Hawaii
Hawaii Adoption Records: Family Court Access to the OBC
Hawaii runs a compromise model built around the family court rather than the vital records office. Hawaii Revised Statutes 578-15 seals adoption records, but it gives an 18 or older adoptee a lower bar than everyone else who might ask to see them: a written request straight to the family court, with no need to show good cause. (e), the vital records statute, cross references 578-15 as the actual access standard for the original birth certificate (OBC).
Information last verified on 2026-08-11. This article has not yet been reviewed by a licensed lawyer.
How an Adult Adoptee Gets Adoption Records in Hawaii
(b) allows records to be inspected only 'upon order of the family court upon a showing of good cause,' with one important exception: after the adopted individual turns 18, that adoptee may submit a written request for inspection to the family court without the good cause showing required of everyone else. (e), the vital records statute, ties the OBC specifically to this same standard, stating that sealed documents 'may be opened by the department only by an order of a court of record or when requested in accordance with section 578-14.5 or 578-15.' In practice this is still a court filing, not a walk up request at a state agency, which is why Hawaii sits in the compromise category rather than the unrestricted one.
Filing With the Family Court: Form 1F-P-767
The operational route is Hawaii Judiciary Form 1F-P-767, Request Regarding Confidential Adoption Records of the Family Court, usable by adult adoptees and by natural or adoptive parents. The form's own instructions cite Act 80 of 2016, effective June 21, 2016, as its statutory authority. There is no stated filing fee. A request submitted in person needs only a photo ID; a mailed request must be notarized.
Hawaii's family court is organized by circuit, and the filing office depends on where the adoption was granted: the 1st Circuit (Oahu, filed in Kapolei), the 2nd Circuit (Maui, Molokai, and Lanai, filed in Wailuku), the 3rd Circuit (Hawaii Island, with offices in Hilo and Kona), and the 5th Circuit (Kauai, filed in Lihue). Hawaii's circuit numbering has no 4th Circuit.
Hawaii Has No Separate Reunion Registry
Several search strategies, both in this cluster's underlying research and in a separate live check, found no dedicated mutual consent registry or confidential intermediary program statute in Hawaii. Instead of a standalone registry, Hawaii routes reunion and identifying information access through the direct family court petition mechanism described above under (b)(2) and (b)(3).
Non-Identifying Information
Separately from the identity question, HRS 578-14.5 authorizes a medical information form covering the natural parents' medical, genetic, and inheritable disease history. The Department of Health makes this form available to public agencies, Department of Human Services approved child placing organizations, attorneys and others assisting in the adoption process, and the family court itself. The exact current text of 578-14.5 was not independently reopened for this article, since the capitol.hawaii.gov statute pages blocked automated access; the summary above reflects corroborating research rather than a fresh primary read.
How to Apply
File Form 1F-P-767 with the Adoption Records office of the family court circuit where the adoption was granted. In person filing requires a photo ID; mailed filing requires notarization. No fee is stated. Contact the specific circuit's Family Court Adoption Records office for current processing time estimates, since none was confirmed on an opened primary source.
This article is part of recordinglaw.com's Adoption Records by State series. For a state by state explanation of the original birth certificate concept itself, see How to Get Your Original Birth Certificate. For search strategy and honest expectations, see How to Find Birth Parents. For how mutual consent registries work across states, see Adoption Reunion Registries.
A general, non-adoption birth certificate is a different question with different rules; see Are Birth Certificates Public Records? for that distinction. Sealed adoption files also come up in Hawaii's broader public records rules; see Hawaii Court Records. Where a birth parent search runs into a death, see Hawaii Death Records, and for a name trail after marriage or divorce, see Hawaii Marriage and Divorce Records.
Disclaimer
This article explains Hawaii's family court process for adult adoptees seeking their own adoption records. It is general legal information, not legal advice, and is not a substitute for a licensed Hawaii attorney or the family court's own guidance. Forms and processes change; verify current requirements with the relevant circuit's family court before relying on them.
Last updated: 2026-08-11. Fees and forms reflect their published status as of August 2026.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can an adult adoptee get their adoption records in Hawaii without a lawyer?
Generally yes, using Hawaii Judiciary Form 1F-P-767. Once an adoptee turns 18, HRS 578-15(b)(2) lets them submit a written request directly to the family court that granted the adoption, without the good cause showing required of other petitioners.
Is there a fee to request Hawaii adoption records?
No filing fee is stated on Form 1F-P-767 or its instructions. If the request is mailed rather than filed in person, it must be notarized, and a notary may charge its own separate fee.
Does Hawaii have an adoption reunion registry?
No. Hawaii does not run a separate mutual consent registry or confidential intermediary program. Reunion and identifying information access goes through the same family court petition process under HRS 578-15.
Where do I file an adoption records request in Hawaii?
With the Adoption Records office of the family court circuit where the adoption was originally granted: the 1st Circuit in Kapolei for Oahu, the 2nd Circuit in Wailuku for Maui, Molokai, and Lanai, the 3rd Circuit in Hilo or Kona for Hawaii Island, or the 5th Circuit in Lihue for Kauai.
Can a birth parent request non-identifying medical information in Hawaii?
The medical, genetic, and inheritable disease information form under HRS 578-14.5 is made available to the family court, licensed agencies, and attorneys assisting in the adoption process. Contact the Department of Health or the family court circuit involved for the current process.
Updates
Governing law re-checked for recent changes
Independently fact-checked against the cited primary sources
The Law Behind This Article
This article rests on 2 statutory provisions held in our own legal record, each retrieved from the official source. Tap a section to read the operative text.
Hawaii Revised Statutes, Chapter 338: VITAL STATISTICS
§ 338-20AdoptionIn force
(a) In case of the adoption of any person born in the State, the department of health, upon receipt of a properly certified copy of the adoption decree, or certified abstract thereof on a form approved by the department, shall prepare a supplementary certificate in the name of the adopted person, as fixed or changed by the decree, and seal and file the original certificate of birth with the certified copy attached thereto. (b) The registrar of births shall show on the supplemental birth certificate the names of parents as stated in the adoption decree pursuant to section 578-14. (c) Any certified copy of final decree of adoption, or abstract thereof, of persons born in the State, rendered by courts of other states and territories subject to the jurisdiction of the United States, or courts of a foreign country, shall be considered properly certified when attested by the clerk of the court in which it was rendered with the seal of the court annexed, if there be a seal, together with a certificate of the presiding judge, chancellor, or magistrate that the attestation is in due form.
Official text (excerpt) · as of 2026-07-30 · Read the full section at capitol.hawaii.gov
Hawaii Revised Statutes, Chapter 578: ADOPTION
§ 578-15Secrecy of proceedings and recordsIn force
(a) The records in adoption proceedings, after the petition is filed and before the entry of the decree, shall be open to inspection only by the parties or their attorneys, the director of human services or the director's agent, or any proper person on a showing of good cause therefor, upon order of the court. Except in the case of an individual being adopted by a person married to the legal birthing parent or non-birthing parent of the individual or unless authorized by the court, no petition for adoption shall set forth the name of the individual sought to be adopted or the name of either of the parents of the individual; provided that the legal name of the individual and the name of each of the individual's legal parents may be added to the petition by amendment during the course of the hearing thereof and shall be included in the decree. The hearing of the petition shall be in chambers and shall not be open to the public.
Official text (excerpt) · as of 2026-07-30 · Read the full section at capitol.hawaii.gov
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Sources and References
- Hawaii Judiciary Form 1F-P-767, Request Regarding Confidential Adoption Records of the Family Court(courts.state.hi.us).gov
- Hawaii Revised Statutes 578-15, secrecy of adoption proceedings and records(capitol.hawaii.gov).gov
- Hawaii Revised Statutes 338-20, vital records treatment of adoption(capitol.hawaii.gov).gov
- HHS Children's Bureau, Access to Adoption Records (state by state overview)(childwelfare.gov).gov