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Attorney Elin Uusväli successfully represented client in dispute about child’s last name
Attorney Elin Uusväli of the LEADELL Pilv Law Office together with attorney Aleksandr Tsemin successfully represented a father of a child in dispute resolution and proceeding in Tallinn Circuit Court.
The father of the child filed an application to court for granting him sole power of decision in order to change the last name of his minor child. The dispute arose from the situation where mother had independently decided to name the child after a third person (her new husband) whom she married just before the child’s birth. However, the mother failed to consider the fact that biological parents have joint custody of the child and therefore they together choose the name of the child.
The first degree court refused to satisfy the application of the father stating that the arguments for changing the last name of the child were insufficient. Tallinn Circuit Court annulled the regulation of the Harju County Court stating that the best interests of the child were not considered and the refusal to satisfy the application was ungrounded. According to the circuit court, the most relevant argument was the fact that the child had neither the mother’s name by birth nor the father’s name, but was bearing the last name of the mother’s spouse. Therefore the child through last name was not related to the family tree of any biological parent.
The decision entered into force on 4 April 2017 when the Supreme Court refused to proceed the appeal of the child’s mother.
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