changing girlfriends kids name to mine

duckcfc

I don't want to get into the discussion if its right or wrong, I'm just wanting to know can it legally be done.

I've been with my girlfriend off and on for years and where now back together and are going to make a proper go of it this time. She has 4 kids ( 1 just a few weeks old) and the kids surname are all after hers but were wanting to know is it possible to change them all to mine even thou were not or wanting to get married. Even if I'm not down on the birth certs as the guaradin or father, is it possible to change the kids name to mine.

Someone mentioned to us that its straight forward and if she wanted to change the names to mini mouse, it can be done in a few weeks. Is this true?

bisset

Are you the biological father?

Atlantic Dawn

This should help, you may need to get yourself down on the birth certs as the father as it requires consent of both parents...

Changing the surname of a child

The surname of a child can be changed in the Register of Births but only in certain circumstances. However, the surname of a child can also be changed by deed poll or common usage. Children aged between 14 and 17 years can execute the Deed Poll themselves but need the consent of both parents. Where a child is under the age of 14 years, one of the child's parents must execute the Deed Poll with the consent of the other parent.

http://www.citizensinformation.ie/en/birth_family_relationships/problems_in_marriages_and_other_relationships/changing_your_name_by_deed_poll.html

nuckeythompson

as above the biological father must give consent. In my experience it can be alot of hassle for the sake of a name assuming they are not yours

duckcfc

nuckeythompson wrote: »

as above the biological father must give consent. In my experience it can be alot of hassle for the sake of a name assuming they are not yours

What do you mean when you say alot of hassle

duckcfc

Atlantic Dawn wrote: »

This should help, you may need to get yourself down on the birth certs as the father as it requires consent of both parents...



l]

What would the certain circumstances be?

Atlantic Dawn

duckcfc wrote: »

What do you mean when you say alot of hassle

Probably means that if the kids are not yours the father of them would need to give his consent to have their surnames changed to yours. They would then need to be named on the birth certs as the father, they may for various reasons not want to do this.

nuckeythompson

duckcfc wrote: »

What do you mean when you say alot of hassle

depends on if your the father or not. Assuming you are not the hassle will depend on the relationship between the kids and their biological father.
The other question must ask your self is , Do you think the children will want your surname?

Again based on the vague description , assume your already rocky relationship does not work out ( as you said you will give it a real good go ) that will have problems for the kids having a different surname to both their parents.
Your family law solicitor should be able to provide you with info on previous cases of this sort.

nuckeythompson

as asked this depends on if you are the biological father, are you?

GarIT

duckcfc wrote: »

What do you mean when you say alot of hassle

A long drawn out court battle.

nuckeythompson

one other thing not mentioned is that if the biological father is not the kids legal guardian he may not be asked for consent. However he may take legal action under EU law to prevent this or have the name reverted to the original.

OP you mentioned you are not the guardian. If they are your children I would be getting guardianship tomorrow morning before worrying about names

Big Bag of Chips

Are the children yours? Does your gf want to give them your name? Do you think it's wise if your relationship is so volatile to go changing the children's names? What if it's "off again" soon? Does she change their name back to hers again? How old are the children? How do they feel about having their names changed?

Birth certs can be changed in certain circumstances, if the parents get married and the child's surname is to be changed to the "marriage name". Or to add the father's name after the birth has been registered (I'm not exactly sure if the surname can be changed in that circumstance)

Have a look at the citizens information website, or call into a citizens advice centre.

Names can also be changed by common usage in Ireland, which means you just start using the name in school, at the doctors etc. After building up evidence of usage for a few years it can then be used on official documents such as passports etc.

edit: an easier, and possibly safer option (for the children) would be for you to change your name to that of your gf and the children.

nuckeythompson

edit: an easier, and possibly safer option (for the children) would be for you to change your name to that of your gf and the children.[/QUOTE]


excellent

duckcfc

Without going into to much detail, but there will never ever be a problem with a father coming in and nor wanting this done as there is no father down on birth cert or in contact or ever will be in contact. There will never be a problem with the kids either. Like I mentioned in the op, I don't want to talk about why or hoq or ids and buts, I just want to know can it be done, and even without my name on the cert.

nuckeythompson

the father consent will be requested though as this is part of the procedure

duckcfc

nuckeythompson wrote: »

the father consent will be requested though as this is part of the procedure

What if the father can't be found. For talks sake, what if she slept with someone at a concert all them times she was pregnant and couldn't locate the fathers again. Now I know its hypothetical but its possible. What would happen in the name change then

Pawwed Rig

nuckeythompson wrote: »

the father consent will be requested though as this is part of the procedure

Are you sure about this? AFAIK if the father if not married has very few rights to the children (assuming he has not been granted guardianship rights). In which case it is upto the mother. To answer the OPs question the mother can change her kids names easily enough if she wants to.

nuckeythompson

as far as i know your kinda stuck then, its similar when it comes to passport getting issued for a child where the father needs to consent/sign. its actually easier to get the passport tru a district court than have their names changed to yours without the fathers consent. That said it can be done though lenghty legal process but as i said before this could be very problimatic down the line for the kids. Best advice given here was change your name to your g/f and kids name.

nuckeythompson

Pawwed Rig wrote: »

Are you sure about this? AFAIK if the father if not married has very few rights to the children (assuming he has not been granted guardianship rights). In which case it is upto the mother. To answer the OPs question the mother can change her kids names easily enough if she wants to.

thats correct to a degree but this can now be challenged under EU law as Ireland is the only country (i think) in the EU that has this draconian law regarding guardianship. The guardianship rule looks set to change very soon according to mary banotti ( read a piece by her recently )

Pawwed Rig

nuckeythompson wrote: »

thats correct to a degree but this can now be challenged under EU law as Ireland is the only country (i think) in the EU that has this draconian law regarding guardianship. The guardianship rule looks set to change very soon according to mary banotti ( read a piece by her recently )

Ah ok. But as the OP says it is unlikely to be challenged by the bio father in this case so a name change should be a pretty straight forward process.

goz83

Can the pride of a man be changed?

I wouldn't go changing names of kids unless you have a very solid relationship with the mother and the kids. "On again, off again" does not fill me confidence. Easier to change your name OP, if you're going to "make a proper go of it this time".

Should this thread be moved to legal?

mrsbyrne

If the birth cett for each child is blank were it says Fathers Name, then you and she can go together to your local registrars office and have your name added as father.
As regards permission of the biological dad, we'll if he hasn't come forward by now to claim them, then that's just tough.
The dad is whoever the mam says is the dad, as long as the guy agrees, unless some other guy comes forward looking for guardianship and willing to do DNA.
BEWARE
As soon as your name goes on there it can't be removed or changed again and if you split up she can per sue you for maintenance.

pablo128

mrsbyrne wrote: »

If the birth cett for each child is blank were it says Fathers Name, then you and she can go together to your local registrars office and have your name added as father.
As regards permission of the biological dad, we'll if he hasn't come forward by now to claim them, then that's just tough.
The dad is whoever the mam says is the dad, as long as the guy agrees, unless some other guy comes forward looking for guardianship and willing to do DNA.
BEWARE
As soon as your name goes on there it can't be removed or changed again and if you split up she can per sue you for maintenance.

I don't think he wants his name on the birth certs.
Also, and apologies if I'm wrong, but if she is getting lone parents payment, you shouldn't be living there, father or not.

pablo128

mrsbyrne wrote: »

BEWARE
As soon as your name goes on there it can't be removed or changed again and if you split up she can per sue you for maintenance.

And if she is in receipt of a state allowance and doesn't look for maintenance, the state certainly will. I've seen it happen.

GarIT

mrsbyrne wrote: »

BEWARE
As soon as your name goes on there it can't be removed or changed again and if you split up she can per sue you for maintenance.

Changing the kid's surnames to his would give the mother a case (although not nearly as strong) for maintenance anyway.

Stanlex

This is funny. Like exchanging log books when buying a car. Carry on.

I think firstly you must answer, "ARE YOU THE BIOLOGICAL FATHER???" you seem to be avoiding this question.

GarIT

Stanlex wrote: »

This is funny. Like exchanging log books when buying a car. Carry on.

I think firstly you must answer, "ARE YOU THE BIOLOGICAL FATHER???" you seem to be avoiding this question.

He has said no.

pwurple

Names in Ireland are by common usage. No consent, documentation or anything else is required. You just start using the new name, build up a history of usage, and then change offical documents.

john the one

Sorry a little off topic here, can someone explain guardianship to me? What'd the difference between this and having the fathers name on the birth cert?

GarIT

john the one wrote: »

Sorry a little off topic here, can someone explain guardianship to me? What'd the difference between this and having the fathers name on the birth cert?

Having a name on the birth cert just declares who the father is. Whoever is a guardian is responsible for the child.

Neyite

duckcfc wrote: »

What if the father can't be found. For talks sake, what if she slept with someone at a concert all them times she was pregnant and couldn't locate the fathers again. Now I know its hypothetical but its possible. What would happen in the name change then

If you are not the biological father, then you need to contact a solicitor and prepare for a court appearance to grant guardianship and adoption rights to you, in the absence of permission from the biological father.

A birth certificate is a legal document. To knowingly put false information on it (ie, naming you as the father when you know you are not) is fraud. Seriously, dont do this.

So, what do you want here? Do you want to formally adopt these children? Be a proper father to them- provide for them financially until adulthood? Or is this a show of unity based on your most recent reconcillation with their mother, but without the legal obligations? If its the latter, then I'd say to you to leave the birth certs alone, and just change your surname through common usage to that of the whole family.

Big Bag of Chips

And if you are not the biological father, and the mother knows you are not the biological father, then adding your name to the birth cert as the biological father is falsifying a legal document.

I know you said you didn't want a discussion on the rights or wrongs of it, but I think that's because you know it is a ridiculous idea. You have an off again on again relationship with a girl with 4 children, whose children's father(s) aren't named on their birth certs. You are not married, and have no intention of getting married, yet you want to change the name of these 4 children to yours.

Yes it can be done. They can just start using your name, but it is a very ill thought out plan. Very immature and not taking any real consideration of the children into account.

As someone else mentioned, like swapping ownership of a car and changing the log book.

It can be done.

But it's a stupid thing to do.

Saipanne

This sort of sounds like "I'm serious this time, honey, let's make a real go of it. Tell ya what, I'll even change the kid's names to mine, that's how serious I am..."

Am I right? If so, don't do it.

Flippyfloppy

I know you said you don't want a discussion on the rights and wrongs of changing the kids names, but I just have to point out that these kids shouldn't be that involved in your on /off relationship.

Is the plan that changing their names will deter you and the mother from breaking up during heated moments or something?

Surely if you're trying to make a serious go of it marriage would be more appropriate, even though it will affect the whole family, if you do break up it will affect the kids a little bit less.

Otherwise, if having the same second name is some kind of show of unity, then surely you, the adult who is joining their family should take the hit and change their name.

duckcfc

pablo128 wrote: »

I don't think he wants his name on the birth certs.
Also, and apologies if I'm wrong, but if she is getting lone parents payment, you shouldn't be living there, father or not.

She is lone parent payment. I own my own house and don't live with her. She's thinking off moving in with me thou but that's not set in stone yet.

duckcfc

pablo128 wrote: »

And if she is in receipt of a state allowance and doesn't look for maintenance, the state certainly will. I've seen it happen.

What do you mean they will look for maintenance. Even if the name is changed by common usage. I'm not working at the moment but when I'm back to work, I will provide for them but for now, we both live seperatly and will continue to do so for the forseable future.

Moonbeam

I am closing this thread because the OP is not providing enough information to get a definitive answer and he would be better talking to a solicitor or citizens advice.