A clock malfunction in a Mater Dei delivery suite led parents to file a court case to amend the birthdate of their son, who was born at 11.10pm and not at 12.05am the following day.

The case was filed to correct the details on the birth certificate, as the son’s birthday was listed as August 13 instead of August 12.

Madam Justice Lorraine Schembri Orland ruled that the parents had presented enough evidence to prove that their child had been born earlier than noted in the hospital records.

The evidence included the time stamp on the first photo taken of the baby and a call to his grandmother with news of the birth.

The parents told the court that their son was born at 11.10pm on August 12, 2009, but the midwife had filled in a form detailing the birth on which she wrote that the child was born at 12.05am on August 13.

The court heard how the Mater Dei Hospital form was signed by the midwife and countersigned by the mother who had not realised the mistake.

The mother testified that soon after giving birth, she had looked at the delivery suite clock, which read 1.25 but it was evident that the clock had stopped.

The grandparents also testified that they had received news of the birth at around 11.30pm.

The midwife said the time on the delivery suite clock is usually the time written on the hospital documents as well as on what is known as the ‘baby book’, where all births are listed. She could not remember whether the clock had malfunctioned that day.

Madam Justice Schembri Orland ruled that the parents had managed to prove that a mistake had been committed in the time of the birth but noted that the Director of the Public Registry, against whom the case had been filed, was not to blame for the error and therefore should not be made to pay the court fees.

She therefore ordered a correction in the birth certificate and the child, who is now five years old, can continue celebrating his birthday on August 12.

Lawyer Karl Tanti appeared for the parents while lawyer Maurizio Cordina, from the Attorney General’s office, represented the Director of Public Registry.