PART III. RECORDS AND PRESERVATION

§183. Microfilm records; use; separate location; preservation of records

A. The clerk of court as the parish recorder may record acts by methods of reproduction as provided in R.S. 44:115.

B. The original master negative of such microfilm or other photographic reproduction may be used for preparing digital images which can be utilized in lieu of the original document or record. Such microfilm or other photographic reproduction shall be kept in safe and secure storage at a separate location from the original records and documents filed with the clerk of court. The clerk of court as the parish recorder may have working copies made of any of the master negatives or other photographic reproductions and keep the working copies on the premises of his offices to be used at his discretion in connection with the preservation of fragile volumes. The clerk of court may substitute the working copies for daily use of original volumes, so long as the original volumes remain in the collection and are easily available for examination in cases where the working copies are difficult to decipher.

C. The clerk of court as the parish recorder may make all such reasonable rules and regulations relative to the use and preservation of documents and volumes in the office as he deems necessary, but nothing in this Section shall be construed to mean that the public will not have free access to either original records or facsimiles thereof during all regular office hours, not including extended office hours. The clerk of court, with the advice of the archivist, shall make provisions for the preservation, management, repair, and rehabilitation of any or all records in his custody, if he deems it necessary to protect old, fragile, or damaged records from further damage or loss.

D. Such microfilm copy or other photographic reproduction shall be deemed to be an original record for all purposes and shall be admissible in evidence in all courts or administrative agencies. A facsimile, exemplification, or certified copy thereof shall for all purposes be deemed to be a transcript, exemplification, or certified copy of the original.

E. Nothing in this Chapter shall in any manner be construed to permit the destruction of any records presently in the possession of, or which may hereafter come into the possession of the office of the clerk of court as the parish recorder.

F. The clerk of court shall dedicate a specific portion of fees assessed and collected by the parish recorder to microfilming, restoration, repair, and preservation of records and deposit those fees in the Consolidated Judicial Expense Fund or the Clerk's Salary Fund.

Acts 2006, No. 621, §5, eff. June 23, 2006; Acts 2008, No. 868, §3.