In the Interest of J.N.L.

528 S.W.3d 237, 2017 WL 3441185, 2017 Tex. App. LEXIS 7580
CourtCourt of Appeals of Texas
DecidedAugust 10, 2017
DocketNO. 14-16-00325-CV
StatusPublished
Cited by4 cases

This text of 528 S.W.3d 237 (In the Interest of J.N.L.) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Court of Appeals of Texas primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
In the Interest of J.N.L., 528 S.W.3d 237, 2017 WL 3441185, 2017 Tex. App. LEXIS 7580 (Tex. Ct. App. 2017).

Opinion

OPINION

Martha Hill Jamison, Justice

In this appeal from a final judgment in a suit to change the name of a child, appellant Eriberto Lopez complains that the trial court’s order granting the name change request is not supported by sufficient evidence and the trial court abused its discretion in excluding evidence relevant to its determination that a name change was in J.N.L.’s best interest. We conclude that the trial court did not abuse its discretion in granting the name change because its finding that the name change is in the child’s best interest is supported by legally and factually sufficient evidence and Lopez did not preserve error on his evidentiary complaints. We affirm.

Background

Lopez was married to Jessica Martinez Rivera, and they are the parents of nine-year-old J.N.L. Lopez is currently incarcerated after being convicted for aggravated robbery. His parole recently was denied. He is a registered sex offender due to a prior conviction for aggravated sexual assault of a child when he was seventeen.

Rivera is now married to John Rivera. She filed a petition requesting a name change for J.N.L. alleging that Lopez is incarcerated, J.N.L. wants to change her last name to Rivera, and changing J.N.L.’s name to the same last name as the rest of J.N.L.’s siblings would “add unity to” the family.1

[240]*240In its findings of fact and conclusions of law, the trial court found that J.N.L. has had no contact with Lopez and she is unlikely to have any contact with him before she is an adult because his projected release date is in 2024. Rivera testified that J.N.L. will be eighteen years old then and that J.N.L. requested the name change.

Lopez participated in the trial via video-conference. The trial court sustained a relevance objection to Lopez’s questions about Rivera’s marital history and the likelihood that her current marriage would succeed.2 The trial court signed an order granting the name change request and signed findings of fact and conclusions of law.

Discussion

In two issues, Lopez complains that the trial court abused its discretion by granting the requested name change without sufficient evidence and by excluding- evidence relevant to some of the factors used to determine whether a name change was in J.N.L.’s best interest.

We review a trial court’s decision to change the name of a minor child for an abuse of discretion. In re H.S.B., 401 S.W.3d 77, 81 (Tex. App.—Houston [14th Dist.] 2011, no pet.). “Insufficient evidence” is not an independent issue when the standard of review is abuse of discretion: sufficiency of the evidence is merely a factor to consider. Id. at 81-82. For a court to act within its discretion to change a child’s name, however, the record must contain some evidence of a substantial and probative character to support the trial court’s decision. Id. at 82. Accordingly, the abuse of discretion standard requires a two-pronged analysis: (1) whether the trial court had sufficient information upon which to exercise its discretion; and (2) whether the trial court erred in applying its discretion under the appropriate legal authorities. Id.

As to the first prong, when reviewing for legal sufficiency, we consider the evidence in the light most favorable to the finding and indulge every reasonable inference that supports the challenged finding. City of Keller v. Wilson, 168 S.W.3d 802, 822 (Tex. 2005). We credit favorable evidence if a reasonable factfinder could and disregard contrary evidence unless a reasonable factfinder could not. Id. at 827. A legal sufficiency challenge must be sustained when (1) the record shows a complete absence of evidence of a vital fact, (2) the court is barred from giving weight to the only evidence offered to prove a vital fact, (3) the evidence offered to prove a vital fact is no more than a mere scintilla, or (4) the evidence establishes conclusively the opposite of the vital fact. Id. at 810.

In reviewing the factual sufficiency of the evidence, we consider all of the evidence and set aside the judgment only if it is so contrary to the overwhelming weight of the evidence that it is clearly wrong and manifestly unjust. Cain v. Bain, 709 S.W.2d 175, 176 (Tex. 1986). The factfinder is the sole judge of witnesses’ credibility and the weight to be given their testimony. City of Keller, 168 S.W.3d at 819.

[241]*241In Texas, the primary concern in determining whether to change a child’s name is the child’s best interest—not the interests of the parents. Tex. Fam. Code § 45.004(a)(1); In re H.S.B., 401 S.W.3d at 83. Texas courts, including this court, have applied at least six non-exclusive factors to determine whether a name change is in a child’s best interest. In re H.S.B., 401 S.W.3d at 84. Courts are not required to attribute the same weight to each factor in a given case. See id. The significance of each factor depends on the facts of a case, so one or more factors may be irrelevant to a dispute. See id.

This court has considered the following factors: (1) whether the name change would reduce anxiety, embarrassment, inconvenience, confusion, or disruption for the child, which may include parental misconduct and the degree of community respect (or disrespect) associated with the name; (2) whether the name change would help the child identify with a family unit; (3) whether the parent bearing the name the child will have assures that she will not change her name in the future; (4) the length of time the child has used a name and the level of identity the child has with the name; (5) the child’s preference; and (6) the parent’s true motivations for requesting the name change.3 Id.

Appellant agrees these factors are to be considered, but he argues that there is an additional “baseline rule”—a name should not be changed unless the original name is detrimental to the child—and that the trial court erred by failing to make this finding. Although Texas cases cite this consideration, see id. at 83, section 45.004(a)(1) requires only that the name change be in the best interest of the child. Tex. Fam. Code § 45.004(a)(1). We conclude that the trial court is not required to make a separate finding that the original name is detrimental to the child.

Appellant further argues that the trial court’s finding that the name change is in J.N.L.’s best interest is not supported by sufficient evidence and the trial court abused its discretion in excluding certain testimony relevant to some of the factors. We discuss each factor in turn.

I. Anxiety, Embarrassment, Inconvenience, Confusion, or Disruption Associated with J.N.L.’s Given Name

Lopez argues that Rivera presented no evidence suggesting the Lopez name causes J.N.L. anxiety or embarrassment. Although Rivera did not testify that J.N.L. is currently experiencing these feelings, Rivera testified that J.N.L.

Free access — add to your briefcase to read the full text and ask questions with AI

Related

in the Interest of G.L.H., a Child
Court of Appeals of Texas, 2021
in the Interest of I. D. Z., a Child
Court of Appeals of Texas, 2020
Werthwein v. Workman
546 S.W.3d 749 (Court of Appeals of Texas, 2018)

Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
528 S.W.3d 237, 2017 WL 3441185, 2017 Tex. App. LEXIS 7580, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/in-the-interest-of-jnl-texapp-2017.