Name Change

questions & answers

Question: My son was born while i was out of the country and his mother put her boyfriends last name down as my sons last name on the birth certificate. Do I have a legal right to have my sons name changed to my last name?

Answer:

If you live in Maricopa County, you may want to review the application for name change of a minor on the Superior Court's self service portion of the website. Note that you can only apply if you are the child's parent or guardian. This means that you have already established paternity. Note that if you need to establish paternity and/or have your name listed on the child's birth certificate, you would not do that through a name change application process.  You may want to review question #131 on fathers' rights.

If you live in a county other than Maricopa County, you can look up the court in your county through the Arizona Supreme Court, Court Locator. Many courts have online forms available for public use.