Clinics hosted by the UToledo OUTLaw organization were open to all Lucas County residents, including members of the LGBTQIA+ community.
TOLEDO, Ohio — Students at the University of Toledo Law School hosted a name change clinic for people living in Lucas County on Saturday.
OUTLaw, an LGBTQIA+ student organization, provided free legal assistance to participants under the supervision of an attorney.
The organization has also set up a community closet in the clinic with clothing that transgender and nonbinary members can wear for free if they wish.
Local fashion designer Jella Kaitlyn Whitaker went through the process of changing her name several years ago, and events like this show are put on for members of the LGBTQIA+ community to feel like themselves.
“Saturdays are a commodity for all law students who volunteer Saturdays,” Whitaker said.
Whittaker wishes groups like OUTLaw existed when they went through the renaming process in 2014.
She is happy to see organizations stepping up to help others, whether they belong to the LGBTQIA+ community or not.
“I lived in Omaha, Nebraska, and there weren’t many resources for trans people at the time, so I started digging into this myself,” Whitaker said.
She says she took her to the library to study renaming theory before realizing she needed help.
“There are ways to do it, but I think the most common way for trans people is to hire a lawyer,” she said.
She said she was able to navigate the process, which mostly involved going through the court system, thanks to a good, affordable attorney and team.
She was required in Nebraska to notify the public in newspapers that her name had been changed in order to prove that she was not for illegal or dishonest reasons.
She has successfully changed her name in Nebraska, but the process may vary by location.
Whitaker said going through the process helped her connect with her true identity, but at the end of the day, she’s transgender because she doesn’t feel what her name is.
There are many things involved in the process, so she advises others not to do it alone. She said it can be done with the right help.
“Don’t do this yourself. You’re dealing with the IRS. You’re dealing with Social Security. You’re dealing with a lot of things that need to be dealt with. Lawyers That’s how they’re trained,” Whitaker said.
