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FRANCLER P. ONDE v. OFFICE OF LOCAL CIVIL REGISTRAR OF LAS PIÑAS CITY

FACTS:

Francler P. Onde filed a petition for correction of entries in his birth certificate. He claimed to be the illegitimate child of Guillermo A. Onde and Matilde DC Pakingan, but his birth certificate erroneously stated that his parents were married. Furthermore, there were errors in both his and his mother's first names. Francler sought to have these entries corrected through his petition.

The Regional Trial Court (RTC) dismissed Francler's petition, citing insufficiency in form and substance. According to the RTC, the correction of Francler and his mother's first names could be done by the city civil registrar under Republic Act (R.A.) No. 9048. Additionally, the RTC found no evidence to support the claim that Francler's parents were not married on the date stated in the birth certificate.

Francler's motion for reconsideration was also denied by the RTC. Dissatisfied with the rulings, Francler filed a petition for review on certiorari to challenge the RTC's decisions.

ISSUES:

  1. Whether the correction on the first name of the petitioner and his mother can be done by the city civil registrar under R.A. No. 9048.

  2. Whether correcting the entry on the petitioner's birth certificate that his parents were married on December 23, 1983 in Bicol to "not married" is substantial in nature requiring adversarial proceedings.

  3. Whether the RTC erred in dismissing the petition for correction of entries.

  4. Whether the RTC erred in ruling that there is no proof that petitioner's parents were not married on December 23, 1983.

RULING:

  1. The Supreme Court agrees with the RTC that the first name of the petitioner and his mother as appearing in his birth certificate can be corrected by the city civil registrar under R.A. No. 9048. This is in accordance with Section 1 of R.A. 9048, which allows clerical or typographical errors and changes of first name to be corrected by the concerned city civil registrar without the need for a judicial order.

PRINCIPLES:

  • Clerical or typographical errors and changes of first name in a civil register may be corrected by the city civil registrar without a judicial order, in accordance with R.A. No. 9048.

  • A substantial correction in the civil registry, particularly one that affects a person's status, may require adversarial proceedings where all interested parties are impleaded.

  • Proof of a person's parents not being married may be presented during the trial and not during the filing of a petition for correction of entries.