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IAW provides full-scope legal services to all our clients who file court petitions, which means that we list ourselves as your attorney in court petitions. Why do we represent you in the court petition? Most Bar Associations and law school clinics fill out paperwork for you and provide instructions, but then you are on your own. IAW recognizes that, while usually nothing goes wrong with name and gender change petitions, sometimes they do. Representing you in court also allows us to contact the courthouse on your behalf and pick up copies of court orders from the courthouse. This can save you a lot of time, energy, and confusion, so you can focus on your transition and not the bureaucratic processes. 9 out of 10 court petitions go through without any sort of issue, but some California counties create barriers and occasionally one-of-a-kind situations arise. We are on your side no matter what, throughout the entire process.
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All of our services are always pro bono. This means that you do not need to pay any money to access these legal services. We do not screen clients based on income or ability to pay. The only costs you may need to pay are court filing fees and other related court costs. However, if you are low-income or receive any kind of government benefits, you may qualify for a court fee waiver, which IAW will fill out for you. If you do not qualify for a court fee waiver but cannot afford the court costs, financial assistance may be available thanks to our generous donors. IAW’s goal is to ensure that everyone has unqualified access to the name and gender change process. Please never hesitate to ask for financial assistance at any stage of the process. If you do have the ability to pay, we are always happy to accept tax-deductible donations through our website to help with fee assistance for other clients.
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No in-person meetings are required at any stage of the process and all signatures are completed electronically, from start to finish. To get started, all you will need to do is sign a 4-page legal services agreement, which allows IAW to represent you in court, and fill out a Google Form that contains all the information IAW will need to process your application. In addition to acting as your attorney in a court petition, IAW also will assist however much is necessary in completing applications to update identity documents after the court petition is completed, including birth certificates, Social Security records, driver’s licenses, identifications, passports, green cards, marriage certificates, diplomas, and more. These services are also free and included in the scope of the legal services agreement! IAW also offers no-cost, in-person notarizations for birth certificate applications within the San Francisco Bay Area.
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