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Appeals court hears challenge to judge’s decision to change child’s surname to father’s name
Summary
A three‑judge panel of the Appeals Court heard Jan. 6 argument over whether a Superior Court judge properly changed a 5‑year‑old child’s surname to the father’s, focusing on whether the judge applied the state’s factor‑based best‑interest test and set out adequate findings.
The Massachusetts Appeals Court heard oral argument Jan. 6 in Pagliarini v. Bercowski over a Superior Court order changing a child’s surname from the mother’s to the father’s. The appeal centers on whether the trial judge applied the correct legal standard and made the requisite findings when ordering the change.
Why it matters: Name‑change decisions for young children turn on the child’s best interest. Appellate guidance in the state requires judges to weigh specific factors and to avoid assuming that a child should default to a father’s surname. Parties also asked whether the trial judge sufficiently explained how the change would affect the child’s relationships and future identity.
Arguments and record
Appellant counsel argued the trial court failed to articulate the multi‑factor best‑interest analysis set out in Jones and subsequent cases, that the judge’s findings were spare and did not explain why the change would benefit the child rather than harm her, and that the judge improperly relied on considerations disfavored in precedent. Counsel asked the court to reverse the name change and keep the child’s existing surname.
Father’s counsel responded that the judge’s findings on the record — including credibility determinations, findings that the mother had acted to limit the father’s relationship with the child, and the guardian ad litem’s view that the child had bonded with the father — supported the judge’s conclusion that the change would be in the child’s best interest. Father’s counsel told the panel the child’s established relationship with the father and the child’s current use of the father’s surname in some contexts weighed in favor of the order.
Panel focus and possible errors identified
Judges examined whether the trial court addressed how a name change would affect the child’s relationship with siblings and school peers and asked whether the judge had applied the specific Jones factors (including whether a name change would harm the parent‑child bond and whether either parent had a continuity of use of the name). The panel also asked where, in the judgment, the trial court had described the impact on the child’s social and educational life if the surname were changed.
Outcome
No decision was announced from the bench. The appeals court took the arguments under advisement and will issue a written decision addressing whether the trial court abused its discretion by failing to identify and weigh the controlling factors and make the necessary findings.
