Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/513060
52 maltatoday, SUNDAY, 17 MAY 2015 Opinion A court ordered that a birth certificate be amended following the erroneous translation of the name. This was ordered in Hamdan Najm -v- Director of Public Registry delivered by Ms Justice Lorraine Schembri Orland on 12 May, 2015. In his application Najm explained that his birth certificate gave his surname as Najem instead of Najm. He further explained that he was always known as Najm and produced a number of documents indicating his surname, including his Syrian passport. The fact that his surname on his birth certificate was given as Najem caused difficulties for him and his family. He asked the court to order the necessary correction in light of Article 253 of the Civil Code. The Public Registry defended the action by explaining that the original birth certificate is Syrian and that registered in Malta was a faithful translation that the plaintiff forwarded. Furthermore, it was the plaintiff who wrote his name in English and the error could only be attributed to him, the Public Registry was not to blame. The First Hall of the Civil Court held that Article 253 of the Civil Code gave the right to any person to ask for a correction of the names mentioned in certificates. In this particular case the plaintiff, who was born in Syria is asking the court to allow a correction of his surname since it was written Najem, when it had to be Najm. Article 244 of the Civil Code states: "(1) Any act of birth, marriage or death of a citizen of Malta drawn up or registered in a foreign country by a competent authority in that country, other than an act drawn up or registered under sub-article (l) or sub-article (2) of article 270, may, at the request of any person interested and upon the Director of the Public Registry being satisfied on the authenticity of such act, be registered in these Islands in the same manner as if it were an act drawn up by any of the persons mentioned in this Title. "(2) The person making the request shall, for the purposes of registration, deliver to the Director the act in respect of which such request is made." In those cases where the birth certificate is derived from another country, the details are taken from a translation issued from that country. Although the translation is official, it does not exclude errors. The court commented that this was happening very often, especially translations from the Arabic language to the English language issued by Libyan authorities. The court recommended that the Maltese departments should engage translators who would verify the accuracy of these official translations. This would avoid numerous requests for corrections in official certificates. In this particular case the defendant, the Director of Public Registry, did not make a mistake, since it registered the plaintiff from a document the plaintiff had given the department. The court had to make its own verifications that the document submitted in court was authentic and could be used as a basis of the correction requested. The court appointed its linguistic expert, Nadia Lanzon and from her report it was explained that the correct translation of the plaintiff 's name is Najm. The court then ordered all necessary corrections and ordered the plaintiff to pay the costs of the case since the defendant department was not to blame. Malcolm Mifsud, Partner, Mifsud & Mifsud Advocates Malcolm Mifsud mmifsud@mifsudadvocates.com.mt mmifsud@mifsudadvocates.com.mt A 2012 planning application for the "sanctioning" of a number of structural variations, which were carried out without a permit, was turned down by the MEPA's Planning Commission after it held that the building height violated the maximum height limitation as established by the Gozo and Comino Local Plan. In this case, applicant was contending that the building consisted of two floors and semi basement as required by policy while the Authority was insisting that the building read as three full floors. The Commission further added that the building extends to a depth of 32 metres from the street alignment, thus exceeding the maximum building depth allowed by current policies (namely, 25 metres). In conclusion, the Commission underlined that the "tegole" on the façade were alien to the aesthetic character of the building. On his part, applicant lodged an appeal before the Environment and Planning Tribunal, insisting inter alia that the reasons for refusal were "manifestly unfair, unreasonable and disproportionate". Applicant (now appellant) submitted that as a rule, semi- basement garages fronting a sloping street may be constructed up to a maximum of nine courses from the lowest pavement level. Applicant contended that, in his case, the height of the semi basement garage is equivalent to six and a half courses when measured from the highest pavement level. With regard to the second reason for refusal, where the MEPA insisted that the building extends up to a depth of 32 metres from the street alignment (the maximum building depth permitted, according to the Gozo Local Plan amounts to 25 metres), is tantamount to a "wrong application" of the law, since the development boundaries were established prior to the Gozo Local Plan. Applicant thus contended that "the extended development zone, as approved by both MEPA and parliament, indicated that it was the intention at the time to allow development up to 32 metres, and not 25 metres as now being alleged." In his conclusions, applicant insisted that the "tegole" do not jeopardize the visual integrity of the area in any way. In its assessment, the Tribunal observed that applicant was correct to state that the height of the semi basement falls within the allowable height for semi basements on sloping frontages. The Tribunal also noted that the area features a number of committed developments – including the building next door – featuring a depth exceeding 25 metres. Nonetheless, the Tribunal agreed that the tegole should be removed. Against this background, the Tribunal ordered that the permit be issued subject to a €2,329 fine. robert@rmperiti.com Robert Musumeci is a warranted architect and civil engineer. He also holds a Masters Degree in Conservation and a degree in law Robert Musumeci MEPAwatch Dwelling allowed to extend beyond 25 metres Court allows correction of surname in birth certificate The Tribunal noted that the area features a number of committed developments – including the building next door – featuring a depth exceeding 25 metres