---
title: "Medical records copy service for law firms"
description: "Medical records copy service for law firms: certified copies and custodian affidavits from any US provider, copy fees paid under your limit, filed to your CMS."
canonical: https://www.tavrn.ai/medical-record-retrieval/copy-service
updated: 2026-10-30
---

# Medical records copy service for law firms

Tavrn obtains the copy of a client’s medical records that each provider releases: full charts, itemized bills, imaging on disc and certified copies with custodian affidavits, requested from any US provider on one signed HIPAA authorization. Tavrn pays the provider’s copy invoice under your approval limit, follows up every 48 hours until the copy arrives, checks it against the request and files it to the matter.

Part of [Medical record retrieval](https://www.tavrn.ai/medical-record-retrieval) · [Book a demo](https://www.tavrn.ai/demo) · [How medical record retrieval works](https://www.tavrn.ai/medical-record-retrieval)

## What the copy service covers

- **The copy request** — The client’s signed HIPAA authorization and what you know about the provider: name, location and dates of service. One authorization covers every US provider on the matter.
- **Certified copies and affidavits** — Ask for a certification or custodian affidavit on the request and it goes to the custodian with the record request. Notarized affidavits are requested where the provider offers them.
- **Copy invoices paid** — Tavrn pays the provider, including on Datavant/Ciox, MRO, Verisma and Sharecare portals. Fees pass through at cost under an approval limit you set and post to the matter as case costs.
- **Completeness check** — Every copy is checked against the request: pages, date range and record types. Missing pages go back to the provider; a provider with nothing on file returns a documented no-records statement.
- **Imaging and discs** — Imaging and films come back with the report, and mailed discs are ingested into the same patient folder as the chart.
- **Filed to the matter** — Searchable (OCR), with a cover page, organised by provider and date of service, into Litify, SmartAdvocate, Clio, Smokeball, SharePoint or Dropbox, on the Tavrn platform, or through the API.

## Which copy to ask for

A case usually needs more than one kind of copy from the same provider. Each is requested on the same authorization and tracked as its own record type.

| Copy | What it is | When a firm asks for it |
| - | - | - |
| Standard copy | The chart or treatment records as the provider releases them | Case evaluation, treatment review and the chronology |
| Itemized bill | The billing office’s line-item statement, held separately from the chart | Damages and the demand |
| Certified copy | A copy the custodian certifies as complete and true | Filing, deposition or trial, where the court needs it |
| Custodian affidavit | The custodian’s sworn statement authenticating the records, notarized where offered | Admitting records without calling the custodian to testify |
| Imaging and films | The radiology report plus the images, often on a mailed disc | Injury proof and expert review |
| No-records statement | The provider’s documented statement that it holds nothing for the dates requested | Closing a gap on the record instead of chasing it |

## The same job, with the chasing included

A copy service and a record retrieval service both end with the provider’s copy in the firm’s hands. Tavrn does the whole retrieval: it finds the right custodian, sends the request the way that custodian answers, pays the copy invoice, follows up until the copy arrives and checks it before it reaches the matter.

[Medical record retrieval services](https://www.tavrn.ai/medical-record-retrieval)

## From authorization to the copy on the matter

1. **Send the authorization** — A signed HIPAA authorization plus the provider’s name, location and dates of service, from the platform or your case management system. Mark certified copies or affidavits on the request.
2. **Requested the same day** — Each request goes to the provider the same day, the way that custodian actually responds: network, release-of-information vendor, portal, fax, mail, email or phone.
3. **Invoice paid, follow-up every 48 hours** — Tavrn pays the copy invoice under your approval limit and follows up every open request every 48 hours until the copy arrives. A stalled request goes to Tavrn’s retrieval team.
4. **Checked and filed** — Pages, date range and record types are checked against the request, then the copy is filed to the matter with the invoice PDF and the fee posted as a case cost.

## Any US provider, from one authorization

- **100,000+** provider requests processed through Tavrn
- **500+** organizations, from solo practices to national organizations
- **425,000** provider organizations in the directory, all 50 states and DC

## Controls for sensitive medical records

Protected health information, handled under HIPAA and audited for SOC 2.

- HIPAA compliance
- SOC 2
- BAA
- SSO
- Audit trail

[Security details](https://www.tavrn.ai/security)

## FAQ

## What is a medical records copy service?

A medical records copy service obtains the copy of a patient’s records that a provider releases and delivers it to the requester, usually a law firm or insurer. It sends the request with the legal basis, pays the provider’s copy charge, and returns the copy, certified where the case needs it. Tavrn does this from one HIPAA authorization for any US provider and files the copy to the matter.

## What is the difference between a legal copy service and medical record retrieval?

They overlap. A legal copy service is often hired for the copy itself; a record retrieval service owns the request from the first fax to the checked delivery, including the follow-up with each custodian. Tavrn is a medical record retrieval service: it requests, pays, follows up and checks, and the copy arrives filed to the matter.

## Can Tavrn get certified copies and custodian affidavits?

Yes. Ask for a certification or affidavit on the request and it goes to the custodian with the record request. Notarized affidavits are requested where the provider offers them.

## Who pays the provider’s copy fee?

Tavrn does, including on clearinghouse portals such as Datavant/Ciox, MRO, Verisma and Sharecare, so records are released without your staff cutting checks. Fees pass through at cost under an approval limit you set, and the fee is posted to the matter with the invoice PDF.

## What does a provider need before it releases a copy?

A valid HIPAA authorization signed by the patient (45 CFR 164.508), naming the recipient, the information and its purpose, with an expiration and signature. Without one, HIPAA lets a provider release records in listed cases such as a court order or a subpoena with the required assurances (45 CFR 164.512(e)). Tavrn works from the patient’s authorization, which one signature extends to every US provider the patient has seen.

## What happens when the copy is incomplete?

Every delivery is checked against the request: pages, date range and record types. Missing pages go back to the provider on the same request, and a provider with nothing on file returns a documented no-records statement.

## How long does a medical records copy take?

The provider sets the pace. HIPAA’s access rule allows 30 days plus one 30-day extension for a patient’s own request (45 CFR 164.524); requests under an authorization have no federal deadline. Tavrn sends every request the same day, confirms receipt and follows up every 48 hours until the copy arrives, and does not promise a date for a given provider.

## See a copy request go out and the certified record come back

Trusted by 500+ organizations, coast to coast.

[Book a demo](https://www.tavrn.ai/demo)

[Retrieval for law firms](https://www.tavrn.ai/solutions/law-firms)