The process of changing your name from what it was at birth, marriage or adoption requires a legal act by way of court approval, if you want to do it right.
Other than for fraudulent purposes you can change your name at any point in your life, the Fourteenth Amendment of the US Constitution allows you to change your name. You may choose one of several forms to deal with the name change, the most common is “at will”. State laws can still regulate name changes at will but are unable …