Name addition

[jacksgal]

What is the name of your state? CA

Couldnt find what I thought would be good area so using this one. My husband and i have been married 6 years we each had children before marriage. I had one daughter. Her Father left (we were not married) when I was 6 months along. He never signed and birth documents and Father was listed as "unknown". I never moved for like five years so he could find us. He never did. Ok fast forward to now. I live in southern portion of CA having moved from Northern portion. My daughter would like her name to be same or simialr to her siblings (three steps one my husband and I concieved together). I realize adoption is time consuming and might prove difficult. What my daughter would like (shes 13) is an addition to her name. Example. Lets sya her current name is Jane Doe but my married name and nam eof other kids is Smith. What we ar elooking at is a name change to Jane Doe-Smith. How difficult is this? Will it require I try to find Father?

 

[Antigone*]

What is the name of your state? CA

Couldnt find what I thought would be good area so using this one. My husband and i have been married 6 years we each had children before marriage. I had one daughter. Her Father left (we were not married) when I was 6 months along. He never signed and birth documents and Father was listed as "unknown". I never moved for like five years so he could find us. He never did. Ok fast forward to now. I live in southern portion of CA having moved from Northern portion. My daughter would like her name to be same or simialr to her siblings (three steps one my husband and I concieved together). I realize adoption is time consuming and might prove difficult. What my daughter would like (shes 13) is an addition to her name. Example. Lets sya her current name is Jane Doe but my married name and nam eof other kids is Smith. What we ar elooking at is a name change to Jane Doe-Smith. How difficult is this? Will it require I try to find Father?

It is a fairly simple process and can be accomplished in a matter of a few months. A trip to the county courthouse to fill out appropriate paperwork. You will need to publish an ad in a newspaper (a list will be given to you by the clerk). You will need to publish the ad for four weeks prior to the hearing.

At the hearing the judge will ask your reasons for wanting to change her name. The judge may ask your daughter to leave while he asks you a few personal questions.

The total cost is usually about $600. The filing is about 300 and the newspaper ad is approximately another 300.

If you go to the court with the documents already filled out, you've won half the battle.

California Courts: Self-Help Center: More Topics: How to Change Your Name: Forms for Use in Name Change and/or Gender Change Cases

 

[CourtClerk]

It is a fairly simple process and can be accomplished in a matter of a few months. A trip to the county courthouse to fill out appropriate paperwork. You will need to publish an ad in a newspaper (a list will be given to you by the clerk). You will need to publish the ad for four weeks prior to the hearing.

At the hearing the judge will ask your reasons for wanting to change her name. The judge may ask your daughter to leave while he asks you a few personal questions.

The total cost is usually about $600. The filing is about 300 and the newspaper ad is approximately another 300.

If you go to the court with the documents already filled out, you've won half the battle.

California Courts: Self-Help Center: More Topics: How to Change Your Name: Forms for Use in Name Change and/or Gender Change Cases

The cost of a name change is $355, and I've seen publication done as low as $100 if you pick the right paper. Takes about 6 weeks actually, you need 4 weeks of publication, the OSC hearing is usually set 6 weeks from filing.

Yes, dad will have to be notified. Yes, adoption is time consuming, but it's also not as expensive as you think it would be - especially for a step parent adoption. If your child really wants to feel like she "belongs" to the family, then why not make her "belong" to the family, although I think the better lesson is it doesn't matter WHAT her name is, if/when she gets married, she'll probably be changing it anyway.

 

[jacksgal]

Maybe I mistyped. I do not want to change her name exactly I want to hyphenate it. Example her current last name (hyphen) my married name. I presumed, perhaps wrongly, that I would not be required to find or look for Dad if doing this

 

[Antigone*]

Maybe I mistyped. I do not want to change her name exactly I want to hyphenate it. Example her current last name (hyphen) my married name. I presumed, perhaps wrongly, that I would not be required to find or look for Dad if doing this

Still a change my friend. Process is still the same.

 

[jacksgal]

Ok thats what I needed to know. I will get with court then sometime this week thanks all

 

[LdiJ]

You might not be required to actually look for dad. His name is not on the birth certificate and paternity was never established. Therefore she does not have a father legally. You might have to do some sort of service by publication instead.

 

[Antigone*]

You might not be required to actually look for dad. His name is not on the birth certificate and paternity was never established. Therefore she does not have a father legally. You might have to do some sort of service by publication instead.

In California the publication is required to run for four consequtive weeks. The newpaper will send the petitioner a certification tha must be presented to the judge.

 

[CourtClerk]

You might not be required to actually look for dad. His name is not on the birth certificate and paternity was never established. Therefore she does not have a father legally. You might have to do some sort of service by publication instead.

That would not be correct. Dad must be served, per the CCP. If dad cannot be located, then the grandparents can be served.

 

[Antigone*]

That would not be correct. Dad must be served, per the CCP. If dad cannot be located, then the grandparents can be served.

If he is unknown or the petitioner does not know his whereabouts then no service is required for the name change, right?

 

[jacksgal]

No I have no clue where he is.

 

[CourtClerk]

If he is unknown

She knows who he is.....

the petitioner does not know his whereabouts then no service is required for the name change, right?

She will see on the name change packet that it also says that if his whereabouts are unknown, service to the grandparents is sufficient. If she swears up and down that **she doesn't know who she slept with, or who his people are (judges tend to roll their eyes at this one), then she can complete a declaration stating such.**

Really, there need not be all this game playing. Have the kid adopted by the new hubby and go on about life. This option is much less embarrassing to the kid who will have to hear about the stuff in between the stars at the name change hearing.

 

[jacksgal]

Yes I know who he is. I dont know where he is right now but I do know who he is. I lived in same place for five years after I got pregnant. He never check on my condition and after our daughter was born he never checked on her. Yes adoption is option but its not cheap and we wouldnt even be looking at name change but she wants same name as her siblings. We saw this as a quick solution for her

 

[CourtClerk]

Yes I know who he is. I dont know where he is right now but I do know who he is. I lived in same place for five years after I got pregnant. He never check on my condition and after our daughter was born he never checked on her.

Unless he was legally declared the father of this child, he had no obligation to check on her. He doesn't even know if this child is his. He NEVER had the obligation to check on you. Getting you pregnant doesn't create an obligation.

Yes adoption is option but its not cheap and we wouldnt even be looking at name change but she wants same name as her siblings. We saw this as a quick solution for her

A petition for step parent adoption was $140 last I checked with the home study fees varying... and usually costing just as much as a name change.

 

[jacksgal]

Last call I made on subject had the fee running into thousands! CC I see your point yes he had no obligation I was just making a statement that he had many chances to pursue being a Father. I made the choice to sleep with him and knew that an unplanned child "might" result regardless of protection methods. I fully accept my bad choices 13 years ago. Just looking to give my daughter her wish to share same last name with her siblings and my thught was the easy way to do so would be to hypenate her name