(trans)prose

I had originally thought that I would be able to pick up the forms to file for a name change at my county’s courthouse. Wrong. They couldn’t even suggest where I could find those forms. My understanding is that this is because employees of the court are unable to offer anything that could possibly be construed as “legal advice”. My suspicion is that this is to discourage pro se representation. Like many people seeking name changes, I am unable to afford a lawyer; even if I could, a legal name change is a fairly simple process, even with these procedural hurdles.

After some extensive searching, I came across a free Family Law resource from the Legal Aid Society of Orange County. The online application took me step-by-step through the process of filling out and filing for a name change in my state. I was surprised to come across this free resource, since most others I found cost at least $50.

The Forms:

The first form was the “Petition To Change Name (Of An Adult)”. I filled out my then legal name, some personal information (address, phone number, county of residence, etc.), and my new name. Then, I was asked to provide the reason I sought a name change. I stated that I had used my new name professionally and personally for over two years, and that I am changing my name to conform to common use. To my knowledge, there is no reason to mention gender identity or transition status in your petition. Then, I certified that I was not changing my name with the intent to defrauding another of any rights (namely, the right to any money that I owe them) by signing and dating the form.

The next form was the “Verification”, in which one of the court’s notary publics would confirm that I had appeared in court on that date, swearing under oath that the information I presented in my petition was correct. I filled out the name and date in advance, but I was to wait and sign the “Verification” in front of the notary.

Then, I filled out the “Notice Of Petition To Change Name”. This was the text of the ad I would have to run in my county’s newspaper. This legal notice had to be published in the court-approved newspaper once a week for 4 weeks. I provided my then legal name, the date I filed my petition, and my new name. The ad also instructed anyone who wanted to object to my name change to appear in court within 30 days of my filing.

Finally, I filled out the “Final Decree Changing The Name Of An Adult”. This would be the Court Order changing my name, in which the judge asserts that everything appears to have been in order, my ad ran for a month, and there have been no objections filed. It decrees that my name shall be changed from my old name to my new name (I filled out my old and new name in the blanks), and that I’m not allowed to use the name change to defraud anybody of their rights. There was a space for the judge to date and sign the decree. According to the folks working in the Superior Court Clerk’s office, this saved me a good bit of time in the end, since the judge only had to sign the document.

The Legwork:

In late March, I brought all four of those forms to my county courthouse and went upstairs to the Clerk of Courts (which, apparently, is the same thing as the Superior Court Clerk). A notary looked over everything, confirmed that everything looked in order, and put it all in a folder. She signed my “Verification” form, and then I paid her $82–$80 for court filing fees and $2 for the notary. I was told to call back in about a week (they were busy) to get my case number.

A week later, I called and got my case number. Then, I realized that I’d left my “Notice Of Petition To Change Name” with the notary (I’m not sure whether I was supposed to or not). I printed out a new one, and went off to place my ad in the paper. I was directed to a very nice woman whose entire job seems to be to oversee legal notices. She took my “Notice…” and looked it over to make sure it seemed right, and then directed me to sit in the lobby and wait for her to type it up.

She brought it out after about 15 minutes and asked me to confirm the information, which I did. I probably should’ve looked more closely at the rest of the text because she had actually made a minor typo, but it doesn’t seem to have mattered in the least. I then paid her $80 to run the ad. She wrote the dates during which the ad would run on my copy of the ad. She said that I’d be mailed a “Publisher’s Affidavit” after the ad had run for the last time.

In late April, I received the “Publisher’s Affidavit” in the mail, complete with a little newspaper clipping of my ad. This was to verify for the judge that I had run the ad. I brought it back to the courthouse and dropped it off with another notary at the Clerk of Courts. She told me to call back in a few days to make sure it had all been taken care of. Once that was finished, I could stop by the Clerk’s again, where I could get as many certified copies of my name change decree as I wanted for $2.50 per copy.

I was surprised and pleased to learn that, in my county, a petitioner for a name change is not required to appear before a judge. On April 29th, 2009 my name change was legalized. I paid for 5 notarized copies of the “Final Decree”.

Driver’s License:

On May 5th, 2009, my partner came with me to the county DMV. I brought with me notarized copies of both my surgeon’s letter and my name change. At the desk, one employee looked at my documents to make sure I had all the required documentation. Then, she gave me a paper with a number on it, as well as a form and instructed me to fill it out with my new name, address, and gender.

My number got called before I could even begin filling out the paperwork. The woman at the counter was polite and no-nonsense. I filled out my form while she examined my documents and license. I gave her the completed form and she returned my documents and license. She confirmed my new name and address (thankfully, she never used my old name), gave me back my number and the form (which now had her stamp on it) and told me that my number would be called again in a few minutes, and that when I got my new license, I should double check that everything had been changed correctly before I left.

A couple of minutes later, I was called up to a new desk. A woman asked for my number, my stamped form, and my license. She typed the new information into her computer and told me that my new license would be free. Apparently, in my state, driver’s are allowed one free corrected license. I’m sure it’s typically for address changes, or for name changes due to marriage, but I guess it applies in this instance too. I was told to sit down and my name would be called.

A new picture of me was taken, which surprises me, since I still look like myself, although I was only a few months on testosterone when my last picture was taken. As with all driver’s license pictures since the beginning of time, the camera operator took the picture before I had any idea what was going on. Minutes later, I was leaving the DMV with my new license in hand.

Social Security:

On May 14, I arrived at the Federal Building with my new driver’s license, a notarized copy of the court order for my name change, and my surgeon’s letter. Just in case, I also had brought my original birth certificate and my old social security card. I waited about 20 minutes in the Social Security Administration office, before an older man took me back to his cubicle.

When I said I needed to correct the name and gender on my records, he said “Dare I ask why?” I was very nervous that he would keep me from changing my records. While he was typing in my new information, he asked me personal questions about my transition. I think he noticed that I was uncomfortable, so he assured me that he was asking out of personal curiosity, rather than as an employee of the SSA. I relaxed a bit, and he told me all about that Discovery Health documentary about intersex folks, and his neighbor with prostate cancer that’s on estrogen therapy, and about how brave I am for doing what I’m doing.

Twenty minutes later, he wished me luck, and I left the building. A paper in my new name assured me that my new social security card would arrive within two weeks, and instructed me to destroy the old one upon receipt of the new one.

Selective Service:

People who were assigned female at birth are exempt from registering for the Selective Service. I could have chosen to request a Status Information Letter, which would tell anyone who needed to know (such as some potential employers, or a financial aid office) why I hadn’t registered. This is the only option for trans men who became legally male for selective service purposes after their 26th birthday.

Since I’m still a few years shy of 26, getting an exemption seemed to me a lot of hassle for no reason. On May 15, I visited the Selective Service’s website, and registered. It only took about 30 seconds. On May 30, I got my selective service card in the mail. In the event of a draft, I would be found unfit to serve anyway due to my trans status–which is fine by me.

Birth Certificate & Passport:

I haven’t changed these yet.  To change my birth certificate, I will need to submit copies of my surgeon’s letter and my court order, along with a copy of my social security card, driver’s license, and $25.

I’ve never had a passport, so instead of changing anything, I’ll just be applying for a new passport with only my new information.

Bank:

I had gone in to my bank’s local branch on May 1, 2009 to have my name changed on my accounts. I wanted to change my account information as soon as possible, so that I could have my checks and my debit card be in my new name. This was especially important because I didn’t want to have a bank card that had a girl name on it, and an ID that didn’t match.

I am friendly with the cashiers, and they know my situation. Their procedure had recently changed, and the head cashier could supposedly change my name herself, having seen my court order, without me needing to speak to one of the branch managers. Everything went through, and I went home. I got a call a few hours later from one of the branch managers, who left a message asking me to call back.

Apparently, the maintenance order to change my name was returned. They thought at first that I would have to close all my accounts and re-open them. I was pretty pissed, because I figured that this wouldn’t be happening if I weren’t trans and were just changing my name after a marriage or divorce.

After playing phone tag for a week, I went back into to local branch after work on May 8. I brought my court order and my surgeon’s letter, just in case. This time, she made copies of my new ID and my court order. This way, they could process the change even though I hadn’t changed my social security records yet.

After about a week, I noticed that the correct name was shown on my online banking account. My cards and checks arrived in the mail soon afterwards.

College Transcripts:

On May 19, I went to my former university’s registrar’s office to change my records, and to have a transcript sent to my future school in the correct name. I filled out a small form while one of the Registrar’s employees made a copy of my new ID. He stapled the two together, stuck them in a box, and entered my new information into the computer. After paying for the transcript I requested, he assured me that it’d be sent out tomorrow in my new name. The whole process took about 5 minutes, and it took effect immediately.

Employer & Health Insurance:

I work for one of the largest US corporations, so I had to fill out a form and fax it in to corporate. My name was changed in the system within a week, and they forwarded my updated name and gender to my health insurance, who promptly sent me new ID cards.

Credit Reporting Agencies and Creditors:

I wrote a formal letter to Experian, TransUnion, and Equifax, identifying myself by my old name, my social security number, my birth date, and my address. I gave them my updated information, and a copy of the court order for my name change. Equifax sent a letter to me in return, asking that I provide a copy of a state or federally issued photo ID in my new name, which I sent them. My name was changed on all accounts with no further issue.

I sent the same formal letter (with the minor addition of my account numbers) to my creditors, and my name changed on most of my accounts by the next mailing.

PayPal:

PayPal has an online form for changing the name on my account. I submitted scanned copies of my court order and driver’s license, and my name was changed within a few days.

Utilities:

The Water Business Office made a copy of my new driver’s license and the court order, and my name was changed in their system and I was out the door in less than 5 minutes.