Get ND Order Granting Name Change 2015-2024

In the US you can use any name you please as long as it is not fraudulent or misleading. Your”legal name” is the one found on official documents such as your birth certificate and passport. If you want to change that, there is a simplified court petition available in most states.

A certified copy of the court's order to change your name can be requested from the court that issued the order. The Social Security office is one place that asks for official proof of a name change. The Department of Motor Vehicles is another. This is so you can get a new Social Security card and state ID.

You can legally change your name by filing papers in court. If a judge agrees, they will give you a court order that states your new legal name. You need this order to change your name on identity documents, like your driver's license, passport, or social security card.

Get certified copy of your Decree from court clerk The clerk can get you a certified copy. This means the clerk adds an official stamp to your Decree that says the copy is true copy of the original. Depending on how many legal ID documents you want to update, you can ask for more than one certified Decree.

In California, you can ask for a court order to change your legal name. To do this, you file a petition with the court and publish a notice in a newspaper. Then, you'll either have a court date (a hearing) where a judge will make a decision, or the judge may make a decision without a hearing.

If you want to use a name other than your married name or your pre-marital name, you have to go through your state's name change process. Changing your name after divorce optional and not something you have to do. If you want to keep your married name you can do so and your spouse cannot force you to change it.

You can keep your existing name. You can use both last names—with a hyphen or without. You can take your spouse's name, but use your former name strictly in a professional setting. Some states even allow you to move your old name to your middle name, and then tack on your new last one.

Changing Your Name Without Going to Court The federal courts have ruled again and again that changing your name at will or, by “common law” is every citizen's right under the U.S. Constitution. Using this “common law rule,” you can change your name without even going to court.