Name changes, expungement, vital records, REAL ID, and government documentation procedures.
New York adults change a name by petition under Civil Rights Law Article 6, filed in Supreme or County Court, or in NYC Civil Court for city residents. This covers the court choice, the disclosures the petition must make, the $210 and $65 fees and the waiver, how a judge decides, sealing for safety, and what the signed order does.
New Jersey apostilles are issued by the Division of Revenue and Enterprise Services. Who qualifies, what the underlying document must look like, the $25 fee, and the non-Hague certification alternative.
Michigan releases birth records less than 100 years old only to the person named, a parent, an heir, a legal representative or guardian, or a court. This article covers the statutory eligibility list, the identification MDHHS accepts, the fee schedule in MCL 333.2891, the online, mail, and county-clerk ordering routes, and current turn-around times.
What a Pennsylvania apostille certifies, which records qualify, how documents are prepared and notarized first, the $15 per-document fee, mailing and appointment options, and when a federal document goes to the U.S. Department of State instead.
Washington requires no notary training class and no exam. The commission comes from the Department of Licensing, runs four years on a $10,000 surety bond, and costs $40 to apply for. This article covers eligibility, the bond, the application, fees, and the stamp and journal duties that follow.
A Massachusetts apostille certifies the signature of a Massachusetts notary, clerk, or registrar on a document headed abroad. The Secretary of the Commonwealth’s Commissions Section issues it for $6 per document.
New York expunges only certain marijuana convictions, and does it automatically. Every other record is cleared by sealing: automatic Clean Slate sealing since November 16, 2024, or a CPL 160.59 motion after ten crime-free years. This article covers eligibility, the application packet, the district attorney’s 45-day objection window, and what sealing does and does not hide.
Georgia apostilles are issued by the Georgia Superior Court Clerks’ Cooperative Authority in Atlanta at $3 per document, while documents bound for non-Hague countries go to the Secretary of State for a Great Seal certification.
Massachusetts expungement destroys a court record rather than sealing it. This article covers the time-based petition to the Commissioner of Probation, the non-time-based court petition, the eligibility tests in G.L. c. 276, §§ 100I and 100J, and the timeline for a decision.
New Jersey spreads personal records across the Superior Court, the Office of Vital Statistics and Registry, the Motor Vehicle Commission, and the Division of Revenue. This page maps each record type to the office that issues it, with the governing statutes and current fees.
Georgia name changes run through the superior court of the county where the petitioner lives, with a four-week newspaper notice and a 30-day statutory wait before a judge signs the order.
What it takes to be commissioned as a Massachusetts notary public: the statutory qualifications, the paper application and its four endorsements, the $60 fee paid after Governor’s Council approval, and the seal, journal, and conduct rules that follow.