Mass. Gen. Laws » Part II Title III Chapter 210
Massachusetts General Laws

Mass. Gen. Laws ch. 210, § 12 (2026)

Petitions for change of name

✓ current as of July 2026
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Section 12. A petition for the change of name of a person may be heard by the probate court in the county where the petitioner resides. The change of name of a person shall be granted unless such change is inconsistent with public interests.

Notes of Decisions
Cited in 10 cases (1 in the last 5 years), 1960–2026 · leading case: Sec'y of the Commonwealth v. City Clerk of Lowell, 366 N.E.2d 717 (Mass. 1977).
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Sec'y of the Commonwealth v. City Clerk of Lowell, 366 N.E.2d 717 (Mass. 1977). · cites it 6× “G.L.c. 210, § 12. By St. 1871, c. 310, § 7, a court making a decree of adoption might "also decree such change of name as the petitioner may pray for.”
Richards v. Mason, 767 N.E.2d 84 (Mass. App. Ct. 2002). · cites it 2× “That a change of name petition may be sought pursuant to G. L. c. 210, § 12, 5 “does not abrogate the common law right to use a name of one’s *571 choosing.”
Jones v. Roe, 604 N.E.2d 45 (Mass. App. Ct. 1992). · cites it 3× “” During the course of the hearing — in at least eight instances — the judge observed that the name the mother had chosen at the time of her divorce — and had given to Meredith — was not really her own, but rather the name of her former husband. She also used the occasion to…”
In re Two Minors for Change of Name, 844 N.E.2d 710 (Mass. App. Ct. 2006). · cites it 3× ““That a change of name petition may be sought pursuant to G. L. c. 210, § 12,[ 15 ] ‘does not abrogate the common law right to use a name of one’s choosing.”
Verrill, 660 N.E.2d 697 (Mass. App. Ct. 1996). · cites it 3× “Ralph Parker Verrill (petitioner) filed a petition in the Probate Court under G. L. c. 210, § 12, seeking to change his name to “Jerry Irish Murphy.”
In re Two Minors for Change of Name, 517 N.E.2d 1291 (Mass. App. Ct. 1988). · cites it 2× “G. L. c. 210, § 12, as appearing in St. 1977, c.”
Jaynes, 42 N.E.3d 1158 (Mass. App. Ct. 2015). · cites it 2× “On June 18, 2012, Charles Jaynes filed a petition pursuant to G. L. c. 210, § 12, to change his name, 1 citing in support of his request his “Wiccan religious tenets.”
In Re Rusconi, 167 N.E.2d 847 (Mass. 1960). “Joseph Paul Rusconi and his wife, Anne Wilma, on behalf of themselves and their two minor children Paul Crosby and Jon Lance (aged twelve and eleven respectively), brought this petition under G. L. c. 210, §§ 12 and 13, to have their surname changed to Bryan.”
In re Riley, 103 N.E.3d 767 (Mass. App. Ct. 2018). · cites it 3× “4 As part of her transition from male to female, the petitioner filed a pro se petition in the Probate and Family Court under G. L. c. 210, § 12, seeking to change her name to feminize it.”
Torey Lemont Davis (Mass. App. Ct. 2026). · cites it 2× “745, 746 (2015) (Jaynes), a change of name "shall be granted unless such change is inconsistent with public interests," G. L. c. 210, § 12. Where a petitioner is involved with the criminal justice system, "the public interests at stake are heightened.”
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