It Is The Most Natural Right Of The Person Who Does Not Adopt His/Her Name To Change His/Her Name
8th Civil Chamber 2017/6122 E. , 2017/14423 K.
“Case Law Text”
COURT :Civil Court of First Instance
TYPE OF CASE : Requesting Change of Surname in the Population
At the end of the trial held in the above-mentioned case between the parties, the Court decided to dismiss the lawsuit and upon the appeal of the judgement by the plaintiff’s attorney, the file was examined and considered by the Chamber.
DECISION
In the lawsuit petition, the plaintiff requested to change his surname from “….” to “….”, and the decision of the court dismissing the lawsuit on the grounds that the reasons put forward in the lawsuit petition cannot be considered as just cause for changing the surname was appealed by the plaintiff’s attorney.
The lawsuit is related to the request for change of name and surname based on just cause according to Article 27 of the Turkish Civil Code No. 4721.
Article 27 of the Turkish Civil Code No. 4721 stipulates that the change of the name can only be requested from the judge based on justified reasons, the change will be registered and announced in the civil registry, there will be no change in the personal status with the change of the name, and those who are harmed by this change can sue for the removal of the change decision within one year starting from the day they learnt about it. The court shall determine which circumstances constitute just cause according to the specific circumstances of each case. While making this determination, the special reasons to be presented to the court by the person requesting modification should be taken into consideration rather than objective conditions.
These special and personal reasons should be evaluated by the judge by taking into consideration the personality, social status and family relations of the applicant. Name and surname are an integral element of personality. The person is remembered, recognised and defined by it. A name or surname has meaning when it is adopted by the person who bears it. It is the most natural right of a person who does not adopt his/her name and does not identify with his/her personality to want to change his/her name. In such a case, the preference and desire of the plaintiff should be prioritised and taken into consideration in cases involving name change requests.
When the “just cause” stipulated by the Turkish Civil Code is evaluated within this scope, the judge’s discretion on this issue should determine that the reason put forward and the new name or surname to be taken does not contradict the values of the society and the mandatory provisions of the law, especially that it does not harm or hurt others or the environment. In the practices of the Court of Cassation, it is accepted that the person’s wish to be known by the surname that he/she is known and recognised in the society and to carry it on record will constitute a just cause.
In line with the principles explained above, the court, instead of making a decision according to the result to be formed by reflecting the reasons relied on by the plaintiff in his petition and the evidence to be presented by the parties to the file in a way suitable for inspection whether the plaintiff’s request is based on just cause or not, after the evidence to be presented by the parties is collected and the witnesses are heard, it is not correct to decide to dismiss the case with an inappropriate reason.
CONCLUSION:
It was unanimously decided on 02.11.2017 that the appealed judgement shall be DISMISSED for the reasons explained above, in accordance with the Provisional Article 3 of the CCP No. 6100 and Article 428 of the Code of Civil Procedure No. 1086, and that the parties may request a correction of the judgement within 15 days from the notification of the Supreme Court of Appeals Chamber decision in accordance with Article 440/I of the Code of Civil Procedure, and that the advance fee shall be returned to the appellant upon request.
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