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  1. #1
    Join Date
    Apr 2007
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    Garland, Tx
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    Post Changing the Child's Last Name

    My name is Brandi, we live in Texas and I had been married to my husband for 5 yrs, an ex girlfriend of his had a little girl and at the time he had believed that the baby was his. That was almost 7 yrs ago, we had tried several times to get a dna test and she refused to give us one. We never really had any visitation with the child she lives in the state of Alabama(has lived there since the baby was almost 1yrs old) and refused any visitation. The child does carry his last name and he is on the birth certificate and he signed the Acknowledgement of Paternity. In July of 2006 my husband was diagnosed with Cancer and was put on disability. Since he was on the birth certificate we were told that we had to list the child so she could recieve benefits. He passed away on March 14, 2007 and she is recieving survivors benefits now. We have been able to get a dna test done to determine that my husbands mother is of no relation to the child, which obviously means that niether was my husband. We need to find out how to go about getting his named removed from the childs birth certificate, or if that is even possible? We would like to have his last name removed from her as well. We just do not know where to begin.

  2. #2
    Join Date
    Apr 2007
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    Garland, Tx
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    10

    Default Re: Changing the Child's Last Name

    Somebody Please Tell Me If This Is Possible And How I Can Go About Getting This Done....

  3. #3
    Join Date
    Sep 2005
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    Default Re: Changing the Child's Last Name

    Quote Quoting brandi9745
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    We need to find out how to go about getting his named removed from the childs birth certificate, or if that is even possible?
    It is highly unlikely that it is possible. I don't know of a way.
    Quote Quoting brandi9745
    We would like to have his last name removed from her as well.
    You have no control over the child's name.

  4. #4
    Join Date
    Apr 2007
    Location
    Garland, Tx
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    10

    Default Re: Changing the Child's Last Name

    MRKNOWITALL.... I just wanted to let you know that I did some research and it IS possible, we will have to pittition the courts and since he is not her biological father and never had a relationship with the child we can have his name removed and his last name. But thanks anyways for your info.

  5. #5
    Join Date
    Jul 2006
    Location
    TN
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    699

    Default Re: Changing the Child's Last Name

    Quote Quoting brandi9745
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    MRKNOWITALL.... I just wanted to let you know that I did some research and it IS possible, we will have to pittition the courts and since he is not her biological father and never had a relationship with the child we can have his name removed and his last name. But thanks anyways for your info.
    While you may be able to have his name removed from the bc, I seriously doubt that you would be able to change the child's last name. The child can have any name the mother wishes and since she has lived with the name for this long and identifies with it, I don't believe a judge would order that it be changed.

  6. #6
    Join Date
    Apr 2007
    Location
    Garland, Tx
    Posts
    10

    Default Re: Changing the Child's Last Name

    That might be the case in a different situation, but since the child has 3 siblings and now we know that they all share the same father, we are going to be able to get her named changed to her biological fathers name. She is one of the middle children and she is the only one with a different last name. In the best interestr of the child she will be better off having her fathers last name just like her brothers and sisters. It will stop all of the questions that they have all been asking, Like " why do I have a different name?" and " They arent my brothers and sister because my name is different" In the state of Texas it is possible!!

  7. #7
    Join Date
    Jul 2006
    Location
    TN
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    699

    Default Re: Changing the Child's Last Name

    Quote Quoting brandi9745
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    That might be the case in a different situation, but since the child has 3 siblings and now we know that they all share the same father, we are going to be able to get her named changed to her biological fathers name. She is one of the middle children and she is the only one with a different last name. In the best interestr of the child she will be better off having her fathers last name just like her brothers and sisters. It will stop all of the questions that they have all been asking, Like " why do I have a different name?" and " They arent my brothers and sister because my name is different" In the state of Texas it is possible!!
    Again, you cannot get anything done. IF the mother agrees that it is in the best interest of the child to change the last name then fine, she may have a good chance at it. However you cannot make her if she does not want to. It is her child.

  8. #8
    Join Date
    Apr 2007
    Location
    Garland, Tx
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    10

    Default Re: Changing the Child's Last Name

    Quote Quoting Neal1421
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    Again, you cannot get anything done. IF the mother agrees that it is in the best interest of the child to change the last name then fine, she may have a good chance at it. However you cannot make her if she does not want to. It is her child.
    In the state of TN maybe not, but according to the Attorney Generals office of Tx, since her biological father is wanting to have visitation rights a Judge WILL make her change the name. IF the biological fathers name is placed on the birth certificate

  9. #9
    Join Date
    Feb 2007
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    2,031

    Default Re: Changing the Child's Last Name

    Quote Quoting brandi9745
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    In the state of TN maybe not, but according to the Attorney Generals office of Tx, since her biological father is wanting to have visitation rights a Judge WILL make her change the name. IF the biological fathers name is placed on the birth certificate
    Post a link to that. Because I have never heard of a Judge forcing a name change unless the one of the parents want it. And after the child has had the name for this long generally the order would be a hyphenating of her name....ie...Sally Smith-Jones.

  10. #10
    Join Date
    Sep 2005
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    Default Re: Changing the Child's Last Name

    If the mother wants to name her child Rumpelstiltskin, that's her right. You can do whatever you want to try to do in relation to paternity, but you cannot force her to change the child's last name. It's not your child, and it's none of your business.

    If you are confusing matters by suggesting that somebody you believe to be the father, but who has never previously bothered to try to establish paternity, is now going to petition the court for a declaration of paternity and a name chage, that's a different matter entirely. And changing the subject doesn't make us wrong - it just means that you changed the subject, but remain wrong on the legal issue we were addressing.

    Beyond that, not that you would know, the statute underlying your conception that this person may bring a paternity action provides,
    Quote Quoting Sec.A160.607. Time Limitation: Child Having Presumed Father.
    (a) Except as otherwise provided by Subsection (b), a proceeding brought by a presumed father, the mother, or another individual to adjudicate the parentage of a child having a presumed father shall be commenced not later than the fourth anniversary of the date of the birth of the child.

    (b) proceeding seeking to disprove the father-child relationship between a child and the child’s presumed father may be maintained at any time if the court determines that:
    (1) the presumed father and the mother of the child did not live together or engage in sexual intercourse with each other during the probable time of conception; and

    (2) the presumed father never represented to others that the child was his own.
    You've admitted that your husband had reason to believe that he was the father by virtue of his sexual relationship with the mother. You state that, when voluntarily acknowledging his paternity by affidavit, "at the time he had believed that the baby was his." You suggest that he had some subsequent visitation with the child. You apparently had recent access due to his continued assertion of his parental rights, during which you took a DNA sample for testing. So that pretty much rules out the notion that he never represented to others that the child was his. Obviously we're past the child's fourth birthday. So... the person you believe to be the father has quite the uphill battle on his hands.

    Beyond that, for changing the child's name,
    Quote Quoting Texas Code Sec. 160.636. Order Adjudicating Parentage; Costs.
    (e) On request of a party and for good cause shown, the court may order that the name of the child be changed.
    That's pretty clear, isn't it, that the court does not automatically change the child's name.

    If you have any actual legal authorities to share which would affect the application of these statutes, please do share them.

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