(1) Any requested or court ordered amendment to a filed birth or death record must be submitted in writing to the department. On receipt of a request or court order, the department may immediately notify the appropriate county clerk and recorder to suspend the issuance of the affected record until the department issues a letter of correction.

(2) Application for the amendment of marriage applications, licenses, certificates, or marital termination reports (which are not part of the decree) may be made by either party directly to the clerk of district court that issued the marriage license or has on file the marital termination orders. The clerk of district court will make the changes and forward a copy of the corrected document to the department.

(3) Except in those cases specified in (4) and (5), a vital record may only be amended by an order from a court with appropriate jurisdiction, the original data provider, or those persons authorized by 50-15-121(1), MCA.

(4) The demographic information of a death record may be amended by the next of kin, the informant listed on the death certificate, the funeral director, or the person in charge of the final disposition of the body. If any information provided by the informant is disputed after the record has been filed, changes to the demographic data must be made pursuant to an order from a court with appropriate jurisdiction.

(5) Applications to amend the medical certification of cause of death must only be made by the physician who provided the medical certification, or a coroner or state medical examiner if the coroner or medical examiner assumed responsibility for the case. If the cause of death certification is disputed, changes to the cause of death certification must be made pursuant to an order from a court with appropriate jurisdiction.

(6) The department's supervisory staff may amend a vital record when the nature of the amendment is needed to protect the integrity, accuracy, and validity of the record.

(7) A court order that changes a vital record must indicate if an amended or substitute record is to be created. If the court order does not indicate a preference, the record will be amended.

(8) Except as provided in (5) and (6), any subsequent change to information previously amended under this rule requires an order from a court with appropriate jurisdiction.