New York Law

Article 6 - NY Civil Rights Law

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• Civil Rights Law ›
• Article 6 ›
• Sections 60 - 65

  S 60. Petition  for  change  of name. A petition for leave to assume
  another name may be made by a resident of the state to the county  court
  of  the  county  or the supreme court in the county in which he resides,
  or, if he resides in the city of New York, either to the  supreme  court
  or  to  any  branch  of  the civil court of the city of New York, in any
  county of the city of New York. The petition to change the  name  of  an
  infant  may  be made by the infant through his next friend, or by either
  of his parents, or by his general guardian, or by the  guardian  of  his
  person.

  S 61. Contents.  1.  The petition shall be in writing, signed by the
  petitioner and verified in like manner as  a  pleading  in  a  court  of
  record, and shall specify the grounds of the application, the name, date
  of birth, place of birth, age and residence of the individual whose name
  is  proposed  to  be  changed  and  the name which he or she proposes to
  assume.  The  petition  shall  also  specify  (a)  whether  or  not  the
  petitioner  has been convicted of a crime or adjudicated a bankrupt; (b)
  whether or not there are any judgments or liens of  record  against  the
  petitioner  or actions or proceedings pending to which the petitioner is
  a party, and, if so, the petitioner shall give  descriptive  details  in
  connection  therewith sufficient to readily identify the matter referred
  to; (c) whether or not the petitioner is responsible for  child  support
  obligations;   (d)   whether  or  not  the  petitioner's  child  support
  obligations have been satisfied and are up to date; (e) the amount of  a
  child  support  arrearage  that  currently is outstanding along with the
  identity of the court which issued the  support  order  and  the  county
  child  support  collections  unit;  (f) whether or not the petitioner is
  responsible for spousal support obligations;  (g)  whether  or  not  the
  petitioner's  spousal support obligations have been satisfied and are up
  to date; and (h) the amount of spousal support arrearage that  currently
  is  outstanding  along  with  the identity of the court which issued the
  support order.
    2. If the petitioner stands convicted of a violent felony  offense  as
  defined in section 70.02 of the penal law or a felony defined in article
  one  hundred  twenty-five of such law or any of the following provisions
  of such law sections 130.25, 130.30,  130.40,  130.45,  255.25,  255.26,
  255.27, article two hundred sixty-three, 135.10, 135.25, 230.05, 230.06,
  subdivision  two  of section 230.30 or 230.32, and is currently confined
  as an inmate  in  any  correctional  facility  or  currently  under  the
  supervision  of  the department of corrections and community supervision
  or a county probation department as a result  of  such  conviction,  the
  petition  shall for each such conviction specify such felony conviction,
  the date of such conviction or convictions, and the court in which  such
  conviction or convictions were entered.
    3.  Upon  all  applications  for change of name by persons born in the
  state of New York, there shall be annexed  to  such  petition  either  a
  birth  certificate or a certified transcript thereof or a certificate of
  the commissioner or local board of health that none is available.

  S 62. Notice. 1. If the petition be to change the name of an infant,
  notice of the time and  place  when  and  where  the  petition  will  be
  presented must be served, in like manner as a notice of a motion upon an
  attorney  in  an action, upon (a) both parents of the infant, if they be
  living, unless the petition be made by one of the parents, in which case
  notice must be served upon the other, if he or she be  living,  and  (b)
  the  general guardian or guardian of the person, if there be one. But if
  any of the persons, required to be given notice by this section,  reside
  without the state, then the notice required by this section must be sent
  by registered mail to the last known address of the person to be served.
  If it appears to the satisfaction of the court that a person required to
  be  given  notice  by  this section cannot be located with due diligence
  within the state, and that such person has no known address without  the
  state,  then  the court may dispense with notice or require notice to be
  given to such persons and in such manner as the court thinks proper.
    2. If the petition be  to  change  the  name  of  a  person  currently
  confined  as  an  inmate in any correctional facility or currently under
  the  supervision  of  the  department  of  corrections   and   community
  supervision or a county probation department as a result of a conviction
  for  a  violent  felony offense as defined in section 70.02 of the penal
  law or a felony defined in article one hundred twenty-five of  such  law
  or  any of the following provisions of such law sections 130.25, 130.30,
  130.40, 130.45, 255.25, 255.26, 255.27, article two hundred sixty-three,
  135.10, 135.25, 230.05, 230.06, subdivision two  of  section  230.30  or
  230.32, notice of the time and place when and where the petition will be
  presented  shall  be served, in like manner as a notice of a motion upon
  an attorney in an action, upon the district attorney of every county  in
  which  such  person has been convicted of such felony and upon the court
  or courts in which the sentence for such felony was  entered.  Unless  a
  shorter  period  of  time  is ordered by the court, said notice shall be
  served upon each such district attorney and court  or  courts  not  less
  than  sixty  days prior to the date on which such petition is noticed to
  be heard.

  S 63. Order.  If  the  court  to  which the petition is presented is
  satisfied  thereby,  or  by  the  affidavit  and  certificate  presented
  therewith,  that  the  petition is true, and that there is no reasonable
  objection to the change of name proposed, and  if  the  petition  be  to
  change  the  name of an infant, that the interests of the infant will be
  substantially promoted by the change, the  court  shall  make  an  order
  authorizing  the petitioner to assume the name proposed. The order shall
  further recite the date and place of birth of the applicant and, if  the
  applicant  was born in the state of New York, such order shall set forth
  the number of his birth certificate or  that  no  birth  certificate  is
  available.  The  order shall be directed to be entered and the papers on
  which it was granted to be filed prior to  the  publication  hereinafter
  directed  in  the  clerk's  office of the county in which the petitioner
  resides if he be an individual, or in the office of  the  clerk  of  the
  civil  court of the city of New York if the order be made by that court.
  Such order shall also direct the  publication,  at  least  once,  within
  sixty  days  after the making of the order, in a designated newspaper in
  the county in which the order is directed  to  be  entered  and  if  the
  petition  is  made  by a person subject to the provisions of subdivision
  two of section sixty-two of this article, in a designated  newspaper  in
  any  county  wherein  such  person  was  convicted if different from the
  county in which the order is otherwise directed  to  be  entered,  of  a
  notice  in substantially the following form: Notice is hereby given that
  an order entered by the ............ court,............ county,  on  the
  ......  day  of......., bearing Index Number..........., a copy of which
  may  be  examined   at   the   office   of   the   clerk,   located   at
  .................,  in room number......., grants me the right to assume
  the name of ...................   The  city  and  state  of  my  present
  address  are  .........................;  the month and year of my birth
  are ................; the place of my birth is ....................;  my
  present name is .................................

  S 64.  Effect.  If the order shall be fully complied with, and within
  ninety days  after  the  making  of  the  order,  an  affidavit  of  the
  publication  thereof  shall be filed in the office in which the order is
  entered, the petitioner shall be known by  the  name  which  is  thereby
  authorized  to  be  assumed.  If  the  surname of a parent be changed as
  provided in this article, any minor child of such parent at the time  of
  such change may thereafter assume such changed surname.
    Upon  compliance with the order and the filing of the affidavit of the
  publication, as provided in this section, the  clerk  of  the  court  in
  which  the  order has been entered shall certify that the order has been
  complied with; and, if the petition states that  the  petitioner  stands
  convicted of a violent felony offense as defined in section 70.02 of the
  penal law or a felony defined in article one hundred twenty-five of such
  law  or  any  of  the  following provisions of such law sections 130.25,
  130.30, 130.40, 130.45, 255.25,  255.26,  255.27,  article  two  hundred
  sixty-three,  135.10, 135.25, 230.05, 230.06, subdivision two of section
  230.30 or 230.32, such clerk (1) shall deliver, by first class  mail,  a
  copy  of  such  certified  order  to  the  division  of criminal justice
  services at its office in the county of Albany and (2) upon the clerk of
  the court reviewing the petitioner's application  for  name  change  and
  subsequent in-court inquiry, may, in the clerk's discretion, deliver, by
  first class mail, the petitioner's new name with such certified order to
  the court of competent jurisdiction which imposed the orders of support.
  Such  certification  shall  appear  on  the  original  order  and on any
  certified copy thereof and shall be entered in the  clerk's  minutes  of
  the proceeding.

  S 64-a. Exemption from publication requirements. 1. If the court shall
  find  that  the  publication  of  an  applicant's  change  of name would
  jeopardize such applicant's personal safety, the provisions of  sections
  sixty-three  and  sixty-four of this article requiring publication shall
  be waived and shall be inapplicable. The court shall order  the  records
  of  such  change  of  name proceeding to be sealed, to be opened only by
  order of the court for good  cause  shown  or  at  the  request  of  the
  applicant.
    2.  Notwithstanding any other provision of law, pending such a finding
  in subdivision one where an applicant seeks relief under  this  section,
  the court shall immediately order the applicant's current name, proposed
  new name, residential and business addresses, telephone numbers, and any
  other  information contained in any pleadings or papers submitted to the
  court to be safeguarded and sealed in order to prevent their inadvertent
  or unauthorized use or disclosure while the matter is pending.

  S 65. Optional change of name upon marriage, divorce or annulment. 1.
  Any person may, upon marriage, elect to assume a new name  according  to
  the provisions of paragraph (b) of subdivision one of section fifteen of
  the domestic relations law.
    2.  Any person may, upon divorce or annulment, elect to resume the use
  of a former surname according to the provisions of section  two  hundred
  forty-a of the domestic relations law.
    3.  The  effect  of  the  name  changes  accomplished  in  the  manner
  prescribed in subdivisions one and two of this section shall be  as  set
  forth in section sixty-four of this chapter.
    4. Nothing in this article shall be construed to abrogate or alter the
  common  law  right of every person, whether married or single, to retain
  his or her name or to assume a new one so long as the new name  is  used
  consistently and without intent to defraud.
    5.  Notwithstanding any inconsistent provision of law, the state shall
  not impose any fee, charge, surcharge or assessment solely to change the
  surname  contained  on  a  license,  permit,   registration   or   other
  identifying  document  for  a person who, because of a change in marital
  status, has assumed a new name or reassumes use of a former  surname  as
  provided for in this section.

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