North Dakota: Adult Legal Name Change Requirements

Requirements one by one

File in district court after six months in the county

Under N.D.C.C. § 32-28-02(1), the adult must be a U.S. citizen or permanent
resident alien and must have lived in the filing county as a bona fide resident
for at least six months. The petition states the reason and proposed name.

The current court forms add the current name and address, age, citizenship or
permanent-resident status, criminal convictions, good-faith and no-harm
assertions, publication or waiver facts, objections, and the requested order.
The separate declaration gives residence, birth, reason, conviction, notice,
and objection facts under penalty of perjury. Full birth date goes on a
Confidential Information Form that is not publicly accessible under Rule 3.4.

Give 30 days' newspaper notice

Under § 32-28-02(3), the ordinary route requires 30 days' previous notice in
the official newspaper of the resident county. The May 2026 court instructions
expressly caution that the statute does not say how many times the notice must
be printed. The adult waits 30 calendar days, collects the publisher's affidavit
or declaration and any written objections, then files the case.

The court may waive publication only for a change limited to a first or middle
name or upon satisfactory evidence that the adult is a domestic-violence victim.
That is a publication waiver; Chapter 32-28 does not separately create a general
sealed-name or fully confidential case track.

Criminal history is reviewed after filing

The court must determine whether the adult has criminal history in North Dakota
or another state. It may require a statewide and nationwide check under §
12-60-24, with the adult paying the cost. Current instructions say some judges
require a check from every adult while others decide after reviewing the filing;
the clerk should be asked about the assigned court's practice.

If the adult has a felony conviction, the request is presumed to be in bad faith,
fraudulent or misleading, harmful, and a public-safety compromise. The adult
must rebut each point by clear and convincing evidence. If an order is granted
to someone with criminal history, the court reports it to the Bureau of Criminal
Investigation within ten days.

A hearing is optional, not automatic

The judge may rule on the papers or require an in-person hearing. Under §
32-28-02(3), the court must grant when affidavit or open-court proof establishes
the petition's truth and proper and reasonable cause. Proper cause does not exist
for fraud or misleading purpose, bad faith, individual injury, or public-safety
compromise.

The filing fee is now $160

The official schedule effective July 1, 2025 lists $160 for a civil judicial-
remedy action, expressly including a name change. A person unable to pay may
file the court's written fee-waiver request. A first certified copy of the order
costs $20, with additional copies of the same document at $10 each.

Under § 32-28-04, the change does not alter a pending proceeding or any
existing right, title, or interest.

What trips people up

• Thirty days is a notice period, not a stated insertion count. The current
  court instructions say the statute does not specify how many times to print.
• Publication waiver grounds are narrow. They are first/middle-name-only or
  satisfactory domestic-violence evidence.
• The criminal check is court-directed. Ask the clerk whether the assigned
  judge requires every adult to obtain one before spending time on publication.
• Old $80 instructions are stale. The fee doubled to $160 on July 1, 2025.

Common questions

Will I always have a hearing?

No. The judge may decide on the documents or schedule an in-person hearing.

Can a felony conviction prevent the change?

It creates a statutory presumption against the request. The adult must rebut the
fraud, bad-faith, injury, and public-safety points by clear and convincing evidence.

Can I avoid newspaper notice for safety?

The court may waive publication upon satisfactory evidence that the adult is a
domestic-violence victim.

Statutes and sources

• N.D.C.C. §§ 32-28-01, 32-28-02, and 32-28-04 — district court, eligibility,
  criminal-history screening, notice and waiver, hearing/grant standard, felony
  presumption, BCI reporting, costs, and order effect. Official Chapter 32-28
  (accessed July 26, 2026).
• North Dakota Legal Self Help adult-name-change materials, rev. May 2026 —
  current form set, 30-day sequence, publication ambiguity, criminal-check
  practice, papers-first decision, and $160 filing step. Official instructions
  (accessed July 26, 2026).
• North Dakota court fee and waiver materials — $160 name-change filing fee,
  certified-copy charges, and written indigency request. Official fee schedule
  and official waiver page
  (accessed July 26, 2026).