Kentucky Name Change Petition

Introduction

Key Things to Know

1. 1

   A name change petition is the court document an adult files to legally change their own name; when the judge enters the order, that new name becomes your legal name.

2. 2

   You file the petition in the District Court of the county where you live (Kentucky Revised Statutes Section 401.010). A person living on a United States Army post, military reservation, or fort may file in the District Court of an adjacent county.

3. 3

   Kentucky does not require newspaper publication of an adult name change. Section 401.010 sets the entire adult procedure and contains no publication requirement, so you do not publish notice in a newspaper.

4. 4

   You must be at least 18 to use this adult process, and you file in the county where you reside; Kentucky sets no fixed number of months you must have lived there before filing (Kentucky Revised Statutes Section 401.010).

5. 5

   For safety, the court may order the name-change record sealed or otherwise restricted from public inspection, in which case the order is not certified to the county clerk for the public record (Kentucky Revised Statutes Section 401.040).

6. 6

   After the order is entered, the clerk certifies a copy to the county clerk for record and the county clerk keeps an alphabetical index of the change (Section 401.040); the order is also entered on the court's order book (Section 401.030).

7. 7

   Order certified copies of the order from the clerk to update Social Security, your Kentucky driver license or ID, your passport, and other records. The filing fee is set by the court and a fee waiver is available if you cannot afford it.

Kentucky Requirements for Name Change Petition

• District Court in Your County of Residence

  An adult name change in Kentucky is filed in the District Court of the county in which the petitioner resides. Any person at least 18 years of age may have their name changed by the District Court of the county in which they reside (Kentucky Revised Statutes Section 401.010).

• Age, Residency, and the Military Option

  You must be at least 18 and file in the District Court of the county where you reside; Kentucky sets no fixed durational residency period (Kentucky Revised Statutes Section 401.010). A person residing on a United States Army post, military reservation, or fort may file in the District Court of any adjacent county.

• No Newspaper Publication Required

  Kentucky does not require newspaper publication of an adult name change. Kentucky Revised Statutes Section 401.010 sets the entire adult procedure and contains no publication requirement, so the petition is filed without publishing notice in a newspaper.

• Present Name and Proposed New Name

  The petition should state your present legal name, your place of birth, and the exact new name you are requesting, so the District Court can change the name from the present name to the proposed name in its order (Kentucky Revised Statutes Section 401.010 and Section 401.030).

• Reason for the Change

  State the reason for the requested name change. Kentucky Revised Statutes Section 401.010 lets an adult change their name through the District Court for a lawful reason; the court enters the order changing the name.

• Good Faith and No Fraud

  State that the change is made in good faith and not to defraud a creditor, evade a legal obligation, judgment, or criminal record, or for any unlawful purpose. A court will not aid a name change sought for a fraudulent or unlawful purpose.

• Confidentiality for Safety

  If confidentiality is needed for safety, ask the court to seal or otherwise restrict the record from public inspection; when the court does so, the order is not certified to the county clerk for the public record (Kentucky Revised Statutes Section 401.040(1)(a)).

• Recording and Certified Copies

  After the order is entered, the clerk certifies a copy to the county clerk for record and the county clerk keeps an alphabetical index of the change (Kentucky Revised Statutes Section 401.040); the order is entered on the court order book (Section 401.030). Order certified copies to update Social Security, your Kentucky driver license or ID, your passport, and other records. The filing fee is set by the court and a fee waiver is available.