Adopted by House 2-5-07

SB139 H JUD AM 2-1 #1

The Committee on the Judiciary moves to amend the bill on page one, following the enacting clause by striking out the remainder of the bill, and inserting in lieu thereof the following language:
That §48-25-101 and §48-25-103 of the Code of West Virginia, 1931, as amended, be amended and reenacted, all to read as follows:
 ARTICLE 25. CHANGE OF NAME.
§48-25-101. Petition to circuit court or family court for change of name; contents thereof; notice of application.

(a) Any person desiring a change of his or her own name, or that of his or her child or ward, may apply therefor to the circuit court or family court of the county in which he or she resides by a verified petition setting forth and affirming the following:
(1) That he or she has been a bona fide resident of the county for at least one year prior to the filing of the petition or that he or she is a nonresident of the county who was born in the county, was married in the county and was previously a resident of the county for a period of at least fifteen years ;
(2) The cause for which the change of name is sought;
(3) The new name desired;
(4) The name change is not for purposes of avoiding debt or creditors;
(5) The petitioner seeking said the name change is not a registered sex offender pursuant to any state or federal law;
(6) The name change sought is not for purposes of avoiding any state or federal law regarding identity;
(7) The name change sought is not for any improper or illegal purpose; and
(8) The petitioner is not a convicted felon in any jurisdiction; and
(9) The name change sought is not for any purpose of evading detection, identification or arrest by any local, state or federal law enforcement agency.
(b) Notwithstanding the provisions of subsection (a) of this section, a nonresident of the county may apply for a change of name if the person was born in the county, was married in the county and was previously a resident of the county for a period of at least fifteen years.
(c) (b) Previous Prior to the filing of the petition, the person shall cause a notice of the time and place that the application will be made to be published as a Class I legal advertisement in compliance with the provisions of article three, chapter fifty-nine of this code. The publication area for the publication is the county: Provided, That the publication shall contain a provision that the hearing may be rescheduled without further notice or publication.
§48-25-103. When court may or may not order change of name.
(a) Upon the filing of such the verified petition, and upon proof of the publication of such the notice and of the matters set forth in the petition, and being satisfied that no injury will be done to any person by reason of such the change, and upon a finding that all representations the applicant has affirmed pursuant to subsection (a) of section one hundred one of this article are true, and the applicant is not prohibited from obtaining a name change pursuant to this article, that reasonable and proper cause exists for changing the name of petitioner, and that such the change is not desired because of any fraudulent or evil intent on the part of the petitioner, the court or judge thereof in vacation may order a change of name as applied for except as provided by the provisions of this section.
(b) The court may not grant any change of name for any person convicted of any felony during the time that the person is incarcerated.
(c) The court may not grant any change of name for any person required to register with the state police pursuant to the provisions of article eight-f twelve, chapter sixty-one fifteen of this code during the period that such the person is required to register.
(d) The court may not grant a change of name for persons convicted of first degree murder in violation of section one, article two, chapter sixty-one of this code for a period of ten years after the person is discharged from imprisonment or is discharged from parole, whichever occurs later.
(e) The court may not grant a change of name of any person convicted of violating any provision of section fourteen-a, article two, chapter sixty-one of this code for a period of ten years after the person is discharged from imprisonment or is discharged from parole, whichever occurs later.