The Change of Name Act governs whether you can change your child’s name. Your Order or Agreement may give you sole decision-making authority, but it may prohibit the name change or require your ex to consent. If you have joint decision-making authority, they will need to consent.
If required, you can apply to the court to dispense with consent. In order to be successful, you must show that the change will be in the child’s best interests.
If your former spouse or anyone else (e.g. grandparents) has parenting time, then you must give them notice of the application to change the child’s name even if they do not need to consent.
Even if you have sole-decision making authority, they can bring an Application to prohibit the change under the Children’s Law Reform Act. They would need to prove to the court that prohibiting the change would be in the child’s best interests.
It is important to also note that if your child is 12 or older, you must also obtain their consent.
Best Interests of the Child
The court considers various factors when determining the issue:
Whether the proposed name change will exclude the name of the non-custodial parent.
The length of time a custodial parent has had sole custody of the child.
Whether there is a continuing close relationship between the child and the non-custodial parent.
Whether there would be any serious effect on the non-custodial parent.
Whether either parent has displayed malice or improper motivation.
The age of the child and the weight to be given to the child’s wishes, in light of that age.
The length of time that child has had its name.
The surnames of any siblings.
The application and process information for changing your child’s name in Ontario can be found on the Service Ontario website here. If you need assistance with this process, we are happy to help.