Delaware Code Title 10 Sec. 5901 – Petition for change of name
(a) Except as provided in subsection (b) of this section, any person who desires to change his or her name, shall present a petition, duly verified, to the Court of Common Pleas sitting in the county in which the person resides. The petition shall set forth such person’s name and the name he or she desires to assume.
Terms Used In Delaware Code Title 10 Sec. 5901
- Common law: The legal system that originated in England and is now in use in the United States. It is based on judicial decisions rather than legislative action.
- Jurisdiction: (1) The legal authority of a court to hear and decide a case. Concurrent jurisdiction exists when two courts have simultaneous responsibility for the same case. (2) The geographic area over which the court has authority to decide cases.
- State: means the State of Delaware; and when applied to different parts of the United States, it includes the District of Columbia and the several territories and possessions of the United States. See Delaware Code Title 1 Sec. 302
- Testimony: Evidence presented orally by witnesses during trials or before grand juries.
(b) Family Court shall have jurisdiction over a change of name:
(1) As part of divorce proceedings;
(2) As part of the establishment of paternity under the Uniform Parentage Act [Chapter 8 of Title 13]; or
(3) If the subject of the petition is a minor.
(c) The common law right of any person to change his or her name is hereby abrogated as to individuals subject to the supervision of the State of Delaware Department of Correction. Such individuals may only effect a name change by petitioning the Court of Common Pleas as follows:
(1) Individuals subject to the supervision of the Department of Correction shall be prohibited from adopting any names other than their legal names or otherwise effecting name changes, except as provided in this subsection.
(2) When, based upon testimony or sworn affidavits, the Court finds that a petition for a name change of an individual subject to the supervision of the Department of Correction is motivated by a sincerely held religious belief or gender identity, the Court may grant such petition. In any case in which an individual subject to the supervision of the Department of Correction petitions the Court of Common Pleas for a change of name, the Court shall provide notice and opportunity to oppose the name change to the Department of Correction and shall permit it to submit any appropriate documentation in support of its opposition.
(3) If an individual is granted a name change pursuant to paragraph (c)(2) of this section, he or she must provide all names previously held or adopted, as well as his or her legal name when signing any legal document or providing information to a law-enforcement officer.
(4) The granting of any name changes pursuant to this subsection shall not restrict the Department of Correction from maintaining institutional files or otherwise referring to individuals by the names under which they became subject to the Department’s supervision.
27 Del. Laws, c. 264, § ?1; Code 1915, § ?4657; Code 1935, § ?5115; 10 Del. C. 1953, § ?5901; 59 Del. Laws, c. 512, § ?1; 67 Del. Laws, c. 103, § ?1; 70 Del. Laws, c. 186, § ?1; 70 Del. Laws, c. 479, § ?1; 80 Del. Laws, c. 52, § ?1; 82 Del. Laws, c. 84, § 1;