No Request, No Relief

Texas R. Civ. P. 301 says that a judgment “shall conform to the pleadings.”

In In the Interest of SMG and AIG, a petition for name change asked that two children have their name changed from “Gonzalez Rodriguez” to “Rodriquez.” At the hearing, the petitioner said that “Gonzalez” could also be the middle name.

(In Mexico, the convention is to have two last names–a practice that does not always match with American legal forms.)

The children ended up with the hyphenated last name of “Gonzalez-Rodriguez.” The Fifth Court reversed because that relief did not comport with Rule 301. It expressed no view on the sufficiency of the evidence to support such a change. No. 05-22-00937-CV (June 13, 2023) (mem. op.).