Why did you do it? How long did it take? What steps did you need to take & how much did it cost?
& if done for Domestic Violence purposes were court fees waived? To those who have done it illegaly, how did you do it? Like obtain ID, etc...



Why did you do it? How long did it take? What steps did you need to take & how much did it cost?
& if done for Domestic Violence purposes were court fees waived? To those who have done it illegaly, how did you do it? Like obtain ID, etc...
Probably not helpful in the least, but when I got married there was no fee involved. Before marriage, I didn't have a middle name just a first and my maiden last name. When I got married I made my maiden name into my middle name and took my husband's last name.
Animals are my friends, and I don't eat my friends.- George Bernard Shaw





I remember my friend did this when she was 15 because she didn't like her real one and it was pretty damn easy. Even for a minor having to get guardian signatures on everything. I'm pretty sure every state would have different rules and fees.
Rules for changing your name vary by state. The big pain is changing your name with the bank, feds, utilities, etc. Once you have your legal decree changing your name, get several notarized copies. Your first stop after that should be the social security office and apply for a name change on your social security card. You can call most utilities and they will change the name for you over the phone. The banks will want to see a copy of your decree.
Here's a website that is useful: http://www.soyouwanna.com/site/syws/...enameFULL.html
If that doesn't have the information you need, try your county clerk's office.





Legally: it's different in every state. Usually costs $1-200 and takes a few months.
Illegally: get a fake ID, or make a fake ID by finding someone who does birth certificates andd taking it to the DMV. This is very risky since 9/11, but it has the advantage of your being the only one with that identity, so you can open bank accounts and stuff.
I've done it for dv reasons and have never had anything waved or expedited.
I'm getting mine changed too. the whole thing....first middle and last. i hate my whole name. it's a horrible stupid ugly name and I hate it. The police officer told me i could do it for free here.
"Life and death, energy and peace. If I stop today it was still worth it. Even the terrible mistakes that I made and would have unmade if I could. The pains that have burned me and scarred my soul, it was worth it, for having been allowed to walk where I've walked, which was to hell on earth, heaven on earth, back again, into, under, far in between, through it, in it, and above."
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My friend just had it done last week. She said it cost her about $250 (she says the price went up recently). She got it done because she's pregnant and didn't want her child to suffer with a terrible sounding last name. She also said you have to go to back and few times, naturally there's a lot of paperwork, they try to make sure you're not just changing your name to get out of debt and such (good idea, huh?).
Dunno many details, that's just what she told me in casual conversation.
There's only so much you can learn in one place...
The longer you wait, the more time that you waste.





Mine cost about $3-400? I called the county clerk and went from there. Just a lot of check writing and photocopying and mailing things. Then court.
The biggest pain was the waiting. I went to court, got all the stuff signed and I STILL had to wait to get a new dl, etc, because they give you an 'official date' of name change, 3 weeks out. At least in NJ. V. annoying. Be prepared to carry your paperwork everywhere for a bit and to have to harass the credit agencies to change it. However, totally worth it to me.
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