How Can I Go About Changing My Baby's Last Name?
Many parents bring their baby home from the hospital only to be hit with waves of regret over the last name they gave their child. Perhaps choosing a family name has created disputes. Divorce and separation often causes mothers to change their child's last name. Foster parents often change their child's name when the adoption is complete. Some single parents decide to change their child's last name when they remarry. CNN reports as many as 10 percent of new parents in a Baby Center poll considered changing their newborn's name.For whatever reason, many parents face the sometimes tricky process of changing their child's name.
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Instructions
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Make the request for a last name change a part of the legal motion if court proceedings for change of custody or adoption are already under way. The simplest way to change the child's name is for a judge to order a name change along with other legal judgments.
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Obtain forms to file a motion to legally change your child's name from the local county courthouse. Most states require both parents to approve of any name changes in the case of divorce or separation. In adoption proceedings, last name changes are a part of the adoption decree. Some states have a leniency period directly after a child's birth when the name can be changed easily. Have the forms notarized.
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File the papers and pay the filing fees. An uncontested change should be easily approved, but you may need an attorney if the other parent objects.
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Take the court's final decree for name change to your local Social Security Administration office to request a new Social Security card. Send copies of the court order to your state's Office of Vital Records to obtain a birth certificate with the corrected name.
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Tips & Warnings
Check with your county court for your state's particular name change guidelines.
References
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