December 18, 2018

JESUS DELOS SANTOS

207 Burgundy Bldg.,
1452 P. Ocampo St., Pasay City

Dear Mr. Delos Santos:

After our conversation, I have gathered pertinent information from you
concerning your wish to change your name. Here is the legal opinion you
requested.

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LEGAL OPINION:
CHANGE OF NAME UNDER RA 9048

ISSUE: Whether or not Zirxthoussous Delos Santos can change his

name under RA 9048.

FACTS: You were originally named Zirxthoussous Delos Santos. You

filed a petition for change of name with the Civil Registrar
under RA 9048 on the ground that your first name sounded
ridiculous and extremely difficult to spell and pronounce. The
Civil Registrar granted your petition and changed your first
name to Jesus. You filed another petition to change your first
name to Roberto on the ground that your girlfriend’s father,
who abandoned her family and became a notorious drug lord, is
also named Jesus. Your girlfriend, whom you want to marry,
wishes to eradicate all vestiges of the infamy of her father.

OPINION: No, you cannot change his name under RA 9048. Although the
law allows the change first name or nickname without judicial
order, its implementing rules and regulations provides for
prohibition of changing the same for the second time.

Under RA 9048 any person who has direct and personal interest
in changing his first name or nickname may do so without

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judicial order by filing a petition with the local civil registry
office of the city or municipality where the record being sought.

RA 9048 also known as “An Act Authorizing the City or

Municipal Civil Registrar or the Consul General to Correct
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, Amending for this Purpose Articles 376 and 412
of the Civil Code of The Philippines”, as amended by RA
10172, provides the following:

“Section 1. Authority to Correct Clerical or

Typographical Error and Change of First Name or
Nickname. – No entry in a civil register shall be
changed or corrected without a judicial order, except
for clerical or typographical errors and change of first
name or nickname, the day and month in the date of
birth or sex of a person where it is patently clear that
there was a clerical or typographical error or mistake
in the entry, which can be corrected or changed by
the concerned city or municipal civil registrar or
consul general in accordance with the provisions of
this Act and its implementing rules and regulations.

Section 3. Who May File the Petition and Where. -

Any person having direct and personal interest in the
correction of a clerical or typographical error in an
entry and/or change of first name or nickname in the
civil register may file, in person, a verified petition
with the local civil registry office of the city or
municipality where the record being sought to be
corrected or changed is kept.”
x x x x”

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Your new name, Jesus, may be tainted with dishonor by
confusing your identity with another Jesus Delos Santos – a
notorious druglord who happens to be your girlfriend’s father.
These may be valid grounds to change your name under RA
9048 which are stated as follows:

“Section 4. Grounds for Change of First Name or

Nickname. - The petition for change of first name or
nickname may be allowed in any of the following
cases:

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 by that first name or nickname in the
community: or
3. The change will avoid confusion.”

However, Administrative Order No. 1, Series of 2001, also

known as The Implementing Rules and Regulation of RA 9048,
as amended by RA 10172, provides for the prohibition of
changing first name or nickname twice. The IRR states that:

“Rule 7. Availment of the privilege. - The correction

of clerical or typographical error shall be availed of
only once with respect to a particular entry or entries
in the same civil registry record. However, with
regard to the change of first name or nickname in the
birth certificate, the privilege shall be availed of only
once subject to Rule 12 hereunder.”

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 It is well settled, as it is reiterated by the Supreme Court in
countless decisions, that change of names is a privilege and not
a matter of right. The State has interest in the names borne by
individuals and entities for purposes of identification.

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As a rule, you may change your first name or nickname on the grounds
mentioned above as provided by law. Since you have already availed of
privilege to change your first name once from Zirxthoussous to Jesus, you
can no longer change your name to Roberto as it violates the implementing
rules and regulations of RA 9048 as amended by RA 10172. You may legally
change your name or nickname only once.

Please let me know if I can help you further or if you have more inquiries
regarding this matter.