Case Summary (A.M. No. 07-8-3-SC)
Background of the Case
The petitioner was born on May 16, 1967, to Chinese citizens Yu Cho Koo and Tiu Oh Yek and was registered in the Bureau of Immigration under the name Sincio C. Yu. However, a clerical error in the Local Civil Registry recorded his name as Sincio C. Yee. The error originated from the report made by the Chinese midwife present during his birth, who mistakenly spelled his first name and surname. To address this issue, the petitioner filed a verified petition to have his name corrected to Sencío Yu.
Opposition to the Petition
The Republic of the Philippines opposed the petition, arguing that the requested changes were substantial rather than mere clerical or harmless errors as defined under Article 412 of the Civil Code. The opposition raised concerns over whether changing "Sincio" to "Sencio" constituted a significant alteration or if it could be classified as a clerical error deserving rectification.
Court Hearing and Findings
During the hearing, the Solicitor representing the Republic withdrew their objection to changing the surname from "Yee" to "Yu," acknowledging that the original record unambiguously indicated that the correct surname should be "Yu." The primary contention remained the change of the first name.
Legal Interpretation of Clerical Errors
The crux of the case centers on whether altering "Sincio" to "Sencio" could be viewed as a clerical error. The court opined that this change merely involved adjusting a vowel, which is consistent with defining a clerical error as one made in copying or writing. Established jurisprudence supports that misspelled words and harmless changes, such as those involving clearly misspelled names, should be correctable through judicial means.
Court Decision
The court concluded that the change from "Sincio" to "Sencio" did not represent a substantial modification but rather a correction of a clerical error as defined under Article 412
...continue readingCase Syllabus (A.M. No. 07-8-3-SC)
Case Background
- The case involves a petition by Sincio C. Yu to correct his name in the Local Civil Registry of Manila.
- The original entry listed his name as Sincio C. Yee, which he sought to change to Sencio Yu.
- The petitioner was born on May 16, 1967, to Chinese citizens Yu Cho Koo and Tiu Oh Yek.
- His birth was recorded in the Bureau of Immigration under the name Sincio C. Yu.
- The error in the Local Civil Registry was attributed to the Chinese midwife who incorrectly recorded his name.
Procedural History
- The Court of First Instance of Manila denied the petition for name correction, stating that the correction requested was substantial and not a clerical error as defined in Article 412 of the Civil Code.
- The Republic of the Philippines opposed the petition, arguing that the correction sought did not constitute a clerical error but was a substantial change.
Key Issues
- The primary lega