Name Changes

Changing Your Name After a New York City Divorce

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Divorce brings many changes. One of these, commonly undertaken by women wish to use their maiden name again, is a legal name change. While you almost always retain the right to change your name, people most often undergo this process in connection with big life changes such as marriage, adoption, divorce, and estrangement from family. You are only prohibited from changing your name when such a change is used for fraud or avoiding financial obligations.

To change your name, file a petition with your county’s Supreme Court, including:

  • Current legal name
  • Desired name
  • Current residence address, and all residences since birth
  • Biological parents' names
  • All family members' names
  • Current occupation, and all employment positions held over the past 5 years (including addresses)
  • Education history
  • Criminal history
  • Judgments against you and fingerprints
  • Reason for wanting to change name
  • Fingerprint card

To ensure that you can complete your name change without hassle, you should seek the most experienced divorce lawyer in New York City. At H. Benjamin Perez & Associates, P.C., we give personalized attention to each and every client by thoroughly assessing their unique needs and providing diligent legal services. Our extensive experience in all divorce matters makes us capable of working with all types of client requests.


Contact us today to schedule a consultation with a member of our legal team!


The Name Change Process

The name change process should be completed accurately and with proper legal procedures to ensure that no delays occur. Working with a NYC divorce attorney can make the name change process efficient and prompt. Consult our firm to start this process as soon as possible.

The following steps are required to complete a name change:

  • File petition for name change with Supreme Court in the county in which you reside
  • Order will be issued once petition is approved by the court
  • Notice of the name change is published in newspaper, unless it is a safety risk
  • Obtain new birth certificate
  • Update name change on all official documents

The above process only applies to individuals over the age of 18. If a minor requests a name change, both parents must jointly petition. Any disagreement on behalf of either parent with regards to the change of name will be reviewed by a judge. The parent petitioning the name change must prove that the change would be in the child's best interest.


If you are looking for legal counsel in New York, call our firm for legal assistance and consult a New York City divorce lawyer about a name change.

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