot v2026.08, CC BY 4.0). Primary legislative text like this is public domain under the government-edicts doctrine
(Georgia v. Public.Resource.Org, 2020). We link every section back to its official source so you can verify it independently.