Changing a childs name -Help needed.

vippymini

Dont know if this is any help , but i changed my eldest surname twice, i never married her dad evengh though hes on the birth cert and she was registered in his name. i just went down to the solicter asked them to change the name , they did it all in a 10 min appoint ment and cost me £20.. didnt need to ask the father or explain why.

helpme!_4

hi, hope someone will know something about this. My ohs ex whom he has a child of 8 with has informed him she has changed his sons surname to hers from his. She said she has already done this through a solicitor and apparantly no-one needs his permission to do this. He has given in and said theres nothing he can do about it but i can see that he is heartbroken and although its nothing to do with me im quite angry that she has done this/has been allowed to do it. Does anyone else think this is wrong?

hayleyjg

Does your ohs have Parental Responsibility for his son? A child's name cannot be changed without the consent of all who have PR for the child. There have been a number of cases in the courts where Mum's have changed children's surnames without consent and the Mum have been ordered to change the name back to the original. The Court takes a dim view of changing a child's surname even where the dad has little contact with the child.

gettingitsorted

ok from what i know from my own situation yes you can change the childs surname unless the father has joint parental responsability through a court then the mother must get the fathers permission .

helpme!_4

hi, thanks, that was really quick!! they did not go through a court they have always had an agreement oh has his son every fri,sat,sun. Pays maintenance and have never had any problems until she found out i am now expecting a child. Think this may be why she did it, but its so unfair on OH

thesaint

Although it may be too late with this matter, your partner should still get a Parental responsibility agreement. It doesn't have to go to court if she is in agreement, it can be done through a solicitor.

Even though he doesn't have Parental responsibilty, courts have, and do change back the surname of a child if it is done without consent or consultation of the father. If he has regular contact with the child, it could be the case for your partner.

If she doesn't agree it is quite easy for him to get one through court.

vippymini

gettingitsorted wrote:

ok from what i know from my own situation yes you can change the childs surname unless the father has joint parental responsability through a court then the mother must get the fathers permission .

i agree cause iv changed my daughters name twice once to my maiden name then to my married with a trip to a solicter and £15 and there was no concern about the fathers permission....

comping_cat

http://www.ukdps.co.uk/CanIChangeMyChildrensNames.html

These are the guidelines for changing a childs name.

Was your OH married to his childs mother when the child was born? If so, he would automatically have PR, if he wasnt, and he didnt apply for it in court then he hasnt got it.

Bossyboots

thesaint wrote:

Although it may be too late with this matter, your partner should still get a Parental responsibility agreement. It doesn't have to go to court if she is in agreement, it can be done through a solicitor.

Even though he doesn't have Parental responsibilty, courts have, and do change back the surname of a child if it is done without consent or consultation of the father. If he has regular contact with the child, it could be the case for your partner.

If she doesn't agree it is quite easy for him to get one through court.

You do not need a solicitor to enter into a parental responsibility agreement.

The form and instructions are on the Court Service website. It just needs to be filled in and taken to the local magistrates court with photographic ID for the signatures to be witnessed. It then needs to be lodged at the Principal Registry in London.

dlb

Bossyboots wrote:

You do not need a solicitor to enter into a parental responsibility agreement.

The form and instructions are on the Court Service website. It just needs to be filled in and taken to the local magistrates court with photographic ID for the signatures to be witnessed. It then needs to be lodged at the Principal Registry in London.

Please can you give me a link to this web site. Thanks