Mississippi has enacted a law that prevents any person is person who is incarcerated from obtaining a name change. The only exception to this law is that the District Attorney, the Sheriff, the Commissioner of Mississippi Department of Correction or the Chaplain for the Department of Correction may bring an action on behalf of the incarcerated person. Specifically, the law provides the following:
For purposes of this act, the following words shall have the meanings ascribed herein unless the context otherwise requires:
(a) "Change of name petition" means a petition to change the legal name of an individual.
(b) "Offender" means any physically incarcerated person convicted of a crime or offense under the laws and ordinances of the state and its political subdivisions or the laws and
(1) No offender shall have standing to file a change of name petition with the chancery court;
(b) No chancellor shall grant a change of name petition for an offender; and
(c) No chancery clerk shall file a change of name petition for an offender.
(2) A chancellor may change the name of an offender if:
(a) A district attorney files a change of name petition on behalf of an offender.
(b) A sheriff of a county in which a person is incarcerated files a change of name petition on behalf of an offender.
(c) The Commissioner of the Mississippi Department of Corrections, or his or her designee, files a change of name petition on behalf of an offender; or
(d) A Mississippi Department of Corrections Chaplain files a change of name petition on behalf of an offender.
SB 2263 (2022 Legislative Session)
Effective 7/1/22.