(1) The contents of an official record or of a document authorized to be recorded or filed, and actually recorded or filed, with a governmental agency, either federal, state, county, or municipal, in a place where official records or documents are ordinarily filed, including data compilations in any form, may be proved by a copy authenticated as provided in s. 90.902, if otherwise admissible.
(2) If a party cannot obtain, by the exercise of reasonable diligence, a copy that complies with subsection (1), other evidence of the contents is admissible.
A Practical Rule for Official Documents: This statute creates a common-sense exception to the Best Evidence Rule for public records. It recognizes that it would be highly impractical to require original government documents (like deeds, court judgments, or birth certificates) to be brought into court for every case.
The Preferred Method: The best and most common way to prove the contents of a public record is to use a copy that is authenticated according to the rules of self-authentication in § 90.902. In practice, this almost always means a **certified copy**—a copy obtained from the public office that includes a stamp or certificate from the custodian of the record verifying that it is a true and correct copy.
The Backup Method: If a party tries with "reasonable diligence" but cannot obtain a certified copy, the court may then allow the content of the public record to be proven through "other evidence," such as a non-certified copy or witness testimony.
