Legal Question in Administrative Law in Virginia

Re: Name changing - I need to change my first name legally.

It is a relatively simple procedure. It requires filing a petition with the Circuit Court where you live. This requires filing a sworn affidavit that establishes all of the key facts under oath, including swearing that it is not being used for any fraudulent purpose. To have an attorney do it would not be very difficult, either, because it is straightforward. I'm not sure what you mean by having a negative impact on your future, however. There is a requirement that a change of name be filed in certain places so that the change of name does not allow one to hide from criminal warrants, etc. So in certain circumstancs any officials would be able to determine your current and previous name. Credit reporting agencies might report both names on credit reports. (They report me as another name for my father on his credit report, because he once requested an additional card for me in my name. So the quality of information is quite poor among credit reporting agencies.) There are certain applications where you would be required to list any previous names. Some people would not be entitled to that information. However, any government form could involve a responsibility similar to perjury for false information given to the government if you did not give a previous name, if they asked.

So there are some people who would continue to KNOW that your name had been changed.

However, I cannot imagine HOW changing your name would actually have any negative impact on your future, unless I don't understand the question.

I am not aware of any way that it would HURT you, in any way. The worst that could happen is that someone would know your name had changed, but it would not do any harm that I can imagine.

But the whole thing is fairly routine. As an attorney, I would do it for $250, although if there is a need for a hearing (unlikely) I would need to charge $95 per hour in addition to appear at the hearing. Jon Moseley (703) 850-3733