New York Appellate Court Strikes Down Lower Court's Decision

By Sr. Correspondent, Antoine Craigwell

(New York, NY) -A New York State appeals court on Oct 21 overturned a lower court's decision which had ordered that a transgender person seeking to change his or her name must provide medical evidence of the need for a name change. The appellate court ruling in the case of Leah Uri Winn-Ritzenberg, who had petitioned the court to change her name to Olin Winn-Ritzenberg, was delivered following the combined efforts of the Transgender Legal Defense & Education Fund (TLDEF) as part of its Name Change Project. Arguments for the case before the Appellate Court were presented by Daniel Gonen, as lead counsel, and legal briefs submitted by attorneys from the law firm Debevoise & Plimpton and from the Lambda Legal Defense and Education Fund, on behalf of Winn-Ritzenberg.

 

 
A lower civil court had denied Winn-Ritzenberg's petition for a name change because there was no certification from a doctor, psychotherapist, or social worker who had determined the need for a name change. In its decision, the appellate court stated, "There is no sound basis in law or policy to engraft upon the statutory provisions an additional requirement that a transgendered-petitioner present medical substantiation for the desired name change."

Attorney Michael Silverman, TLDEF executive director, said, "The appellate court's ruling sends a powerful message that transgender people must be treated equally and that they cannot be subjected to different legal requirements than everyone else. People's names are fundamental to their identities. This ruling confirms that each one of us has the right to be known by a name we choose. That choice can't be second-guessed by doctors, therapists or anyone else just because someone is transgender."

Reacting to the decision, newly gender identified as a male, Winn-Ritzenberg said that the ruling meant that he could finally change his name and move forward with his life.

"My gender transition has been a very personal journey, and no one is in a better position to decide that I need to change my name than I," Winn-Ritzenberg said

The TLDEF's Name Change Project offers a free and low-cost name change service which matches transgender community members with lawyers in private practice who provide their services free of charge.

"The ruling in my case confirms that transgender people should be treated with the same dignity and respect as everyone else," Winn-Ritzenberg added.