
Your hate your name or it just doesn’t suit you and want a new one. No one can spell or pronounce your last name. You want to legally use the name that everyone calls you your legal name (your birth certificate says Thomas but you are just Tom). You or your child has transitioned to another gender. Creating a new name for a couple (married or unmarried) who want to have a new, shared last name. You ended up calling your child something other than the name on their birth certificate. Your child’s name just doesn’t suit them. You get married and want your child to share a name with the stepparent. But there are other situations in which you might want to change your name or your child’s name: The most common reason for a name change is marriage or divorce.
The reason for your name change will dictate which legal process you need to follow. You are free to use an alias or a nickname at any time, but that is not your legal name.
If you want to change your legal name, you need to use a legal process.