THE NAME CHANGE OF JAMES PATRIC WAGES, JR., APPELLANT,
v.
STATE OF FLORIDA, APPELLEE
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The Florida Fourth District Court of Appeal reversed the trial court's dismissal of James Patric Wages Jr.'s amended petition for name change, holding that a facially sufficient name change petition cannot be summarily dismissed without an evidentiary hearing to determine whether the petitioner's motivation is fraudulent.
A facially sufficient petition for name change cannot be summarily dismissed without an evidentiary hearing. When a petition satisfies all statutory requirements and contains the required disclosures of prior criminal history and bankruptcies, the petitioner is entitled to an evidentiary hearing to present evidence of his or her motivation for the name change.
[1] A trial court cannot dismiss a facially sufficient petition for name change without holding an evidentiary hearing.
[2] A petition for name change should be granted unless there is evidence of a wrongful or fraudulent purpose.
Previewing 2 of 4 headnotes on this case. FLexlaw’s editorially structured points of law — every proposition, pinpointed — are reserved for members.
Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligence“A petition for name change should be granted in the absence of evidence of a wrongful or fraudulent purpose.”
Establishes the legal standard that name changes are presumptively granted unless fraudulent purpose is proven
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Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligenceWages was born as James Solomon but has lived his entire life as James Patrie Wages Jr., using his stepfather's surname. He established credit, obtain…
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We reverse the trial court’s dismissal of appellant’s amended petition for name change. The court thought the name change was being sought for a fraudulent purpose. Without holding an evidentiary hearing, the court could not dismiss this facially sufficient petition.
Wages was born in 1962 as James Solomon, the surname of his biological father and the name listed on his birth certificate. Shortly thereafter, Wages’ mother requested a social security number for her son and registered his name as James Patrie Wages, Jr., opting to use her husband’s surname rather than that of the biological father. Wages has lived his life and established credit under the name of James Patrie Wages, Jr. He has a criminal record under the name Wages. He also filed for bankruptcy under that name and holds a driver’s license and commercial driver’s license under that name.
In 2010, the Real ID Act1 came into effect in Florida, requiring an individual seeking to renew a driver’s license to provide a picture ID as well as either a passport or birth certificate. Unable to get a passport, Wages encountered a problem renewing his license, because his birth certificate reflects the name Solomon while his license reflects the name Wages.
Wages filed a Petition for Name Change using the Florida Family Law Rules of Procedure form 12.982(a), requesting his name be changed to Solomon to match the name on his birth certificate. A hearing was held on the petition and it was denied, with the judge stating that she believed Wages intended to change his name for fraudulent purposes. The judge noted that Wages had filed for bankruptcy in 2006, and she felt that he was trying to defraud creditors by changing his name. She also cited that he was arrested in New York, and she believed he wanted to avoid his arrest record and credit report by changing his name.
Wages thereafter filed an Amended Petition for Name Change. This time he requested that the court change his name to James Patrie Wages, Jr., so that he could contact the Department of Vital Statistics in New York and amend his birth certificate to show the name he has used his whole life. The court held a non-evidentiary hearing on the amended petition and again dismissed the petition, stating that Wages’ motive for changing his name was fraudulent. Wages then filed a Notice of Appeal.
Section 68.07(3), Florida Statutes (2013), contains detailed requirements for a petition for name change. These include a short history of the person, including revealing any prior criminal history or bankruptcies. Wages’ petition sufficiently pled all the requirements of the statute, and he revealed his bankruptcy as well as his prior conviction. His petition tracks the language of form 12.982(a), approved by the Florida Supreme Court. There seems to be no dispute that he made out the facial requirements for the name change. The court did not find any deficiencies in the application itself.
*102A petition for name change should be granted in the absence of evidence of a wrongful or fraudulent purpose. Hoyos v. Singletary, 639 So.2d 631, 631 (Fla. 4th DCA 1994). Moreover, where a petition is facially sufficient, the court must conduct an evidentiary hearing to prove that a petitioner’s motivation for the name change is without ulterior motive or for a fraudulent purpose. Finfrock v. State, 932 So.2d 437, 438-39 (Fla. 4th DCA 2006).
As the petition was facially sufficient, the trial court should not have summarily denied it by concluding that Wages’ purpose was fraudulent. Wages was entitled to offer evidence of his motivation for changing his name. In fact, it is hard to understand how the amended petition was being made for a fraudulent purpose when Wages was attempting to change his name legally to the name he had used all of his life — the same name used in his criminal conviction for assault and his bankruptcy. The court erred in summarily dismissing the amended petition.
Reversed and remanded for further proceedings.
CIKLIN and GERBER, JJ., concur.
Cases With Similar Vibessemantic neighbors from the corpus
Citator
Cited By
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In re the Name Change of Evan James Zimmer, 207 So. 3d 1006 (Fla. 4th DCA 2017)…r doing so. Simply indicating Zimmer has prior convictions and is a judgment debtor does not establish that he is seeking the name change for an “ulterior or illegal purpose.” § 68.07(3)(k), Fla. Stat. (2016); see also Name Change of Wages v. State, 160 So. 3d 100, 101 (Fla. 4th DCA 2015) (explaining that a trial court may not summarily deny a facially sufficient petition for a change of name even where the petitioner had a criminal history and poor credit). We therefore remand this case to the lower court.…
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In re Name Change of Sheikera Williams vs (Fla. 4th DCA 2022)…oner shall continue to be hereafter be known [as]” Williams. The circuit court erred when it denied the petition without setting forth a basis for doing so. See, e.g., In re Zimmer, 207 So. 3d at 1008; 2 Name Change of Wages v. State, 160 So. 3d 100, 102 (Fla. 4th DCA 2015) (“As the petition was facially sufficient, the trial court should not have summarily denied it by concluding that [petitioner’s] purpose was fraudulent.”). We reverse the circuit court’s order and remand for further p…
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In re Name Change of Sheikera Williams (Fla. 4th DCA 2022)…nied. Petitioner shall continue to be hereafter be known [as]” Williams. The circuit court erred when it denied the petition without setting forth a basis for doing so. See, e.g., In re Zimmer, 207 So. 3d at 1008; Name Change of Wages v. State, 160 So. 3d 100, 102 (Fla. 4th DCA 2015) (“As the petition was facially sufficient, the trial court should not have summarily denied it by concluding that [petitioner’s] purpose was fraudulent.”). We reverse the circuit court’s order and remand for further proceed…
Authorities Cited
- Hoyos v. Singletary, 639 So. 2d 631 (Fla. 4th DCA 1994)
- Finfrock v. State, 932 So. 2d 437 (Fla. 4th DCA 2006)