Name change question with possible alias involved

General Name Discussion
1

No idea if any of you can offer any advice, or if this is the right place to post this. In late [name]January[/name], I decided to change my surname (first and middle aren’t being touched, and I’ve discussed it at length here if anyone wants more background Nameberry - Welcome to the Nameberry Forums).

It’s a very long, complicated story, but as simply as possible, my birth surname was changed when I was 12 years old to my mother’s 2nd husband’s surname. I’ve only every used that name since. All official records except my birth certificate are under the name my mother changed it to.

The problem is, the US State I’m currently residing in doesn’t recognize that as my legal name. They say my birth name is my legal name, and I’ve been using an alias my whole life. The federal government (Social Security and IRS) says the second surname is my legal name.

I’m in a pretty desperate situation right now. My ID expired in the middle of trying to take care of all this. I have no other form of identification. DMV won’t issue me a new card until I can prove my birth certificate and SS card belong to me. Social Security won’t even let me in the front door without a government issued ID card! I can’t go through the courts to change my name without showing ID proving I am who I say I am. I feel like a hamster spinning around getting nowhere. The State I live in is Alaska, I can’t even travel to the rest of the United States without an ID!

I doubt anyone can offer any advice, but this is so over my head I can’t even begin to process what my next step should be. I can’t afford a lawyer, which is what SS told me to do. Social Security was able to give my boyfriend a piece of paper stating the card belonged to me, but that’s not the issue. I need proof that the name on the card was changed, which they have verified it was, but they say there’s nothing they can give me stating that.

Any lawyers out there? Or someone who may have dealt with a similar situation. All I can do is cry, or get angry that I’ve been put in this situation by an idealistic mother who thought her children should have her new husband’s last name. I don’t know what to do, and nobody I talk to can offer me helpful advice. I’ve gone to the courts and social security multiple times and been told I’m going to need identification. I’ve gone to DMV multiple times and been told I need a court order stating the name was changed. I feel like I’m going insane.

2

When you were 12, how did your mother go about changing the name? What documentation did she file, and where, and with whom?

3

It was through SS. She used a letter from my school stating I’d been going by that name for a number of years (which was true). Also, my birth father’s parental rights had been terminated, so she had sole decision making power. It wasn’t done through the courts, I’ve spent months going through the records division of every court in the county I grew up in. This was in 1993.

4

If she changed with SS, you should have gotten a new SS card (I got a new one when I changed my last name when I got married). You should be able to request a duplicate if you or your mother dont have it (but don’t know if that is the issue with SS needing an ID since yours expired). If you have the SS card, you should be able to use another form of ID with your name besides your birth certificate, I believe, to get a new State ID

5

The issue is my birth certificate and my SS card have different names, and there’s no paper trail to prove they both belong to me. I don’t understand why SS can’t give me something stating the name was changed when I was a child, but they won’t. All they can give me is a piece of paper saying the SS number belongs to me, which isn’t the issue really, it’s the two different names. I got a free consultation with a lawyer and he basically said I’ve been using an alias according to the laws of my current State, but I don’t know what to do now and certainly can’t afford to hire the lawyer. Again, federal government says the name on my SS card is legal, Alaska says name on my birth certificate is legal. Oi. What a headache.

I knew it was a long shot asking on a name forum, but I had to try. :slight_smile:

6

It sounds like Alaska is right-- since your name wasn’t formally changed through the courts, your current redwoodfey name ([name]Erica[/name]?) is legally an alias.

Is it an option to legally file name change paperwork with Alaska to your desired name? [name]Do[/name] you still have your birth certificate (i.e. a paper copy in your current possession?). For all the “current legal name” stuff use your birth name.

http://courts.alaska.gov/shcname.htm

Once Alaska grants the new name change, get your birth certificate re-issued. Then go to SS/DMV and start piecing together all the daily life documentation we all need.