Legal Question in Family Law in Texas

Your options depend upon whether you want to get divorced at some point.

You can get a name change as part of your divorce. It is roughly the same court costs to file for a divorce and a name change. You can find attorneys, such as myself, who offer reasonably low uncontested divorce fees if your spouse is willing to agree to a divorce. So the difference in cost between a divorce and a name change may not be so significant that it isn't better value for your time and money to go ahead with the divorce. In a divorce you can request the court grant you a name change. There is a small additional step to change the name if you want to change to a name other than your maiden name but it is not much of an issue. In some counties you cannot get a divorce and a name change to a name other than your maiden name without paying two filing fees so that is something to look at before you make a decision on how to proceed.

You can always petition just for the name change. It is a relatively simple process and you may be able to find forms online or hire an attorney for a reasonably small sum to draft the documents and help you through the process.