My question involves name change laws in the State of: Texas
My mother and I are headed to Europe for a trip we have had planned for some time. We set out to apply for our passports by requesting our certified copies of our birth certificates, I received mine from the state I was born in, however, when my mother requested hers, the office of vital statistics informed her that they could not issue her one because on her birth certificate it lists her first name as baby girl. Her name was never added to her birth certificate. She has a record of live birth from the hospital, however, there are two errors on it, her mother's first name was spelled incorrectly and her father's city of birth is listed but it has the wrong state on it. Her mother requested her birth certificate to amend the record of live birth and it appears that her name is not on her birth certificate either, apparently the hospital they both were born in (same one) was in the habit of filing the birth certificates without adding the Christian names to them once the child was named.
We have applied to the head office over the town one for the certified copy, and after holding it for three weeks they sent it all back to us stating that because her name is not on it, they would not release the copy without her name on it. They said they need an affidavit of some sort from a family member stating she was alive when she was a child or something. They want shot records, report cards, something to prove she is who she says she is. What we don't understand is she has a social security card, has paid taxes for over 40 years, collects social security, has a driver's license, got married all in her name, the one on her certificate of live birth, yet she can not get a birth certificate....
We are about 2 months out from our trip and now we are waiting on some form to come from social security.....
I am under the impression just to get her name amended or added to her birth certificate, she has to have a court order, am I right, or is there another way, this trip has been paid for, for quite some time and there was never any reason for her or I to think that she could not obtain a passport to leave the country....its almost like she doesn't exist.....
Can you adivise me as to how we proceed, trying to weed through all this with her is really confusing.
Thanks,
Europebound......well we hope!

