In a recent decision in the Court of Appeals of Ohio, Tenth Appellate District, the court affirmed the decision by the Franklin County Court of Common Pleas, Probate Division, in a matter involving a name change for minor children to include with a hyphenation, the surname of the mother of the minors.
In this matter, Weston Hurd partner James Seguin represented the mother of minor twin children. After the mother and father divorced, Jim helped the mother file name change applications to change the name of her twins to include her maiden name to be hyphenated with the father’s surname. The father objected to the applications.
After a hearing, the Probate Court magistrate found in favor of the mother and granted the mother’s applications, finding the name changes to be in the best interests of the children. The Probate Court judge confirmed the Magistrate Decision.
The father then filed an appeal claiming that:
- The mother had waived her right to file these name change applications based on their divorce settlement agreement and related negotiations; and
- The mother did not meet her burden of “reasonable and proper cause” for the requested name changes.
The Court of Appeals overruled both assignments of error and affirmed the judgment of the Probate Court.
Contact Information
James P. Seguin – jseguin@westonhurd.com; 614.280.1127
