Once you have your documents in order, head to the court and file them with the clerk of court.ĭepending on your state, you may have to “publish notice” of your name change application. The good news is that assembling your documents is the hardest part of a legal name change, or at least the most tedious. Most states have similar requirements, but of course you should confirm this. This is obviously only one state example, to give you a general idea of what you might need. (This can also be done in front of a judge, but notaries are more commonly used.) A notary public may charge a small fee. State and federal criminal background checks and fingerprints andĪ “sworn statement” means that the person completing the document must sign it in front of a notary public, who will then notarize the document by stamping it.A sworn statement declaring outstanding tax or child support obligations. A sworn statement of proof of good character from two citizens of the county.Proof of residency (documents with your name and address, such as a utility bill).If you’re an adult who simply wants to change your name, you’ll need: These will depend on a) your state of residence and b) the reason for your name change. Save yourself some time and figure out which documents you need before you get started. Of course here we’re talking about a court, not the DMV, but the principle is the same. If you’re unlucky, you’ll take a number and wait forever, only to get to the counter and then be turned away because you don’t have the correct documents. If you’re lucky, there’s a DMV representative standing by the door who will ask you if you have all the documents you need, and turn you away if you don’t. There’s a reason we’re talking about documents before the name change process, and if you’ve ever shown up unprepared at the DMV, you know why. You also can’t change your name for the purpose of committing a crime, to be clear. You can’t change your name to avoid liability, meaning a legal obligation such as debt or criminal punishment. Taylor Swift has worked hard to earn her reputation, and no one else can try to capitalize on that by taking her name. You can’t change your name in a way that could mislead or infringe upon another person’s rights (like a trademarked name). For those of you who remember, Prince may have changed his name to a symbol, well, symbolically, but it wasn’t actually legal. You can’t change your name to something that causes confusion, such as a numeral, punctuation, or symbol. As Supreme Court Justice Potter said in one of the famous cases regarding pornography: “I know it when I see it.” And before you say, “How do I know if the name I want is obscene?” we’ll throw a side eye because you probably already know. You can’t change your name to something racist, obscene, intimidating or otherwise offensive. Here are the limitations on a name change: That’s why, before we get into the process of changing your name, we should determine whether your proposed name change is legal. In the U.S., we have a great deal of freedom to choose a new name–but it’s not absolute. Adoption as well the following situations are also common reasons:įollow these steps to have your name legally changed by a court. The most common reasons for a name change is marriage or divorce. To change your name for any other reason you must use your state’s name change procedure in court. If you adopt a child, a new birth certificate will be issued for them when the adoption is complete and this is proof of their name. Most divorces include an order permitting this change. If you are changing your name after a divorce, you simply show the certificate of dissolution or judgment of divorce to change your name back to your premarital name. Once you have your driver’s license or passport in the new name you can use that to change your name elsewhere. If you want to change your name because you got married, all you need to do is show your marriage certificate to request the change. Name Change for Marriage, Divorce or Adoption The reason for your name change will dictate which legal process you need to follow. You are free to use an alias or a nickname at any time, but that is not your legal name. If you want to change your legal name, you need to use a legal process.
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