What do you have to do to get your last name changed, and keep all of my records?

Question

I can keep my first and middle.

Answer 1

You are in the genealogy forum.  This is not a genealogy question.  This is a legal question, and the laws will vary by state, and the fees will vary by county.  Contact your county courthouse for the details in your area.

Answer 2

You can change your name either legally or by common usage. Common usage means just pick a name and use it all the time for everything.  Legally you can change your name by going through a formal court process.  There are a few things you can't do;

change your name to avoid debt or to do something illegal,

take the name of someone else like Ronald McDonald and then sell hamburgers

You can't use numbers or symbols or profanity or racial slurs

You will have to figure out what your individual state requires as far as Legally changing your name, most require a petition and a court order as well as affidavit of consent if you are a minor.

Once you have a name change you will want to notify everyone of that change, including social security, creditors, employers, passports, banks, etc, basically notify  everyone of your new name.

Good luck who ever you are!

Genzoli

founder CGC

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/california...

Answer 3

Unless you put it in your question, we can't tell what country you are in. It is the most frustrating thing Yahoo does. It doesn't matter if you go into domestic Yahoo or one of the International Yahoos - UK, Australia, Canada, India - all of the questions in English go into one big "pot".

In Stanislaus County, California, you call the clerk at the county courthouse. You fill out a form and pay $320. You also take out a Legal Notice in a local newspaper for four weeks. That cost is in addition to the $320. If no one objects, you get your decree.

Every time you apply for a new passport, driver's license, etc. you will need to mail in or show a notarized copy of the decree. If you have to mail one in and don't get it back, chalk up another $25 or so.

The procedure is the same in all counties in California, although the cost may vary. I suspect the procedure is about the same in most states in the USA, although the cost and the length of time may vary.

Once you get the decree, you send copies to the DMV, SSA, your school, doctor, magazines, insurance company, . . .. You get a new Driver's license, SS card, insurance card, passport . . .

If you are in the UK, say so and one of the UK people will explain deed polls to you.

As to records - you just add a note to all of your job applications, school applications, driver's license renewals, etc. that you were known as Bart K. Smith until 01 July 2009, and Bart K. Jones afterwards. Then, for instance, if an employer wants a college transcript, he/she can send for it from the college using the name you used when you were a student.