Can my husband's ex-wife legally continue to use his last name?

Full question:

My husband's ex-wife remarried and legally changed her name to her new husbands. They seperated and she started using my husband's last name again on the legal documents she was signing. The ex-wife is a closing agent for a title company and renewed her notary stamp with my husband's (her ex-husbands)last name. Looking at notary laws and her application she had to use her 'legal name' to fill it out which she did not. She was still married, and had not asked the court to grant her a name change, or changed any of her identification back to our last name. In December we bought her share of a business that she started with my husband where she signed all of the legal documents as her then married name and showed identification proving who she was. Again this did not match our name. I am a real estate broker and some realtors in our office have used her as their closing agent. On the deeds she notarizes the signature of the buyer with our last name, witnesses in her married name, and fills out the area where is says: This document is prepared by: using her maiden name. She recently got divorced and asked the court restore her maiden name, not my husband's name. She is still using her notary stamp in our married name and signing documents using three different names. Is this legal? Can any of these deeds be found Fraudulent? Can a person use different names on documents that require 'legal name use'?

• Category: Name Change
• Date: 04/07/2025
• State: National

Answer:

If she has been restored in the divorce to her married name, that would be her legal name. However, rules vary by entity on when you are required to advise the entity of a name change. Some changes are not required to be reported until the relevant license, etc. is renewed.

For example, the following is a portion of a Florida statute governing notaries:

Any notary public who lawfully changes his or her name shall, within 60 days after such change, request an amended commission from the Secretary of State and shall send $25, his or her current commission, and a notice of change form, obtained from the Secretary of State, which shall include the new name and contain a specimen of his or her official signature. The Secretary of State shall issue an amended commission to the notary public in the new name. A rider to the notary public's bond must accompany the notice of change form. After submitting the required notice of change form and rider to the Secretary of State, the notary public may continue to perform notarial acts in his or her former name for 60 days or until receipt of the amended commission, whichever date is earlier.