Whatever the reason, you should be informed about the legal process of what it takes to get your child's name legally changed. To begin, only a parent, guardian, or any other conservator can have a child's name change.
Yes, this means that a child themselves cannot get a name change even if they want. For a child's name, or with any person for that matter, to get a legal name change, this will need to be done in court. Any other informal name changes are not permitted and will not be legally recognized. The process begins by filing a petition for a name change and must be done in the county where the child lives. This means you will not get a name change from just any county judge; the child must meet the residency requirement of living in that county.
The requirements of the petition itself will ask some important information regarding the name change like the reason for the name change request, why the name change should be granted, the "new" requested full name, and inform the court if there are any previous court orders involving the child who names you seek to change.
While name changes are not free, there is no set price on how much it will cost. This is because every county will have a different filing fee.
It would be best to contact a district clerk's office in the county you plan to file to find those amounts. However, most attorneys will easily have that information available to them. If you cannot afford an attorney to represent you in your name change matter, or if you are not even able to express yourself as a pro se, meaning without any legal representation, you may file a Statement of Inability to Afford Payment of Court Costs.
You will need to prove your substantial need for these court fees to be waived. There are scenarios where a parent may make a minor error on a child's birth certificate, such as mistakes in the spelling of the child's first, middle, or last name.
I have met some people who believe that even with these minor changes, there would need to be a court order fixing those mistakes. However, this belief is not valid. Cancel Print. Advanced Search. If you are the only parent filing a petition request to change your child's name - whether the other parent agrees or not - you will get a court date and you will have to let the other parent know about your petition and about the court date for the petition.
If your child's other parent does not agree to changing the child's name, he or she has the right to oppose your request. To file, follow these steps:. Fill out your court forms. Have your forms reviewed. Make 3 copies of all your forms. File your forms with the court clerk. Serve the other parent of your child. Try our new step-by-step format! We're improving online instructions for serving court papers! Hint: chose a qualified newspaper and write in their name in section 3a of the Order To Show Cause Form before you make your copy or file at the court.
The filing clerk will give you a hearing date to where you will get your court order, upon approval. Ask them to file a Proof of Publication with your court for you after the last publication AND give you a copy so you can take it to your hearing, just in case. Then go to your Hearing, where your judge can grant your petition, upon approval. Get your Certified Copy of the Decree right after your successful Hearing. When a child is born, you may have to make a hasty naming decision and may have a change of mind in a few days or after some years.
As parents get to know their new baby, sometimes the parents come to want a different name than the one they chose. After a legal name change, you can get an amended birth certificate from the California Department of Public Health, if your child was born in California.
Each state has their own rules for birth certificate name changes. One parent, alone, has legal rights to petition for this. It happens a lot. Whether you were never married, still married, or divorced, all these same rules apply. You do need to serve him or her with a conformed copy of the Order to Show Cause form.
The other parent still does not have to consent or agree, just get served. Once served, a Proof of Service form must be filed. Where can I get the court forms? In New York, you can get this from the state Department of Health. What happens if the other parent does not agree to the name change? You can try an informal name change. You should know that the other parent can stop this if they learn about it. Effective December 21, , publication of name change orders will no longer be required. Instead, the name change will be effective as soon as you file the Judge's order with the County Clerk.
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