Changing one’s first or last name is subject to a specific legal procedure.
Pursuant to Article 27 of the Civil Code, a lawsuit to change one’s first or last name can only be filed for valid reasons. The concept of valid reasons is interpreted quite broadly. Valid reasons also include the person’s personal subjective reasons.
A lawsuit to change a first or last name may be filed for countless reasons, such as the name or surname being ridiculous, reminding the person of a trauma, being associated with the name of a notorious person, or for professional or artistic reasons.
A lawsuit for changing a name or surname can only be filed by the person themselves or by a lawyer to whom they have given special power of attorney. For minors, the lawsuit can be filed by their parents who have custody rights or by a lawyer to whom they have given power of attorney.
The competent court for name and surname change cases is the Civil Court of First Instance. The plaintiff may file the case at the Civil Court of First Instance in their place of residence.
An official appointed by the Population Directorate participates in the name and surname change case as the defendant. The Population Directorate must be specified as the defendant in the petition. Since a name and surname change case is mostly based on population records, no special document is required to file the case. However, if the request for a name and surname change, especially a surname change, is based on facts supported by a specific document, that document may be submitted as evidence.
If your current first and last name causes confusion in social life or leads to confusion in official proceedings, documents proving these issues must be submitted to the court along with the case file when filing a name change lawsuit.
Witness statements are the most important evidence in name change lawsuits. If the name is not obviously ridiculous, does not have a known negative meaning, i.e., does not carry a negative connotation from an official standpoint, then witness statements become important for proving subjective circumstances.