Can you change the name of the father on a Massachusetts Birth Certificate?

This is a fairly frequent question that people ask. Sometimes there is a question about not knowing who the father is at the time of the birth.  You could be married to someone who is not actually the biological father; or even discovering later on that the father listed on the birth certificate was an error and is not the biological father in fact.

However, in Massachusetts sometimes it is easy and sometimes it is not as easy.  You first have to establish paternity.  Then after establishing paternity you can notify the town or clerk’s office.

Paternity can be established at any time and changing the name of the child can also occur at any time afterwards.  Sometimes it may be a simple process and sometimes there may be significant impediments to doing it or restrictions to doing it. Each case is somewhat unique, but there are certainly a mechanism to change the name of the father and even the child on the Birth Certificate.