Though your parents probably meant your name to last a lifetime, remember that the hopes and dreams they cherished when they chose it may not match yours. If your name no longer seems to     1    you, don't despair; you aren't     2    with the label. Screen stars    3    tailor their names, and with some determination, you can, too.
    Legal rules are more     4    in this matter than you might expect. How many newlyweds,     5    , are aware that no law requires a woman to     6    her husband's name? Not only that, but in most states parents can give their children any name they wish,     7    it's not that of either parent. Jane Fonda and Tom Hayden, for example, named their son Tony Garrity.
    If you do wish to     8    a new name, you don't need an attorney to make the switch official.     9    common law, all that's necessary is to start using the name of your choice. Remember,     10    , that you must use it everywhere-even     11    your mother-for it to become your     12    name. You must also change all your identification papers and     13    . Your Social Security number will remain the same; just fill     14    form SS-5 at your local Social Security office, and they'll     15    the Internal Revenue Service. Be sure to practice your new signature until you write it naturally and     16   
    Getting friends to call you Leah instead of Lola may be harder than any paperwork     17    , but you'll probably encounter official resistance, too. Be assured that no law should     18    you from using whatever name you've established for any transaction,     19    it's not for purposes of fraud, unfair competition, or to otherwise     20    any illegal activity.