Landmark ruling: a man raised in León restores his original identity on his national ID without annulling the adoption
English translation of a release distributed directly in the body of an email to the media.
Following a court judgment, the Civil Registry has officially recorded Olmo Gómez Aldaz’s true original parentage, including his surnames by birth, while leaving the parentage arising from his adoption in force. The result is an unprecedented situation of dual parentage with full civil effects.
Olmo, aged 54, was raised in León under the adoptive identity of Santiago González Rueda, which appeared in his official documents until the recent restoration of his original identity.
In this context, the identity now shown on his Spanish national identity card is his original identity. This places an adopted person in the same legal position historically enjoyed only by people who were not adopted.
The significant feature of the case is that this restoration did not require the prior annulment of the adoption, which remains legally valid. For the first time, an adoption and fully recognised and effective original parentage coexist in the Spanish Civil Registry.
This situation breaks with the historical practice under which adoption irrevocably replaces original parentage, even when the adopted person seeks the restoration of their identity.
He began these legal proceedings five years ago after discovering evidence that he had been trafficked only hours after birth, in the context of the practices involving the removal of newborn babies documented in Spain during the final decades of the Franco dictatorship. The Bilbao courts closed the criminal proceedings because the limitation period had expired, leaving only the civil route open.
The case opens a legal avenue that did not previously exist for other adopted people seeking restoration of their identity without being forced to relinquish rights they have already acquired. The ruling is relevant not only at an individual level: it may provide a precedent for other irregular adoption cases in which restoration of original identity has historically been blocked by the registration system itself.
Sincerely,
Olmo Gómez Aldaz
Tudela de Duero (Valladolid)
Telephone: (+34) 603 384 677
Email: prensa@gomezaldaz.com
P.S.: Judicial and registry documentation is available to media outlets on request.
Translation of the original email sent on 20 January 2026. Contact details have been updated for publication on the website.