This document provides instructions for entering legal name changes in the church membership system. It notes that the system should only record members' legal names, not aliases or nicknames. Name changes can occur due to marriage, divorce, adoption, or court order. For court-ordered name changes, the effective date should be included in the life event notes. The steps outlined are to search for the member, make name changes, add the legal date to the first life event notes, and save the changes. Adoptions are also recognized by including adoption details in the life event notes and following the name change steps.

1. Shelby v5.11
Entering a Legal Name Change
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This is a tutorial. For complete step-by-step instructions see the
United States Recorder Handbook on the World Church website at
http://www.cofchrist.org/recorders/stepbystep.asp
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system tray (bottom of the screen).

2. It is the policy of the church to record the legal names of its
members. Do not record members under an alias or nickname.
Enter nicknames in the “Salutation” field under “Demographics.”
Legal name changes can happen in connection with marriages,
divorces, adoptions, or by court order. An effective date must
be given for a court ordered name change. This information is
entered in the notes section of the life event.
For women taking their maiden name as their middle name, the
change should not be made to the system unless you have a
legal document stating the change, unless the change was made
at the time of marriage or divorce.
Steps for entering a name change or adoption follow:

3. • In the membership
module, search for
the member’s name.
• Double click on the
name.

4. Make the changes
to the name
Click on “Life Events”

5. Open the first life event
recorded for that person
Add the date the change
was made legal in the
“Notes” section.
Click “OK” to save
Click “save and
close” to finish

6. Adoptions
The church recognizes and records all legally valid
adoptions.
Any comments concerning the adoption should be put
in the notes section of the first life event. Include:
•The date the adoption was final
•Who the adoptive parents are
•The previous name of the person
o To change the name, follow the steps listed
above for a legal name change.

7. Adoptions
The church recognizes and records all legally valid
adoptions.
Any comments concerning the adoption should be put
in the notes section of the first life event. Include:
•The date the adoption was final
•Who the adoptive parents are
•The previous name of the person
o To change the name, follow the steps listed
above for a legal name change.