Name Change

I signed my divorce papers on November 29th and am curious as to whether I can change my name back to my traditional family's last name which is slightly different from my maiden name. When my family came to this country, the first two letters of the last name were "dropped," and I would like those two letters back when I change my last name back to my maiden name. How would I go about doing this?

My twelve year old son's biological father has been incarcerated for the majority of his life. I have provided for my son for nine years with little to no child support (no more than 1000 dollars) from the father. There is no steady contact from his father and he has expressed no interest in his son's life. My twelve year old would like to take on my last name to be recognized as my son, in the public eye for all legal and non-legal purposes. Can my wife and I have his name changed without his father's consent?

My son resides with me full time. His father has only seen him twice in six years. Is there any way to have my son's legal name changed to be the same as mine since his real father is not involved in his life?

I was separated and had a child that was not the product of my marriage. The state of New Jersey required that the child have my last name. Since I was not legally divorced, the child had to take my now ex-husband's last name. What documents do I need to change the child's last name to the biological father's name or my maiden name. The child is 13.