§ 1277.5.Name Change to Conform to Gender Identity
Title 8. Change of Names · Last amended 2026 · Last verified July 29, 2026
This section prints two full, separately-dated versions in the official compilation (a pending-amendment straddle); both are shown below.
In one sentenceSection 1277.5 creates a publication-exempt process for changing a name to match gender identity, and, for petitions filed on or after July 1, 2026, grants an adult's petition automatically within six weeks with no objection period, while a minor's petition still allows objections unless every living parent has signed it.
Full Text of § 1277.5
Text sizeOperative Until 7/1/2026 — jump to: (a)(b)(c)(d)
(1)If a proceeding for a change of name to conform the petitioner's name to the petitioner's gender identity is commenced by the filing of a petition, the court shall thereupon make an order reciting the filing of the petition, the name of the person by whom it is filed, and the name proposed. The order shall direct all persons interested in the matter to make known any objection to the change of name by filing a written objection, which includes any reasons for the objection, within six weeks of the making of the order, and shall state that if no objection showing good cause to oppose the name change is timely filed, the court shall, without hearing, enter the order that the change of name is granted.
(2)If a petition is filed to change the name of a minor to conform to gender identity that does not include the signatures of both living parents, the petition and the order to show cause made in accordance with paragraph (1) shall be served on the parent who did not sign the petition, pursuant to Section 413.10, 414.10, 415.10, or 415.40, within 30 days from the date on which the order is made by the court. If service cannot reasonably be accomplished pursuant to Section 415.10 or 415.40, the court may order that service be accomplished in a manner that the court determines is reasonably calculated to give actual notice to the parent who did not sign the petition.
(b)The proceeding for a change of name to conform the petitioner's name to the petitioner's gender identity is exempt from any requirement for publication.
(c)A hearing date shall not be set in the proceeding unless an objection is timely filed and shows good cause for opposing the name change. Objections based solely on concerns that the proposed change is not the petitioner's actual gender identity or gender assigned at birth shall not constitute good cause. At the hearing, the court may examine under oath any of the petitioners, remonstrants, or other persons touching the petition or application, and may make an order changing the name or dismissing the petition or application as the court may deem right and proper.
(d)This section shall become inoperative on July 1, 2026, and, as of January 1, 2027, is repealed.
§ 1277.5. Name Change to Conform to Gender Identity — Operative 7/1/2026
(a)If a proceeding for a change of name to conform an adult petitioner's name to their gender identity is commenced by the filing of a petition, the court shall, without hearing and within six weeks of the petition's filing, enter an order that the change of name is granted, except as provided in Section 1279.5.
(1)If a proceeding for a change of name to conform a minor petitioner's name to their gender identity is commenced by the filing of a petition, and that petition includes the signatures of all of the minor's living parents, the court shall, without hearing and within six weeks of the filing of the petition, enter an order that the change of name is granted, except as provided in Section 1279.5.
(2)
(A)If a proceeding for change of name to conform a minor petitioner's name to their gender identity is commenced by the filing of a petition, and that petition does not include the signatures of all of the minor's living parents, the court shall make an order reciting the filing of the petition, the name of the person by whom it is filed, and the name proposed.
(B)The order shall direct all persons interested in the matter to make known any objection to the change of name by filing a written objection, which includes any reasons for the objection, within six weeks of the making of the order, and shall state that if no objection showing good cause to oppose the name change is timely filed, the court shall, without hearing, enter the order that the change of name is granted after the completion of the six weeks, except as provided in Section 1279.5.
(C)The petition and the order shall be served on any parent who did not sign the petition, pursuant to Section 413.10, 414.10, 415.10, or 415.40, within four weeks from the date on which the order is made by the court. If service cannot reasonably be accomplished pursuant to Section 415.10 or 415.40, the court may order that service be accomplished in a manner that the court determines is reasonably calculated to give actual notice to the parent who did not sign the petition.
(D)A hearing date shall not be set in the proceeding unless an objection is timely filed and shows good cause for opposing the name change. Objections based solely on concerns that the proposed change is not the petitioner's actual gender identity or gender assigned at birth shall not constitute good cause. At the hearing, the court may examine under oath any of the petitioners, remonstrants, or other persons touching the petition or application, and may make an order changing the name or dismissing the petition or application as the court may deem right and proper.
(c)The proceeding for a change of name to conform the petitioner's name to the petitioner's gender identity is exempt from any requirement for publication.
(d)This section shall become operative on July 1, 2026.
Plain-English Summary
This section carves out a distinct, more private track within Title 8 for petitioners changing their name to conform to their gender identity, separate from the general process in §§ 1276 through 1278. In both the version now current and the version replacing it, this kind of petition never has to be published in a newspaper -- a meaningful departure from the general rule, given how sensitive this information can be.
Through June 30, 2026, the process works by objection: the court issues an order describing the petition, gives anyone six weeks to file a written objection with reasons, and grants the name change without a hearing if no timely objection arrives. A hearing happens only when someone objects and shows good cause -- and disagreement with the petitioner's stated gender identity is expressly not good cause. If a minor's petition doesn't carry both living parents' signatures, the order gets served on the parent who didn't sign, within 30 days of the order.
Starting July 1, 2026, the law simplifies the adult petitioner's path further: the court grants the name change within six weeks, without a hearing and without any objection window at all, subject only to § 1279.5's sex-offender-registrant carve-out. A minor petitioner signed by every living parent gets that same automatic path. But a minor's petition missing a parent's signature still follows something like the older objection-based procedure -- an order goes out, the nonsigning parent gets served within four weeks, and a hearing happens only if a timely objection shows good cause, with the same rule that disagreement over gender identity alone doesn't count.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does a gender-identity name-change petition require newspaper publication?
No. Section 1277.5 exempts this kind of petition from any publication requirement, under both the version in effect through June 30, 2026 and the version that follows it.
What changes for adult petitioners starting July 1, 2026?
The court grants the petition automatically within six weeks, with no objection period and no hearing required at all, except as provided in § 1279.5.
What counts as good cause to object to a gender-identity name change?
The statute doesn't define good cause affirmatively, but it specifically excludes objections based solely on disagreement that the proposed name matches the petitioner's actual gender identity or gender assigned at birth.
What happens if only one parent signs a minor's gender-identity name-change petition?
The other parent must be served with the order, and a hearing is held only if that parent (or another interested person) files a timely objection showing good cause.
Amendment History
Operative Until 7/1/2026
Amended by Stats 2025 ch 723 (AB 1084),s 1, eff. 1/1/2026. Amended by Stats 2018 ch 776 (AB 3250),s 11, eff. 1/1/2019. Added by Stats 2017 ch 853 (SB 179),s 5, eff. 1/1/2018.
Operative 7/1/2026
Added by Stats 2025 ch 723 (AB 1084),s 2, eff. 1/1/2026.
Source & verification. Section text is reproduced verbatim from
the Deering's California Codes Annotated / vLex. Enacted by the California Legislature.
Last verified July 29, 2026.
· Official source
Also known as:name change gender identity californiatransgender name change process californianonbinary name change court