How Do I Get Additional Certified Copies of My Name Change Order in Manhattan

After the judge has signed the name change order and you have filed the required affidavit of publication, in Manhattan,  you can get more certified copies of the name change order at the Civil Court located at 111 Centre Street, NY, NY. 

First go to room 108 on the ground level and speak with the name change clerk.  Bring a copy of the order and advise the clerk that the affidavit of publication was filed and that you want to get more certified copies. 

 The clerk will then make copies and send you up to the 2nd Floor cashier where you will have to pay $6 each certified copy.  You will need to bring exact dollar amounts since the cashier on the  2nd Floor does not provide change and does not accept credit card.  So have a bunch of singles and $5 bills ready in hand. 

Christopher Tompkins is an Attorney that has been handling Legal Name Change Matters for 20 years in New York City frequently practicing in Brooklyn, Queens, The Bronx, and Staten Island  Contact him at 212 962-5363. Email:  NameChangeLawyer@gmail.com.   Visit his website at http://www.ny-legal-name-change-lawyer.com/

How do I get to the Brooklyn Civil Court to File My Name Change Application?

To file a legal name change application in Brooklyn, you must go to the Brooklyn Civil Court house located at 141 Livingston Street, Brooklyn in Downtown Brooklyn near Fulton Street. 

The Brooklyn Civil court is easily accessible by mass transit.

Take the 2,3,4 or 5 train to  Borough Hall Station in Brooklyn on Joralemon Street from Prospect Park, Brooklyn.

Take the 3 train from Canarsie to Borough Hall Station in Brooklyn on Joralemon Street. 

Take the F train to Jay Street-Metrotech in Downtown Brooklyn from Carroll Gardens, Brooklyn,and Red Hook, Brooklyn.

Take the A train from Downtown Brooklyn to Jay Street, Metrotech.

Take the G train to Hoyt and Schermerhorn street from Downtown Brooklyn and Fort Greene, Brooklyn and Williamsburg, Brooklyn.

It is  recommended that you use a legal name change lawyer who practices in Brooklyn to get through the legal name change process.  Christopher Tompkins is a legal name change lawyer who has been practicing in Brooklyn for over 20 years.

Christopher Tompkins is an Attorney that has been handling Legal Name Change Matters for 20 years in New York City frequently practicing in Brooklyn.  Contact him at 212 962-5363. Email:  NameChangeLawyer@gmail.com.   Visit his website at http://www.ny-legal-name-change-lawyer.com/

Publication Requirement in Queens Name Changes Cases

Publication Requirement in Queens Name Changes Cases 

After the name change order is signed in the Queens Civil Court, New York State Law requires the publication of a name change notice in a designated newspaper by the judge at least once, within sixty days after the making of the name change order.  In most cases, this must be done before the name change order can be finalized and certified. 

The newspapers that are used for this purpose are usually under 20 pages in length and have small circulations.  They are usually free or low cost publications  that are found in laundrymats, dry cleaners, supermarkets, candy stores,and on street corners.  In some cases, some form of these publications are also found on line as webpages and pdf files. 

Some common Queens newspapers frequently designated by Queens Civil Court judges for publication of the name change notice are:   Queens Courier, Queens Chronicle, Queens Gazzette,  Queens Ledger, Times Ledger, Ridgewood Times, Fresh Meadows Times, Glendale Reporter, Queens Times, and Queens Examiner. This list is not a completer list. 

The cost for publishing in a designated Queens newspaper ranges from $75 to $150.  

Some judges will designate a newspaper which may be less well known but is located near the community that you live in. 



Christopher Tompkins is an Attorney that has been handling Legal Name Change Matters for 20 years in New York City frequently practicing in Queens.  Contact him at 212 962-5363. Email:  NameChangeLawyer@gmail.com.   Visit his website at http://www.ny-legal-name-change-lawyer.com/

Publication Requirement in Brooklyn Name Changes Cases

Publication Requirement in Brooklyn Name Changes Cases 

After the name change order is signed, New York State Law requires the publication of a name change notice in a designated newspaper by the judge at least once, within sixty days after the making of the name change order.  This must be done before the name change order can be finalized and certified. 

The newspapers that are used for this purpose are usually under 20 pages in length and have small circulations.  They are usually free or low cost publications  that are found in laundrymats, dry cleaners, supermarkets, candy stores,and on street corners.  In some cases, some form of these publications are also found on line as webpages and pdf files. 

Some common Brooklyn newspapers frequently designated by Brooklyn Civil Court judges for publication of the name change notice are:   The Brooklyn Daily Eagle, The Brooklyn Paper, The Brooklyn Daily,  Brooklyn Heights Press,  and Brooklyn Downtown Star.   Some judges will designate a newspaper which may be less well known but is located near the community that you live in. 



Christopher Tompkins is an Attorney that has been handling Legal Name Change Matters for 20 years in New York City frequently practicing in Brooklyn.  Contact him at 212 962-5363. Email:  NameChangeLawyer@gmail.com.   Visit his website at http://www.ny-legal-name-change-lawyer.com/

How Long Does It Take to Process a Name Change in Queens County? Updated March 2015

How Long Does It Take to Process a Name Change in Queens County?  Updated March 2015

         The current processing time from filing the name change petition in the Queens Civil Court Special Term Office to receiving a signed name change order is approximately 12 to 14 weeks. 


Christopher Tompkins is an Attorney that has been handling Legal Name Change Matters for 20 years in New York City frequently practicing in  Queens County.  Contact him at 212 962-5363. Email:  NameChangeLawyer@gmail.com.   Visit his website at 
http://www.ny-legal-name-change-lawyer.com/

How Long Does It Take to Process a Name Change in Queens County? Updated November 2014

How Long Does It Take to Process a Name Change in Queens County?  Updated November 2014

         The current processing time from filing the name change petition in the Queens Civil Court Special Term Office to receiving a signed name change order is approximately 10 weeks. 


Christopher Tompkins is an Attorney that has been handling Legal Name Change Matters for 20 years in New York City frequently practicing in  Queens County.  Contact him at 212 962-5363. Email:  NameChangeLawyer@gmail.com.   Visit his website at 
http://www.ny-legal-name-change-lawyer.com/

Where Do You File a Name Change Petition in Staten Island?

Where Do You File a Name Change Petition in Staten Island? 

              In Staten Island, a person who seeks a name change files a name change petition at the Civil Court of the City of New York, in Richmond County (Staten Island).  The Civil Court in Staten Island is located at 927 Castleton Avenue, Staten Island, NY 10310. 
         A name change petition with the appropriate exhibits must be submitted with a proposed name change order and this must be taken to Special Term clerk's office located in the basement of the Staten Island Civil Court.  (See my website http://www.ny-legal-name-change-lawyer.com/   to learn in detail what exhibits are necessary to attach to the petition.)  If the papers are in order, the Special Term clerk will mark the name change petition and proposed order as approved and you will then take the name change petition and proposed order to the cashier (also in the basement) to pay for the $65 filing fee. 
          Once the filing fee is paid, the cashier will mark the petition and proposed order as paid and then mark the proposed order and petition with a stamped index number.  When this is complete, you bring the name change petition and proposed order back to the Special Term clerk office window in the basement where the Special Term clerks will enter the index number and information about the petition into the Staten Island Civil Court computer data base.  
          After the Special Term clerk enters information from the name change petition into the Civil Court data base, the name change petition and proposed order are held by the clerk until such time as a Civil Court judge can review the papers.  My experience in Staten Island Civil Court has been that I had to call the Special Term Clerk within a few weeks after filing to check on the status of the submission,  or the Clerk's office would contact me approximately 3 to 4 weeks after filing to let me know that the order had been signed.  Expect the waiting time to be longer during summer months since judges are on vacation.   
            After the order is signed by the Staten Island Civil Court judge, you must obtain a copy from the Special Term clerk's office so that you can send it to a newspaper designated by the order for publishing the name change notice. Most judges in Staten Island select the Staten Island Advance Newspaper for publishing as it is Staten Island's only local newspaper. (See my website http://www.ny-legal-name-change-lawyer.com/   to learn about the name change publication requirement).  You must also send a copy of the order to government agencies and private parties that are designated by the order, if the order requires that. 
        After a few weeks when you receive an affidavit of publication from the designated newspaper, take the affidavit of publication and any proof of mailing to government agencies and private parties back to the Special Term clerk office in the basement.  If the affidavit of publication is properly prepared and your proof of mailing is in proper form,  the Special Term clerk will mark the name change order as complete and send you back to the cashier also in the basement where you can obtain a court certified name change order copy for $6. 

Christopher Tompkins is an Attorney that has been handling Legal Name Change Matters for 20 years in New York City frequently practicing in Staten Island.  Contact him at 212 962-5363. Email:  NameChangeLawyer@gmail.com.   Visit his website at http://www.ny-legal-name-change-lawyer.com/