25-21,271. Change of name; persons; procedure; clerk of the district court; duty.
(1) Any person desiring to change his or her name shall file a petition in the district court of the county in which such person may be a resident, setting forth (a) that the petitioner has been a bona fide citizen of such county for at least one year prior to the filing of the petition, (b) the address of the petitioner, (c) the date of birth of the petitioner, (d) the cause for which the change of petitioner's name is sought, and (e) the name asked for.
(2) Notice of the filing of the petition shall be published in a newspaper in the county, and if no newspaper is printed in the county, then in a newspaper of general circulation therein. The notice shall be published (a) once a week for four consecutive weeks if the petitioner is nineteen years of age or older at the time the action is filed and (b) once a week for two consecutive weeks if the petitioner is under nineteen years of age at the time the action is filed. In an action involving a petitioner under nineteen years of age who has a noncustodial parent, notice of the filing of the petition shall be sent by certified mail within five days after publication to the noncustodial parent at the address provided to the clerk of the district court pursuant to subsection (1) of section 42-364.13 for the noncustodial parent if he or she has provided an address. The clerk of the district court shall provide the petitioner with the address upon request.
(3) It shall be the duty of the district court, upon being duly satisfied by proof in open court of the truth of the allegations set forth in the petition, that there exists proper and reasonable cause for changing the name of the petitioner, and that notice of the filing of the petition has been given as required by this section, to order and direct a change of name of such petitioner and that an order for the purpose be entered by the court.
(4) The clerk of the district court shall deliver a copy of any name-change order issued by the court pursuant to this section to the Department of Health and Human Services for use pursuant to sections 28-376 and 28-718 and to the sex offender registration and community notification division of the Nebraska State Patrol for use pursuant to section 29-4004.
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Annotations
The mere fact that a petitioner is an inmate is not a substantial reason for denying a petition for name change. In re Change of Name of Picollo, 12 Neb. App. 174, 668 N.W.2d 712 (2003).
When considering a petition for name change, a district court must make findings sufficiently definitive that if an appeal is taken, the appellate court can determine whether or not the request for a name change was arbitrarily denied. In re Change of Name of Picollo, 12 Neb. App. 174, 668 N.W.2d 712 (2003).