Full question:
My husband was adopted by his stepfather when he was very young. He went to live with his biological father as a teenager. His biological father told him that he had his name changed back to his original birthname.My husband has been going by his biological last name for over 35 years. He applied for his birth certificate to get his passport and found out his biological father never changed his last name back to his biological last name. What do we need to do now to get this straight and so he is legal to use jis original biological last name? He has been filing taxes,has sscard and drivers license in his biological last name. We have a mess.I have contacted the Horry County courthouse where the adoption took place and they have no records of the adoption but his birth certificate in VA has his adopted name.
- Category: Name Change
- Date:
- State: South Carolina
Answer:
In South Carolina, there are two ways to change a birth certificate. First, contact the South Carolina Department of Health and Environmental Control (DHEC) to see if they will change the name based on evidence of use, like a driver's license or social security card. They may also require an affidavit from your husband's adopted parents or biological father. Second, you can obtain a court order for a name change. The court procedure for this is outlined below.
To amend the birth certificate, include a request for this in your name change petition. You may need to make DHEC a party to the proceedings if you're asking for a birth certificate change as part of the name change.
According to South Carolina law (S.C. Code § 15-49), a person can petition a family court judge for a name change, providing reasons, age, residence, and the desired name. If a parent seeks to change a minor child's name, they must name the other parent unless waived by the court. The court will appoint a guardian ad litem to represent the child. The petition will be granted if it serves the child's best interest.
Petition requirements include a fingerprint and criminal background check, a screening statement from the Department of Social Services regarding child abuse, an affidavit about child support or alimony obligations, and a screening statement from the sex offender registry. The court may hold a hearing on the petition, and the judge will decide based on the petition's reasons and documentation.
All costs related to this process are the petitioner's responsibility (S.C. Code § 15-49-30). After a name change, the person can sue and be sued under the new name (S.C. Code § 15-49-40).
This content is for informational purposes only and is not legal advice. Legal statutes mentioned reflect the law at the time the content was written and may no longer be current. Always verify the latest version of the law before relying on it.