Civil Law Equity Change of Name Change of Sex Marriage

Rommel Jacinto Dantes Silverio is a male transsexual. Hes a biological male who
feels trapped in a male body. Being that, he sought gender re-assignment in
Bangkok, Thailand. The procedure was successful he (she) now has a female body.
Thereafter, in 2002, he filed a petition for the change of his first name (from
Rommel to Mely) and his sex (male to female) in his birth certificate. He filed the
petition before the Manila RTC. He wanted to make these changes, among others, so
that he can marry his American fianc.
The RTC granted Silverios petition. The RTC ruled that it should be granted based
on equity; that Silverios misfortune to be trapped in a mans body is not his own
doing and should not be in any way taken against him; that there was no opposition
to his petition (even the OSG did not make any basis for opposition at this point);
that no harm, injury or prejudice will be caused to anybody or the community in
granting the petition. On the contrary, granting the petition would bring the muchawaited happiness on the part of Silverio and [her] fianc and the realization of their
dreams.
Later, a petition for certiorari was filed by the OSG before the CA. The CA reversed
the decision of the RTC.
ISSUE: Whether or not the entries pertaining to sex and first name in the birth
certificate may be changed on the ground of gender re-assignment.
HELD: No. The Supreme Court ruled that the change of such entries finds no
support in existing legislation.
Issue on the change of first name
In 2001, Republic Act 9048 (AN ACT AUTHORIZING THE CITY OR MUNICIPAL CIVIL
REGISTRAR OR THE CONSUL GENERAL TO CORRECT A CLERICAL OR
TYPOGRAPHICAL ERROR IN AN ENTRY AND/OR CHANGE OF FIRST NAME OR
NICKNAME IN THE CIVIL REGISTER WITHOUT NEED OF A JUDICIAL ORDER) was
passed. This law provides that it should be the local civil registrar that has
jurisdiction in petitions for the change of first names and not the regular courts.
Hence, the petition of Silverio insofar as his first name is concerned is procedurally
infirm. Even assuming that the petition filed properly, it cannot be granted still
because the ground upon which it is based(gender re-assignment) is not one of
those provided for by the law. Under the law, a change of name may only be
grounded on the following:
(1) The petitioner finds the first name or nickname to be ridiculous, tainted with
dishonor or extremely difficult to write or pronounce;
(2) The new first name or nickname has been habitually and continuously used by
the petitioner and he has been publicly known by that first name or nickname in the
community; or
(3) The change will avoid confusion.

Unfortunately, Silverio did not allege any of the above, he merely alleged gender reassignment as the basis.
Issue on the change of sex
This entry cannot be changed either via a petition before the regular courts or a
petition for the local civil registry. Not with the courts because there is no law to
support it. And not with the civil registry because there is no clerical error involved.
Silverio was born a male hence it was just but right that the entry written in his birth
certificate is that he is a male. The sex of a person is determined at birth, visually
done by the birth attendant (the physician or midwife) by examining the genitals of
the infant. Considering that there is no law legally recognizing sex reassignment,
the determination of a persons sex made at the time of his or her birth, if not
attended by error, is immutable.
But what about equity, as ruled by the RTC?
No. According to the SC, this amounts to judicial legislation. To grant the changes
sought by Silverio will substantially reconfigure and greatly alter the laws on
marriage and family relations. It will allow the union of a man with another man who
has undergone sex reassignment (a male-to-female post-operative transsexual).
Second, there are various laws which apply particularly to women such as the
provisions of the Labor Code on employment of women, certain felonies under the
Revised Penal Code and the presumption of survivorship in case of calamities under
Rule 131 of the Rules of Court, among others. These laws underscore the public
policy in relation to women which could be substantially affected if Silverios petition
were to be granted.
But the SC emphasized: If the legislature intends to confer on a person who has
undergone sex reassignment the privilege to change his name and sex to conform
with his reassigned sex, it has to enact legislation laying down the guidelines in turn
governing the conferment of that privilege.