Daughters' Surname Change Appeal Denied Over Lack of "Important Reasons"

The court dismissed the appeal by two daughters seeking to change their surname to that of their mother's new husband, despite evidence of a severely strained and negative relationship with their biological father, including documented psychological distress in the children. The court reasoned that under Article 30 Paragraph 1 of the Civil Code, a name change requires "important reasons," which are not met by subjective feelings of belonging to the new family or by generalized, non-concrete social disadvantages stemming solely from a difficult family dynamic; crucially, the court found that a name change would likely reinforce the children's damaging denial of their origin, which could negatively affect their identity formation, and there was no objective demonstration that the change would resolve their underlying psychological issues rooted in a long-standing loyalty conflict.