A Novel case

Media

Part of The Lawyers Journal

Title
A Novel case
Creator
Francisco, Alberto J.
Language
English
Year
1963
Subject
Name changes (Personal names) -- Law and legislation.
Rights
In Copyright - Educational Use Permitted
Fulltext
A NOVEL CASE Judge Alberto J. Frrncisco In the Matter of the Change of Name of Moises Tumale Jlumo; Moises Tumale J:Jueno, petitioner, Sp. Proc. No. SC-121; In the Matter of Change of Name of Francisco Perez Javier. Sp. Pree. No. SC-122; Court of First Instance of Laguna, Branch 11, Francisco, I. DECISION Petitioners Moises Tumale Bueno and Francisco Pere.l Ja\'ler seek the authorization of the Court for a change of their nz.me~ from Moises Tumale Bueno to TStstststststststststs.THtilthththththtbth TH-th-TS-th, and from Francisco Perez Javier to Zu.. nn'znznn1 v Z-z 'z.z, respectively. Both are allegedly the founders of a religious sect known as "Iglesia Ygy.Nygy Philippina~·· with a membership of around one hundred followers at present, of both sexes. Theise two petitions were heard jointly. It is the pretension of herein petitioners that while delving into· the mysteries .;:.nd revelations of their religion - in the studies ·of which they had supposedly adverted to the sciences of Horology and Numerology. in conjunction with the Bible as translated in the vernacular - they have been imbued with the sincere bCUef that in order to enjoy an auspicious existence on this earth and to attain succes in life their newly established religion requires of its ':'Otaries to adopt or assume a name consisting of a series of a letter or letters of the alphabet, either vowels or consonants, of a number unlimited, i.e., from two and so !Orth ad infinitum as long as to their belief and intent, there· appears & conformation of the number of letters with the pogi~lon of the heavenly bodies - the planets and the stars with the time, date, day, hour, month and year of their birth. Counsel for· petitioners contends in his memorandum that these petitions for the change of names are based "on petitioners' reUgious sect or affiliation", "a mz..tter purely of belief whiC:h i~ strictly personal to them'', and "that this fundamental right of freedom of wonhlp and religion is a constitutional right guaranteed to everyone.'' It should be made clear outright that this Court does not preswne .to indulge into an abstract tnd metaphysical theological disputation or dissertation of the virldity or the irrationality of the tenets and precepts of this religion - which are matters ii.at Justiciable and hence beyond Judicial cognizance; neither does it intend to pass upon th"e sinc~rity of the convictions of the founders and followers of this religion; nor does it attempt to lay down a criterion by which the v&lidity, the propriety or impropriety for the_ establishment· of such religion may be gauged or determined. The task of dabbling into the abstruse study of the mystics and mysteries of this religion and of imparting them to its converts properly falls within the competence of its founders. In short, the c_ourt does not. concern itself with the question of the free exercise of religion gu&ranteed by the constitution which connotes freedom of belief and worShip. Insofar as these matters are concerned they are of no mom~nt in these proceedings since they are not in issue; hence irrelevant. However, when attention is focused to the details in motivation of the devotees of such religion as when such religious beliefs or theor:les are sought to be ach,taliie.d or translated into overt acts ~ in the present cases by an attempt to change baptismal names and surnames to those consisting of a: long series of a particular letter of the alphabet """"."' they may collide with certain interests which the State for reasons of public poltcy and welfare has a right to intervene and protect. Consequently, while the freedom to entertain a particular religious belief is absolute a'.rul falls within the meaning and protectiori of the constitutional precept, yet freedom to act in accordance . therewith cannot always be unbridled and should accordingly be deemed subject of appropti&te legislation; hence, the existence of statutory regulations governing the matter, viz., Articles 376; 380; 408(16); 412 of the Civil Code; Rule 103, Rules of Court. The juridical basis or rationale of these legal provisions cannot be circumvented by the pretense that their wise and proper application would result in a denial of the freedom or religion vouchl!lafed by the constitution. Indeed, while the latter guarantees liberty as concerns religious beliefs, worship or expression It does not necessarily negate, nor does it exclude by implication the right of the State to establish such safeguards against the abuse of_ such right albeit sincerity of motives, so long as they may aff!Ct ad\•ersely the public weal or tr&duce public policy. It has been held that public policy is the "community common sense and common conscience extended and applied through the state to matters of public morals, public health, public safety, public welfare and the like; it is that geileral and well-settled public opinion relating to mal'S plain, palpable duty to his fellow men having due regard to all the circumstances of each particular relation and slluation." (Pittsburg, C.C. & St. L. Ry. Co. vs. Kinney, 115 N. E. 505, 506, 95 Ohio St. 64 L.R.A. ). An act as to the consideration or thing to be done is contrary to or against public policy when it "has a tendency to injure the public, is <.gs.inst the publlc good, or contravenes some established interests of society, or is inconsistent with sound policy and good morals, or tends clearly to undermine the security of individual rights, whether of perSonal liberty or of private property." (Gabriel vs. Monte de Piedad, 40 Off. Gaz., 14th. Suppl., p. 67). Let us consider the case of herein petitioners, the co-founders of the aforementioned religious sect - and parenthetically, its followers who may file similar petitions for change of name - from the viewpoint of their personality as natural persons. As such physical entities they have the aptitude to be subj~cts of rights and obligations and are endowed with the power and capacity to enter into juridical relations, and to perform acts with legal effects, e.g., to enter into contracts; to make wills; to borrow monCy; to dispose or acquire property; to morry; etc. It is an acknowledged fact that ma.n is beset by limitations and ls insufficient to obtain by himselt alone the means for the sati.sfactiOn of his necessities, either p;ersonLI or social. J)eceJl)ber 31, 1963 LAWYERS JOURNAL Page 381 Hence for the realizaticin of his individual and socio.I end&, and to a.t~in the means required for common life and soclar cooperation he has often to enter into or engage in mani~ol~ dea~­ ings with others, sometimes with those residing wtthm his own community; at tlmes with others dispersed throughout the length and breadth of the archipelago; and, under certain circl1m.stances with those residing outside the Islands even to the extent of his being impelled to )eave his own country and set~lc tn a foreign land. Consequently, it is likewise an unde-niablc fact- that man's activities are not limited or circumscribed with· in the premises of his own home; nor within the walls which enclose the bethel where he wor8hips or conducts the ceremonial rites of his religion; nor within the confines of the community wherein he lives; nor even within the territorial boundaries 9f his own country. In resume, when pursued down to its essentials man - with a view to satisfying or complementing his individual ends - has to enter into civil agreements, tranSact business, execute contracts, issue negotiable papers, may bring suits or may even be sued, civilly or criminally. According to herein petitione'rs those who are affiliated with this religion including their children, are not prohibited from assuming id~nticol style of names and surnames, that is: consisting of a similar series of any of the letters of the alphabet as already adopted by another or others, the differentlatiiJg factor that would serve to distinguish one individual from the other being the numbers or frequency of that particular letter of the alphabet in the series constituting the name or surname. Hence, one follower may procure as his name twenty-eight in number of the letter z and as his surname thirty-one in number of the ·letters Th; another maY assume twenty.nine of the letter Z as his name and thirty-two of the letters Th as his surname. By the same token, one of them may adopt ninety-nine letters S as his n&me and ninety-eight letters H as his surname. In effect therefore several per.sons may adopt as their praenomen or Christian name a series of the same letter of the alphabet, e. g .• T; as their nomen or middle name a series of the Sain~ letter of alphabet, e.g. X and as their cognomen or sum£.me a series of the same Jetter of the alphabet. e. g.; Z - the onlv mode of distinguishing or identifying one from the other being the frequency or the number of times that parllcular letter appears or is written as applied to one individual in contradistinction to the other individual. Thusly: A follower of _this sect may bear &.S his Chlistian name the letter T multiplied sixteen times; and as his surname the letter T multiplied eighteen times. Another may carry the same letter T multiplied seventeen times as his Christian name; the same letter X multiplied eight. een times as his middle name; and the same letter Z multiplied nineteen times as his surname. A third individual ·may adopt the name and surname, respectively, multiplied into a different number of times, with one letter more or one letter less to constitute a shade of variation; and so forth ad nauseam. To compound the coil.fusion it may be stated here without per - &dventure of doubt that the use of the agnomen or nickname mc.y not even be availed of. Let us now analyze the impact of such disquieting atmos.. phere upon the various facets of normal human activities. Cer. talnly, it would be rational and justifiable to conclude that such situation would breed in most likelihood chaos and confusion that could serve to seriously undermine or tmp&ir stability in juridical relations. Thus: a.) Incertitude on the binding effects of contracts or agreements.-If one or two letters of the alphabet written repeatedly in series were to constitute the name and surname then the de. termining factor for identification of the individual would be the numerous frequencies in which the same letter appears in such name &nd surname. Consequently, an of said letters would have to be counted in order to detennlne the number of repetitions of that particular letter so as to identify or differentiate the individuals transacting business from other or others bearIng as their names and surnames identical letters of the alphabet but with a sh<ide of variation in their frequencies, consisting in a letter less or in a letter more. Under such queasy circmnstances it would not be a far-fetched conclusion tri state that a mistake in the exact number of the same letter of the alphabet either in the name or in the surname, whether inadvertently m&de or "'ith malice aforethought. would be conducl\'e to or would afford ample opportunity for one of the contracting parties to renege on an agreement or to disavow liability thereon as not the person signatory thereto; let alone the delay in the expeditious dispatch of mercantile transactions. b.) Inducement tor the c~l:mnlsston of forgery. - In affixing a person's no.me and surhame by signing in such style it would be very hard to determine whether a particular signa.. turc has been forged. Conversely, t~is difficulty in. verifying simulation of signature would constitute an open invitation to the commission of forgery. From the standpoint of the pictorial effect of the whole signature of the name and surname such styling in signing would easily fail to yield sufficient clues of forgery. A fortiori, even & scrutiny and analysis of each character in the signature would make just as difficult the· detection of forgery inasmuch as the connection and spacing of the letters; their alignment; their irregularity or conformity would render extremely arduous the task of determining the similarities and dissimilarities; the significant differences or divergencies between a genuine slgnat,ure and a simulated one. In short, the &doption of such style of names and surnames, and apropos, the affixing of suCh signatures would greatly detract from aniving at a fair and reasonable conclusion whether a particular signature is aO , authentic or a spurious one, considering the lack of continuitY or conslstency of the various parts of the signature with itself - which would be otherwise if there were 4 variation in the employment of several different letters of the alphabet and from which a fairly accurate deduction may be derived on the qualities, clements, features and characteristics of the handwriting -constituting the signature. c.) Indecisiveness of judicial orders, decrees anci Judgments ;-In judicial proceedings such styling of a:Ppellatlons would necessitate the outmost precision in writing down the nam,e and surname of the person who may be involved in the -llti_giltion, whether criminal or civil. This would be especially. true in cases where there :might be several perSons who bear in common identical names and surnames consisting of a series of the same letter of the alph&bet with only a slight modificatioit or difference in the number of their repetition or consistency. In the issuance of waITants of arrests, subpoenas or summonses a detraction from or an addition of a Jetter in the corfect name or surname of the subject of the writ would constitute a substanti~ difference that would render difficult service thereof. In like manner, <ill oversight or a slight mistake due to inadvertence in writing down the correct number of the same letters of the alphabet constituting the name ~d surname of a party-litigant would render effete the orders, decrees and decisions· of the Court which otheIWise, under normal circumstances should have binding effect on the Party sought to be affected 'thereby. d.) Overriding the doctrine of idem .sonans. - Under the doctrine of idem sonans - which is addressed to the &.urlcular sense.if two or more names, though spelled differently, sound alike; they are to be regarded as the same and hence pertaining to a particular individual. This doctrine would become completely useless and nugatory when sought to be appli.ed to the circumstances obtaining in the c&se at bar. Moreover, such set_ up might tend to encourage the commission of crimes due to the facility in the concealment of the offender's identity and the consequent difficulty in his apprehension. e.) Undermining the legal presumption of identity of persons from identity of names. - From the viewpoint of the law on evidence the presumption of ''identity of person from. identity Page .382 LAWYERS JOURNAL December 31,- 1963 <;f name" (Rule 123, section 69 /w/, Rules of Court) - which has reference to the visual sense - would be extremely difficult of application. Inasmuch as the name and sumz.me would be composed of a series of an idt:ntical letter of the alphabet written. in succession, the existence of the slightest var1ati0n in the number of frequencies or in the continuit.y in which that parUcular letter might appear in the written name z.nd surname would necessarily result in a vast difference in the identity of the persons who may ha,•c adopted the same alphabetical character, differing only in the numbe1· in which it is repeated. In effect under such circumstances this would be tantamount to an indirect abrogation of the aforecited rule. f.) Turmoil In the political field. - There i"s no gai_naaying the fact that herein petitioners and the followers of this religious sect are and would not be burred from actively engz.ging in partisan political activities, even to the extent of launch_ ing their candidacy for elective public offices. Once such style of name and surname sought to be adopted by the petitioners - and for that matter by others who may follow suit _ carry the badge of judicial sanction there is no telling the extent of the deleterious effect that same would hr..ve in this aspect of political affairs. It would not do to dismiss as purely -speculative the great probability that two or mOre candidates for an elective office may bear the same names and sum..mes consisting of an identical letter of the alphabet written in series but differing only In the number of frequenci~. A single mistake In writing down the precise and correct number of letters in both names would nulUfy as stray votes, the ballots purportedly ca.st.r tor these candidates since it would not avail to advert t.o the doctrine of idem sonans. Moreover, .such disconcerting situation would demand an undue strain on the part of the voters in filling out the ballots r..nd on the election inspectors in ascertaining for whom the votes had been cast. To say the least, the logical outcome of such situation would be chaos and confusion. g.) Embarrassments in normal social intercourse. - Even Jn the ordinary pur;mit of the amenities of social life, should perchance there would be a gathering of a group of persons affiliated with this religious sect bearing as their appellations the identical letter of the alphabet, e.g., "Z", though varying in the frequency in which such letter is repeated, it would be a frustrating experience to address, call or summon any one of the.-n in particul61" for what would emit in pronouncing the individual's ,name would be a hizzing sound. h.) Indetermination of gender. - Human individuals, are by virtue _o( their natural state, either males or females. Hence, it has been determined by implled agreement and general as.sent among civilized nr.tlons to give to either sex such Christian or proper name as would senre to distinguish one from the other. Under the unorthodox: style in the use of names advocated by herein petitioners such conventional distinction which has ripened into custom and tradition would be totally eradicated. This new system would seem to connote the idea or to create the impression of the existence of a sexless aggroupation of individuals In the humr..n species. i.) Difficulty in tracing the lineage or parentage. - As testified to by one ot here"in petitioners their religion does not forbid, hence It sanctions, the adoption of similar style of names and surnames by the offsprings, whether males or females of its members; even by utilizing another sundry letter of the alphabet other than that alref.dy appropriated by their parents. This would be a drastic departure from the orthodox: practice obsenred throughout the civilized world of conferring on a descendant at least the sumame of his immediate ascendant or to be baptized with the patronymic or patrilineal name of his forbears. Furthermore, this would constitute a crasS disregard of the legal requirement that children should bear the surname of -ber31,.1%j either their father or mother, as the case may be. (Arts. 364, 366, 367, 368, 369, Civil Code). Hence, to aCcede to the petitions would be to put a premium to the creation of perplexing situations in endeavors to trace or to identify either the lineage or ancestry of the persons concerned whether through the ascending, descending or collateral lines. These difficulties would be more patent and pronounced In cases involving wills, descent and succession; paternity and filiation; and, compul~ory acknowledgment of children. Before concludlng it would noi. be amiss to dwell upon the nature and purpose of the name and surname. To all legal practical purposes a man's name is the designation by which he Jives and is best known. A person's name consists, in law, of a Christ1c..n name and a family surname. A Christian name or first name or proper name js one that is used to distinguish a particular individual from his fellowmen; while a surname is that portion of the name of the individual which is employed by him in common with other members of the family. It has been the practice which has ripened into custom and usage In All civilized countries, founded on a well-entrenched social order, that a person's nanie consists of a combination of letters or characters of the alphabet that spell out or denote a syllable or syllables such ·that a particular indivldwJ could be addressed, designated or identified by the distinct phonetic and limpid enunciation emitted by the syllabification of his name. The names sought to be adopted by herein petitioners are unquestionably of a different version, constituting a violent dep&.rture from established practice, and borrowed independently from a source contrived to be impregnated with a tinge of religious motive. In addressing or identifying them - and by the same measure :many others who may later seek to adopt sbnUar style of appellations - one would have to slbilate; and this sibilation must perforce have to be produced by s.. stock of a similar letter of the alphabet repeated in successive frequencie.s resulting in a hissing sound, with ubiquitous and equivocal effects. That the adoption of such style in name could easily lead to the commission of mistakes, and th.e creation of confusion and chaos, must have to be admitted. For, one of the petttioners himself, Tumale, had committed outright an error in writing down the very name he desires to assume, in lieu of his original baptismal name. Thus: Cros~xamination by Asst. Fiscal Tengco: Q. Will you please write In this Exhibit "5'' which is Exhibit "I'' for Bueno and Exhibit "3" for Javier, now you will write your official signature b&sed upon the supposed to be adopted name? How will you write your signature? Atty. Plantilla: Your official signature. If you are granted that name, what will be your official signature? Court: Make it of record that after writing down the lettCrs, the witness hf.s been counting the number of the let.. ters supposed to be his signature. Asst. Fiscal Tengco: There is a statement which was made by this witness which we will request that the interpreter to please interpret the same. Interpreter: The witness wants to call the attention of the Court that he made a mistake in Exhibit ·'I-A" and he is making the proper correction and he writes the same in llne with . , . · Asst. Fiscal Tengco:. I will request that the same be marked as Exh~bit "8" for the oppositor. Interpreter: Witness wants to call the attention of the Court that in Exhibit "A-1" in.writing his surname, he committed an error and wants to point to the Court that the correct figure will be •.. Asst. Fiscal: We wlll request that· the same be marked c:,s Exhibit "8-A'' - ·Moises and as Exhibit "8-B" --=- Tumale. (T.s.n., June 18, 1963; pp. 2-3). Moreover there Is one important factor ·which the Court can not dlsc~ur!t nor be obllvlous of. It should be emphasized that to grant the herein petitions would be to" establish a precedent tho.t would pave the way for similar petitions on the part. of others, who may be fascinated and intrigued by this new fangled Idea, whether Under claim of religious convictions ingenioi.Jsly felgn~d or otherwise. To limit the grant of such petitions to those who may be affiliated with this religious sect would not only lay the Court open to the charge of discrbpin&tlon and inconsistency but would, moreover, controvert the very contention of counsel for herein petitioners that freedom in the choice of religious beliefs is beyond the pale of legislative regulation or judicial determination. Furthermore, such cir'Cum.scription to affiliates of this sect would be viols..tive of the 1njwictlon that o: person should not be unduly deprived of the e..xercise of his prerogatives on account of his religious belief or political opinion (Art. 39, Civil Code). . PurSued down to its ultimate conclusions, one need not necessarily be endowed with a fendd Imagination to be able to -envisage the perplexing eituations; the unpleo.sant predicaments; the chaos, confusion and dili'orders that would be generated by the frequent repetition of such unimaginative device in the style of names, In substitution ot conventional appellations. Such, indeed, would be the resultant and far-reaching chaotic effects were the Court to acquiesce to these arbitrary permutations of the letters of the alphabet. What may be a novelty for the present, could in the future, be a parody ot the past. · To grant the petitions at bar would be to subserve sound public policy In pla~e of emphasis to delaUs of personal motlvatiom>· under the .simple exped1ent that the s&me are blended with certain religious connotations. In concluding, the Court wishes to reitera(e that, as hereREPUBLIC . . . (Continued from page 379) SEC. 4. The eleventh and thirteenth paragraphs of Sec· tion fifty.four of the same Act, as amended, is hereby furtnE-l' amended to read as follows: "Eleventh Judicial District: At Culasi, Province of Anti· que, on the first Tuesday of December of each year, a special term ot court shall be held at least once a year on dates to be fixed by the district judge. Special terms of court sha11 also be held at San Agustin, Province of Romblon, on the third Tuesday ot August, December and April of each year; and at Odlongan and Cajldioean, same province, at least once a year on dates to be fixed by the judge, "Thirteenth Judicial District: The Calbayog branch to hold court at Basey, Sa.mar, on the first Tuesday of January of each year; the Laoang branch, at Gamay, same province, on the first Tuesday of July of each year." SEC. 5. Section seventy.one of the same Act, as amended, ls hereby further amended by adding another paragraph ther~­ to which shall read as follows: "No person shall be appointed judge ot the municipal court of any chartered city or justice ot the peace of any provincial capital unless he is (1) at least thirty years of age; (2) a citizen ot the Philippines; (3) of goad moral character and has not been convicted of any felony; <4> has been admitted by the Supreme Court to the practice of law; and (5) has- practised law In the Phlllppines for a period of not less than five to fore s~ated, the issue In the present cases does not cqne:em the establishment of a particular :rollgion nor with th~: .q~­ tion of one's views of his relations to his Creator, and to the obligations they impose of reverence for Hi• Being arid : thai"acter, and of obedience to His will. Neither is the cou'rt ·Concerned with the free exercise thereof and the form of whl'ship that is imposed to the followers of this particular religio"us· sect as approved by their judgment and conscience; nor to the mode by which they may exhibit their sentiments in re».:tion thereto insofar as they do not undermine public policy cir subvert the welfare ·or the rest· of the community. ·. Parenthetically, neither <>re the Votaries of his religion, .<ie~ied the right to appropriate to themselves a shibboleth to ~der;i_tlfy or designate the particular religious denomination to which .they may belong, as for example, that of being Lutheran, a CalVinist; a Baptist, a Methodist or &n Aglipayan. Premises alluded to, it is the considered opinion : of the Court that two or more detached and separated letters' df' the alphabet do not constitute a name; and, that the intent by'\i.ihich any speciric combination of letters ls used is immaterial Provided their use tends, as a matter of fact, to deceive or· td·'Confuse. · As the declared purpose of proceedings for change of name is the ~revention of fraud, rules enacted in connection therewith are valid exercise of the ·police power of the State; and, sinee the change of name of person may affect hts business and social relations, the rule allows any interested person, besides the Solicitor General or the proper provincis..I fiscal, to appear at the hearing and oppose the petition. (Rule 103, sec. 4, Ri.lks of Cburt), , Furthennore, it is settled doctrine that an order changing the name of·the applicant is a matter of judicial discretion and not of right and that the Court; is not subject to the whims· Of every petitioner, hence, it may make 11.n order dismissing the applico.tion, as the Court may deem right and proper. (38 Am',1 • Ji.Jr., P• 610; 45 C.J., p. 382). . . In view of all the foregoing considerations, the Court· is constrained to. deny, as it hereby denies, the two herein petitions for change of names. . Without pronouncement as to costs. · SO .ORDERED. Sta. Cruz, Laguna, November 1, 1963. years." ALBERTO J. FRANCISCO Judge SEC. 6. Wherever an additional braneh or branches of the Court of First Instance is or are established In this Act in the same place where there is an existing court or courts Of first instance, all eases already filed in the latter Court or courts shall be heard, tried and decided by such latter ·court or courts. SEC. 7. The stenographer ot a Court of First Instance shall receive a" compensation ot not less than four thousand eight hundred pesos per annum except the stenographers of the Courts of '.Fl.rst Instance of the City of Manila, PasaY: City, Quezon City, Caloocan City and the Provinces of Rizal, Cebu, Negros Occidental, Iloilo, Le'yte and Davao who shall reCeive a compensation of not less than six thousand pesos per annum: Provided, That no salary shall be paid to a court stenographe!· µ.nless he submits a sworn statement to the effect that he has given requesting parties copies ot transcript of stenographic notes upon payment of proper fees, and transcripts have been completed z.nd attached to the records of every appea.led case within sixty days after receipt of notice from the appellate courts. SEC. S. Such swns as may ~e necessary to carry out the puri:mses of this Act is hereby appropriated out of any funds in the National Treasury not otherwise appropriated. SEC. 9. This ~ct ~~al~ take effect upon its approval. Approved, June 22:. 1963. I,AWYERS ~OURNAL