Name change of minor for closure

Hi my children and I would like to change our last names. I left my DV marriage 7+ years ago. We moved (with permission from the court in another state) 6+ years ago. The kids have had zero contact with him by choice. He was given supervised visits and allowed weekly phone calls and never did anything to communicate with them. I do not have a phone number or address as his last known address in court was the home we owned and sold 7+ years ago. I looked up the nc law for changing a minors name and to me this meets abandonment. Child support is paid but it is a garnishment. He doesn’t choose to pay it. It had to be garnished because he refused to pay it until the garnishment. Kids haven’t had communication in any form with him since they were 1 & 4 years old. I have kept the last name to have the same with the kids… does this seem like it is possible to achieve? I feel like it offers us all closure. They have a stepparent whose name they would like to have. We are recently married but he has been in their lives for 4 years now.

You can easily changed your name due to your recent marriage.

For the children’s last names, you will need the father’s consent to change their names. A minor’s name change is a proceeding handled with the Clerk of Court, and the father must be served with each petition to change their names.

You may be able to have the father’s parental rights terminated for abandonment of the children, and the child support would stop if the termination was granted. This would allow your husband to adopt the children and/or change their last names. A termination of parental rights proceeding is held before a district court judge and the father must also be served. Service by publication is an option if you have used due diligence to locate his current address and cannot find it.


Anna Ayscue

Attorney with Rosen Law Firm Cary • Chapel Hill • Durham • Raleigh • Wake Forest

Rosen Online | Unlimited confidential access to a North Carolina attorney for $199/mo - click here

The response posted above is based upon the limited factual information made available and is not intended as a full and complete response to the question. The only reliable manner to obtain complete and adequate legal advice is to consult with an attorney, fully explain your situation, and allow the attorney sufficient opportunity to research the applicable law and facts required to render an accurate opinion. The basic information provided above is intended as a public service only, a full discussion with an attorney should be undertaken before taking any action. The information posted on this forum is available for public viewing and is not intended to create an attorney client relationship with any individual. These answers are provided for informational purposes only, a person should consult with their own individual legal counsel before taking any action that could affect their legal rights or obligations.

Thanks this is what I had thought. If there is no known way to contact him how can I have him notified or served to change their names? Send it to last known address?

The kids and I don’t want different names from one another. Also, due to DV giving him “control” again to ask to change is sort of terrifying. All I know I can do is to send it to the last known address filed with the court. Would that work? Is that ok?

You can’t simply mail court documents to his last known address because unless he signs for it or he is personally served by a sheriff’s deputy in that county, then it will not be deemed as proper service.

You can serve by publication if you’ve done due diligence to locate his current address and you cannot find it. Service by publication is a legal ad in a newspaper in the area of his last known address. However, you must be able to document your due diligence efforts and certain affidavits must be filed at the courthouse to show that you have met each of the service by publication statutory requirements.


Anna Ayscue

Attorney with Rosen Law Firm Cary • Chapel Hill • Durham • Raleigh • Wake Forest

Rosen Online | Unlimited confidential access to a North Carolina attorney for $199/mo - click here

The response posted above is based upon the limited factual information made available and is not intended as a full and complete response to the question. The only reliable manner to obtain complete and adequate legal advice is to consult with an attorney, fully explain your situation, and allow the attorney sufficient opportunity to research the applicable law and facts required to render an accurate opinion. The basic information provided above is intended as a public service only, a full discussion with an attorney should be undertaken before taking any action. The information posted on this forum is available for public viewing and is not intended to create an attorney client relationship with any individual. These answers are provided for informational purposes only, a person should consult with their own individual legal counsel before taking any action that could affect their legal rights or obligations.