Changing middle names

stargazer111

Hello, I'm wondering if there is anybody here that could help me out with information on how to change middle names? I have four names in my full name, two in the middle - one of which is a surname.

I'm wondering how I would go about such a thing and would there be much legal proceedings involved in such a process?

Thank you.

Peregrinus

It’s been a while since I looked at this, but as far as I know in Ireland your name is a matter of rfact, not of law. Thus if you call yourself Joe, and everybody calls you Joe, then Joe is indeed your name, even if your birth certificate says Steve. (Steve might also be your name; you can have more than one name.)

The problem is proving to bureaucrats (bank officials, passport officers, whoever) that your name is indeed Joe, even though it says Steve on your birth certificate. They are entitled to take your word for it that everyone calls you Joe, but they are not obliged to, and increasingly they are more and more reluctant to. So they look for more evidence than your word.

Some people will accept things like, e.g, electricity bills and gas bills addressed to you as Joe, but that’s not always enough. The evidence which will satisfy most people is a Deed Poll. This is a formal legal document in which you declare that, although it says Steve on your birth certificate, you go by Joe, everyone calls you Joe, and you don’t use the name Steve. You sign this declaration and then you register it in the Central Office of the High Court. You can then produce certified copies of it to satisfy bank officials, passport officers and everyone else.

You’ll need a solicitor to do this for you. I’ve no idea what it costs, but it shouldn’t be much. It’s not a contentious matter, and there is no state official who reviews the documents and decides whether you are or are not to be allowed to register it. There is no court hearing.