How do I apply for the court to change their names? What is the process? Costs?
You can make an application in a case which bears the same court file number as the earlier court proceeding. The form can be downloaded here:
Application in a Case - Federal Circuit Court of Australia
You might seek in your application the following orders:
That the husband and wife:
(i) henceforth exclusively use the name “(new surname)” as the surname of the child of the marriage (child's name);
(ii) forthwith do all things necessary, individually and jointly including making application and executing documents, to seek the alteration of the registration of the name of the said child in the register of births in the State of Queensland from the surname “(present surname)” to the name “(new surname)”; and
(iii) pay in equal shares such fees, if any, as are applicable to an application for alteration of the register as aforesaid.
You should file an affidavit setting out:
• The short-term and long-term advantages to the child in having a change of name
• The amount of time the father has contact with the child (if he has a reasonable amount of ongoing contact it might be difficult to succeed on your application. In that case a hyphenated surname might be best sought)
• The extent to which the child identifies with father
• The extent to which the child identifies with you and any new partner you have
• The degree of identification with a child to be born of any new relationship you have
The court will ultimately be concerned with the following factors:
• The welfare/best interests) of the child
• Any confusion of identity that might be caused in the child
• The short-term and long-term effects of the name change
• The effect on the child’s relationship with their father
• Any embarrassment caused to the child by a change of surname
• The effect of frequent or random changes of name