Neighborhood Legal Services, Inc. as part of its H.E.L.P. at Evergreen Health initiative successfully advocated on behalf of a transgender client for a waiver of publication for a name change in Erie County Supreme Court. The Court found that for transgender petitioners “the body of literature and statistics as to the high potential violence against such individuals, the expression of a general concern for one’s jeopardy is sufficient without citing any specific actual or threatened instances of violence or harassment” for exemption from the requirement of the newspaper publication of the name change order. The Court held that the Petitioner’s name change must be sealed except for the anonymous initials and the index number. This decision is important as the written decision further cements protections for transgender petitioners seeking name changes in Erie and the surrounding counties. For a copy of the decision, click here.
