Legal Question in Family Law in Maryland
name changes
I would like to change the spelling of my first name but not the
atual name itself. My mother chose a very strange spelling to
a very common name and I'm sick of the way people constrantly
think it's marion or Mar yenne or worse. Do I need to go through a legal action to do this or can I just notify the bureau of
Statistics that I want it spelled differently and get a new birth
certificate with the appropriate spelling and then just start using
it?
1 Answer from Attorneys
Re: name changes
In order to legally change the spelling of your name, you must file a petition in the Circuit Court of the county where you live. You will have to either place a legal notice in a local newspaper or, with court permission, put a notice of your intention on the courthouse bulletin board. A lot of people do this without a lawyer and the court clerks can probably guide you through it.
Robert Sher
Wagshal and Sher
5530 Wisconsin Ave-Suite 1200