Facilitated Name Change Before Step-Parent Adoption

It can be incredibly disorienting when one’s inner sense of self doesn’t match how the world sees them. This feeling of disconnect can lead many people to seek relief by making changes to their likeness. Changing one’s name can be part of the process.

In this case, we had a client who wanted to legally change their name to better reflect their gender identity before legally adopting their stepchild. 

Our Family Law Team helped this client submit a “Petition for Change of Name.” Once granted, we helped the client demonstrate to the court that the step-parent adoption was in the best interest of the child.

After demonstrating our client’s active role in the child’s upbringing, the court decided this family should be whole. The court issued a final decree of adoption that included our client’s new legal name.