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'NJweedman.com' Can't Legally Change His Name to Website: CA Court

By Cynthia Hsu, Esq. on September 02, 2011 | Last updated on March 21, 2019

Ed Forchion's "NJWeedman.com" name change has been denied by a California court.

Who is Ed Forchion? Forchion is staunch advocate of marijuana, and runs the Liberty Bell Temple in Hollywood where he distributes marijuana. The mission statement for the temple is to provide "sacrament to our faith" which is in marijuana and to provide for "those in need of this Holy Medicine," according to the court opinion.

In addition to being a marijuana advocate, Forchion has tried running for office as an independent candidate in New Jersey. He has also battled criminal charges levied against him for possessing marijuana.

And to state the obvious, Forchion is in charge of a website called NJWeedman.com. Apparently, he is so associated with the site that he decided to have his name legally changed. Unfortunately, a court has ruled against him.

The reason for its denial?

The court says that the name change would change Forchion's legal name to "NJWeedman.com" for an indefinite period of time. But, there's no guarantee that Forchion will be able own the website forever. He could fail to register, causing the website to turn to a different owner. This could cause confusion if Forchion's name was the same as the website.

And, the name change would make Forchion's name point to a website that advises individuals to break the law.

While everyone has the right to change their name, sometimes courts may deny the change under certain exceptions. For example, you can't change your name just so you can dodge some bills or escape criminal liability. And, you cannot change your name with the intention to mislead the public, such as changing your name to a celebrity's name.

Those looking to change your name shouldn't fear. Though the court believes that Ed Forchion's desire to have an NJWeedman.com name change is crossing a line, it seems that most people won't run into similar problems.

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