cited by the petitioner to support her petition is not

EMELITA BASILIO GAN, PETITIONER, VS. REPUBLIC proper justification to allow her petition.

OF THE PHILIPPINES, RESPONDENT.
FACTS: This is a petition for review on certiorari
seeking to annul and set aside the decision of issued
by the court of appeals.
Emelita was born out of wedlock to Pia Gan and
Consolacion Basilio, Her birth certificate indicates
that her full name is Emelita Basilio. She filed a
petition for correction of name with the RTC seeking
to change the full name from Emelita Basilio into
Emelita Basilio Gan because she had been using her
full name in all her school and government records, to
avaoid confusion.
The trial court granted the petition and ordered the
local civil registrar to change the petitioners name in
her birth certificate into Emelita B Gan.
RTC denied the motion for reconsideration by the
respondent alleging that the petitioner who is an
illegitimate child failed to adduce evidence that she
was duly recognized by her father which would allow
her to use his surname.
Furthermore, since petitioner was born prior to the
effectivity of Family Code, the civil code provisions
shall apply. Under Article 366, it provides that a
natural child acknowledge by parents shall principally
use the fathers surname, and article 368 provides that
an illegitimate child shall bear the surname of the
mother.
She did not proved that she is a natural child pursuant
to Article 269 of the code, she cannot use her father’s
surname. But even assuming that she is a natural
child, her failure to adduce evidence of recognition or
acknowledgement, forbids her from using her father’s
surname.
In contrast to Alfon’s case relied by herein petitioner
which allowed the petitioner to change her surname
from that of the father to the mother, Article 366 and
368 of the Civil Code do not give an illegitimate child
of a natural child not acknowledge by the father the
option to use the surname of the father. Thus,
petitioner cannot insist to use the surname of her
father.
PETITION DENIED.

The appellate court reverse the lower court decision

stating that under Article 176 of FC as amended by RA
9255, an illegitimate child may only use the surname
of the father if their filiations has been expressly
recognized by the father, which the petitioner failed
to adduce evidence to prove recognition. However,
petitioner maintains that the lower court is correct in
granting her petition. She insist that her failure to
present evidence that her father recognized her as an
illegitimate child is immaterial as a change of name is
reasonable and warranted if it is necessary to avoid
confusion. Hence filed a petition.

ISSUE: WON an unrecognized or not acknowledged

illegitimate child may use the surname of the father.

RULING

The court denied the petition. Accordingly, a change

of name is a privileged and not a matter of right,
proper and reasonable cause must exist before a
person may be authorized to change his name. The
court agreed with the appellate court that the reason