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Disclaimer: The material included on the Carolina Student Legal Services website (s) provides general educational information only. This information does not constitute legal advice, is not intended to constitute legal advice, nor should it be relied upon as legal advice for your specific factual pattern or situation. Consult with one of CSLS Inc.’s licensed attorneys if you are eligible for our services and wish to obtain legal advice and/or counsel for your particular legal issue.

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Name Changes...

North Carolina law provides a simple and quick procedure for a legal name change. The changing of one's name is a legal procedure conducted before the Clerk of the Superior Court in the county of the residence of the applicant.

The Procedure

The first step is the filing of a Notice announcing your intention and the proposed name. This is done at the Clerk's office at the County Courthouse in the county where you live. Forms for this document and all other required documents are available in the Clerk's office or in the Student Legal Services office. Once the Notice has been posted for ten days, you present a Petition and two affidavits (sworn statements) attesting to your character. The Petition recites your present and proposed new name and the reason for the change. A "good and sufficient reason" is required; "whim or capricious desire" could result in the denial of the change. The Clerk will sign the Order officially changing your name, and notify the State Registrar of Vital Statistics. You can take a copy of the Order to the Department of Motor Vehicles to change your driver's license. The filing fee for the name change procedure is Forty Dollars ($40.00). You can only use this statutory procedure one time, although you can go back to your original name by following the same procedure.

Resuming a Former Name

A married woman may resume her maiden name or the surname of a prior deceased husband (or a prior living husband if she has children who have that name) either by requesting the change in her divorce proceedings or upon application to the Clerk of Court. A widow may at any time resume the use of her maiden name, the name of a prior deceased husband, or a previously divorced husband upon application to the Clerk of Court in the county where she resides. There are forms available for this procedure at the office of the Clerk of Court. The fee for this procedure is Ten Dollars ($10.00).