A young man wanted to change the spelling of his name from "Sultan" to "Сұлтан" in accordance with the norms of the Kazakh language. Additionally, he wished to adopt the surname of his adoptive father – Мұратұлы.
This man raised him but passed away before the young man reached adulthood.
The young man shared that he had never met his biological father, and his mother had lost her parental rights. However, when he submitted his application for a name and surname change, it was denied.
The government agency "Government for Citizens" explained its decision by stating that the adoptive father had only cared for the plaintiff for six months.
This duration was deemed insufficient to allow a surname change. Moreover, the reason for the refusal to change the name, which involved merely altering one letter, was not clarified in the official response.
The young man disagreed with this and decided to take the matter to court.
However, the first instance court sided with the government structures and did not grant his requests.
But the appellate court overturned this decision and agreed with the plaintiff's claim, deeming the government agency's ruling unlawful.
The appellate court referenced Article 257 of the Code "On Marriage (Family) and Family," which gives a person the right to bear the surname and/or patronymic of the individual who effectively raised them.
Furthermore, the law does not specify minimum durations required to recognize this fact. In this case, the adoptive father passed away when the plaintiff was still a child, which cannot be a reason to deny a surname change.
As for the name change, the court also found no objective grounds for refusal.
As a result, the appeal supported the applicant's claims, and the ruling entered into legal force, with no further appeals made against it.