Last amended January 1, 1994 · Last verified July 13, 2026
In one sentenceRule 44 spells out how to authenticate domestic and foreign official records for use as evidence, including certificate and chain-of-certification requirements, alternate methods of proof, and how to prove that no record exists.
(1)Domestic Record. An official record kept within the United States, or any state, district or commonwealth, or within a territory subject to the administrative or judicial jurisdiction of the United States, or an entry therein, when admissible for any purpose, may be evidenced by an official publication thereof or by a copy attested by the officer having the legal custody of the record, or by the officer’s deputy, and accompanied by a certificate that such officer has the custody. The certificate may be made by a judge of a court of record having jurisdiction in the governmental unit in which the record is kept, authenticated by the seal of the court, or by any public officer having a seal of office and having official duties in the governmental unit in which the record is kept, authenticated by the seal of his office.
(2)Foreign Record. A foreign official record, or an entry therein, when admissible for any purpose, may be evidenced by an official publication, or copy thereof, attested by a person authorized to make attestation, and accompanied by a final certification as to the genuineness of the signature and official position (i) of the attesting person, or (ii) of any foreign official whose certificate of genuineness of signature and official position relates to the attestation or is in a chain of certificates of genuineness of signature and official position relating to the attestation. A final certificate may be made by a secretary of embassy or legation, consul general, consul, vice consul, or consular agent of the United States, or a diplomatic or consular official of the foreign country assigned or accredited to the United States. If a reasonable opportunity has been given to all parties to investigate the authenticity and accuracy of the documents, the court may, for good cause shown, (i) admit an attested copy without final certificate or (ii) permit the foreign official record to be evidenced by an attested summary with or without a final certification. The final certification is unnecessary if the record and the attestation are certified as provided in a treaty or convention to which the United States and the foreign country in which the official record is located are parties.
(b)Alternate Method for Certain Domestic and Foreign Records. The statutes, codes, written laws, executive acts, or legislative or judicial proceedings of any domestic or foreign jurisdiction or governmental unit thereof may also be evidenced by any publication proved to be commonly accepted as proof thereof in the tribunals having jurisdiction in that governmental unit.
(c)Lack of Record. A written statement that after diligent search, no record or entry of a specified tenor is found to exist in the records designated by the statement, authenticated as provided in subdivision (a)(1) of the rule in the case of a domestic record, or complying with the requirements of subdivision (a)(2) of this rule for a summary in the case of a foreign record, is admissible as evidence that the records contain no such record or entry.
(d)Other Proof. This rule does not prevent the proof of official records or of entry or lack of entry therein by another method authorized by law.
Amendment History
Amended November 8, 1993, effective January 1, 1994.
Reporter's Notes
Reporter’s Notes to Rule 44: 1. With the exception of minor wording changes, Rule 44 is substantially identical to FRCP 44. These changes are lifted from superseded Ark. Stat. Ann. § 27-2505 (Supp. 1975), which was taken largely from FRCP 44. These changes do not affect the substance of the Federal Rule.
2. In the last sentence of Section (a)(1), the phrase "of the district or political subdivision" which is found in the Federal Rule, is omitted and the phrase "having jurisdiction in the governmental unit" is inserted in lieu thereof. The effect of this change is to require that the judge making the certificate be the judge of a court which has jurisdiction.
3. Section (b) includes the alternate method of proving certain records previously found in superseded Ark. Stat. Ann. § 27-2505(c) (Supp. 1975). Although this provision is not found in FRCP 44, it has been held that such proof is proper. United States v. Aluminum Company of America, 1 F.R.D. 71 (D.C. N.Y., 1939). Also, it should be noted that Rule 902 (5) of the Uniform Rules of Evidence permits the use of official publications without extrinsic evidence of authenticity.
Addition to Reporter’s Notes, 1993 Amendment: The changes made in subdivisions (a)(1) and (a)(2) are identical to those made in the corresponding federal rule in 1991. The amendment to subdivision (a)(1) strikes the references to specific territories, two of which are no longer subject to the jurisdiction of the United States and adds a generic term to describe governments having a relationship with the United States such that their official record should be treated as domestic records.
The amendment to subdivision (a)(2) adds a sentence to dispense with the final certification by diplomatic officers when the United States and the foreign country where the record is located are parties to a treaty or convention that abolishes or displaces the requirement. In that event the treaty or convention is to be followed. This changes the former procedure for authenticating foreign official records only with respect to records from countries that are parties to the Hague Convention Abolishing the Requirement of Legalization for Foreign Public Documents. It does not affect the former practice of attesting the records, but only changes the method of certifying the attestation. See generally Comment, 11 Harv. Int’l L.J. 476 (1970).
Plain-English Summary
Rule 44 tells a litigant how to get an official record — a deed, a judgment, a birth certificate, a foreign government's decree — admitted without having to call the record's custodian to the witness stand. For a domestic record, anywhere in the United States or its territories, subsection (a)(1) accepts either an official publication of the record or a copy attested by the officer who has legal custody of it, or that officer's deputy, paired with a certificate confirming the attesting officer holds custody. That certificate can come from a judge with jurisdiction where the record is kept, or from any sealed public officer with duties there.
Foreign records get an extra layer under subsection (a)(2): an attested copy needs a final certification tracing the authority of the person who attested it, typically through a chain of consular or diplomatic officials. The court can ease this burden — accepting an attested copy without the final certificate, or even a summary of the record — if all parties have had a reasonable chance to check the record's authenticity and accuracy. Where the United States and the foreign country are both parties to a treaty that does away with the certification requirement, the treaty's simpler procedure controls instead.
Subsection (b) offers a shortcut for statutes, codes, and similar official texts: a publication that courts in the issuing jurisdiction commonly accept as proof is good enough here too, without the attestation-and-certificate chain. Subsection (c) works the opposite side of the same problem — proving a record does not exist — by making a custodian's written statement, after a diligent search, that no such record could be found admissible on that point. And subsection (d) makes clear this rule is not the exclusive path to authentication; any other method the law recognizes remains available.
Frequently Asked Questions
How do you prove an out-of-state court record or public document is genuine?
Subsection (a)(1) accepts either an official publication of the record or a copy attested by the officer with legal custody of it, or that officer's deputy, together with a certificate — from a judge with jurisdiction where the record is kept, or a sealed public officer with duties there — confirming the attesting officer's custody.
What extra steps does a foreign government record need?
Beyond an attested copy, subsection (a)(2) generally requires a final certification tracing the authority of whoever attested the copy, often through a chain of consular or diplomatic officials. The court can relax this if the parties had a reasonable opportunity to check the record's authenticity, or skip it entirely when a treaty between the United States and that country already dispenses with the requirement.
Is there an easier way to prove a foreign or out-of-state statute?
Yes. Subsection (b) allows proof by any publication that is commonly accepted as evidence of that law in the courts of the jurisdiction that issued it, without going through the attestation-and-certificate process.
How do you prove that a record does not exist?
Subsection (c) allows a written statement, made after a diligent search and authenticated the same way as the underlying record would be, saying that no record or entry of the described kind could be found.
Is Rule 44 the only way to authenticate an official record?
No. Subsection (d) preserves any other method of proving an official record, or the absence of one, that the law otherwise allows.
Source & verification. Rule text, Reporter's Notes, and amendment
history are reproduced verbatim from the Arkansas Rules of Civil Procedure, prescribed by
the Arkansas Supreme Court. The plain-English summary is original and written by us.
Last verified July 13, 2026. ·
Official source
Also known as:proof of official recordcertified copy of public recordauthenticating foreign recordsexemplified copy ArkansasArk R Civ P 44