Republic of The Philippines Vs Cagandahan

Republic vs.
Cagandahan (2008)
Summary Cases:
● Republic of the Philippines vs. Cagandahan
Subject: Rule 108 now applies only to substantial changes and corrections in entries in the civil register;
the diversity of nature and how an individual deals with what nature has handed out warrant the change
of sex and name; A change of name is not a matter of right but of judicial discretion
Facts:
Jennifer Cagandahan filed a Petition for Correction of Entries in Birth Certificate before the RTC. She
alleged that she was born on January 13, 1981 and was registered as a female in the Certificate of Live
Birth but while growing up, she developed secondary male characteristics and was diagnosed to have
Congenital Adrenal Hyperplasia (CAH) which is a condition where persons thus afflicted possess both
male and female characteristics. Thus, she prayed that her birth certificate be corrected such that her
gender be changed from female to male and her first name be changed from Jennifer to Jeff.
Dr. Michael Sionzon of the Department of Psychiatry, UP- PGH issued a medical certificate stating that
Cagandahan’s condition is known as CAH. He explained that genetically Cagandahan is female but
because her body secretes male hormones, her female organs did not develop normally and she has
two sex organs – female and male. He testified that this condition is very rare, that Cagandahan’s uterus
is not fully developed because of lack of female hormones, and that she has no monthly period. He
further testified that Cagandahan’s condition is permanent and recommended the change of gender.
The RTC granted Cagandahan’s petition. Thus, the OSG seeks reversal of the said ruling.
The OSG contended that the petition below is fatally defective for non-compliance with Rules 103 and
108 of the Rules of Court because while the local civil registrar is an indispensable party in a petition for
cancellation or correction of entries under Section 3, Rule 108 of the Rules of Court, Cagandahan’s
petition before the court a quo did not implead the local civil registrar. It also argued that Cagandahan’s
petition failed to state that Cagandahan is a bona fide resident of the province where the petition was
filed for at least three (3) years prior to the date of such filing as mandated under Section 2(b), Rule 103
of the Rules of Court. Lastly, it contended that Rule 108 does not allow change of sex or gender in the
birth certificate and Cagandahan’s claimed medical condition known as CAH does not make her a male.
Held:
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Rule 108 now applies only to substantial changes and corrections in entries in the civil register
1. Art. 412 and Article 376 of the Civil Code were amended by Republic Act No. 9048 in so far as
clerical or typographical errors are involved. The correction or change of such matters can now be
made through administrative proceedings and without the need for a judicial order. In effect, R.A.
No. 9048 removed from the ambit of Rule 108 of the Rules of Court the correction of such errors.
2. There is substantial compliance with Rule 108 of the Rules of Court when Cagandahan furnished a
copy of the petition to the local civil registrar. Rule 108 now applies only to substantial changes and
corrections in entries in the civil register.
3. Under R.A. No. 9048 , a correction in the civil registry involving the change of sex is not a mere
clerical or typographical error. It is a substantial change for which the applicable procedure is Rule 108 of
the Rules of Court.
4. The entries envisaged in Article 412 of the Civil Code and correctable under Rule 108 of the Rules of
Court are those provided in Articles 407 and 408 of the Civil Code. The acts, events or factual errors
contemplated under Article 407 of the Civil Code include even those that occur after birth.
The diversity of nature and how an individual deals with what nature has handed out warrant the
change of sex and name
5. Cagandahan undisputedly has CAH. This condition causes the early or “inappropriate” appearance of
male characteristics. A person, like Cagandahan, with this condition produces too much androgen, a
male hormone. CAH is one of many conditions that involve intersex anatomy.
6. Ultimately, where the person is biologically or naturally intersex the determining factor in his gender
classification would be what the individual having reached the age of majority, with good reason thinks of
his/her sex. Cagandahan here thinks of himself as a male and considering that his body produces high
levels of male hormones (androgen) there is preponderant biological support for considering him as
being male. Sexual development in cases of intersex persons makes the gender classification at birth
inconclusive. It is at maturity that the gender of such persons, like Cagandahan, is fixed.
7. Cagandahan here has simply let nature take its course and has not taken unnatural steps to arrest or
interfere with what he was born with. And accordingly, he has already ordered his life to that of a male.
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Cagandahan could have undergone treatment and taken steps, like taking lifelong medication, to force
his body into the categorical mold of a female but he did not. He chose not to do so. Nature has instead
taken its due course in Cagandahan’s development to reveal more fully his male characteristics.
8. In the absence of a law on the matter, the Court will not dictate on Cagandahan concerning a matter
so innately private as one’s sexuality and lifestyle preferences, much less on whether or not to undergo
medical treatment to reverse the male tendency due to CAH. The Court will not consider Cagandahan as
having erred in not choosing to undergo treatment in order to become or remain as a female.
A change of name is not a matter of right but of judicial discretion
9. As for Cagandahan’s change of name under Rule 103, it has held that a change of name is not a
matter of right but of judicial discretion, to be exercised in the light of the reasons adduced and the
consequences that will follow. The trial court’s grant of Cagandahan’s change of name from Jennifer to
Jeff implies a change of a feminine name to a masculine name. Considering the consequence that
Cagandahan’s change of name merely recognizes his preferred gender, there is a merit in
Cagandahan’s change of name. Such a change will conform with the change of the entry in his birth
certificate from female to male.
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● Republic of the Philippines vs. Cagandahan

A change of name is not a matter of right but of judicial discretion

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