(0:00 – 0:14)
Hi everyone, I’m Dr. Michael Mantell. Welcome to another Family Law Matters with Bonnie Rabinovitch Mantel, who is the owner and managing partner of the Primus Family Law Group. Hi Bonnie.

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Hi Michael, how are you doing today? I’m doing very well, thank you. Bonnie, in today’s world, people are changing genders, they are changing their names for a variety of reasons, and these sometimes, and oftentimes I imagine, impact legal documents that people have or will have. And as a family law attorney, you do work with people who have questions about this.

(0:42 – 0:55)
Let’s talk a little bit about this. Talk about the impact of a name change on legal documentation. Well, the purpose of changing your name is so that you are obviously legally going to be known as a new name.

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So what we offer is we’re able to get you the certified decrees that you need to then take to Social Security, DMV, and anywhere else, banks, where you want to change your name. And obviously that could involve a lot of documents, bank documents, wills if you’ve got them, trust documents. You know, when you change your name, you’re changing your whole identity to something that you’re choosing it to be.

(1:21 – 1:51)
So we try to pave that process and allow you to get as many certified copies as you need once you go through the process to take them to all the different institutions to legally change your name. And is this a difficult process? Is this a very involved process? Actually, it’s not. If it’s a uncontested name change, you’re an adult, nobody’s telling you what to do, then it’s really can happen like very quickly.

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We turn them around in about 30 to 45 days. And that is including the court’s time to process the decree. There’s a publication requirement because we have to find out if anybody does object.

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It’s usually just formality and we do it fairly often. For young people who are in a situation where they’re transitioning, gender transition, you said something about, you used the word adult. Let’s define that age.

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Well, if a parent wants to change their child’s name because of a transition before and the child’s not yet 18, it is still an uncontested name change or an uncontested gender marker because the parents are doing this with the child. If it was going to be somebody who’s doing it on their own, they need to be 18 to do it. 18, that’s what I was wondering about.

(2:48 – 2:58)
Yes. I appreciate the clarity of your straightforward answers. And I’m sure people who will be in touch with you will appreciate the straightforward clarity of your answers as well.

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And if people do wanna be in touch with you, how can they reach you? Well, they can reach us directly at 619-574-8000 and you will get on a calendar for a free 30 minute phone consultation to see how we can help you. Or you can reach us online at www.primusfamilylaw.com. And there’s a form to fill out and you can get on a calendar for a free 30 minute consultation.