Applications of Greenfield

• Decision Date: 18 December 1970
• Parties: Applications of Kelly Stephan GREENFIELD and Barbara Greenfield, asking for leave to change their names to Kelly Anders and April Anders, respectively, Petitioners.
• Court: New York City Court

Page 276

322 N.Y.S.2d 276

66 Misc.2d 733

Applications of Kelly Stephan GREENFIELD and Barbara

Greenfield, asking for leave to change their names

to Kelly Anders and April Anders,

respectively, Petitioners.

Civil Court of the City of New York, New York County,

Special Term, Part II.

Dec. 18, 1970.

Robert Sharon, New York City, for petitioners.

IRVING SMITH, Judge.

Petitioner was born in Jersey City, New Jersey on June 21, 1941 as Walter Stephan Paul Kelly. By this Court's previous order of September 17, 1963, the petitioner's name was legally changed from Kelly to Greenfield. Now, the petitioner would like to assume the name of Anders in order to travel in the Middle East on a vacation.

The petitioners told this Court at a conference that there are other reasons for their desire to change names again, different from the reasons stated in their affidavits.

In 1963, the petitioner told this Court that for business purposes he would like to assume a Jewish-sounding name. Now, he states he would like to discard that Jewish-sounding name in order to take a vacation.

In Matter of Green, 54 Misc.2d 606, 283 N.Y.S.2d 242; Matter of Jama, 51 Misc.2d 9, 272 N.Y.S.2d 677; Matter of Wing, 4 Misc.2d 840, 157 N.Y.S.2d 333; Matter of Filoramo, 40 Misc.2d 598, 243 N.Y.S.2d 339, this Court reviewed an individual's common law right to change his name to anything he may desire by simply using that name as his own over a period of time. In Matter of Middleton, 60 Misc.2d 1056, at 1057, 304 N.Y.S.2d 145, at 146, the Court stated: 'This application is brought under Sec. 60 of the Civil Rights Law of New York as merely a ministerial aid of the common law. But, this Court is duty bound to prevent any startling events as a result of the change of name and to discover any attempt at fraud, duplicity or chicanery as a result of a change of name.'

This Court will not allow the petitioner to discard one name and assume another as easily as he would a suit of clothes. Petitioner, a twenty-nine year old male, who has borne this name for seven years is apparently tired or bored of 'being Jewish.' For twenty-two years he acted Irish, for seven years he sounded Jewish, and now he would like to sound like a Protestant. This Court is unaware of the petitioner's true intentions; he has contradicted his sworn affidavit by his own words to this Court.

Accordingly, based on the reasons proferred by both petitioners (husband and wife) for desiring to assume other names, this Court...