Portia takes Ellen’s name

Portia de Rossi has officially taken wife Ellen DeGeneres’s last name.

A Los Angeles Superior Court commissioner granted Ms de Rossi’s request to take the last name of her partner during a closed hearing yesterday. The television star will now legally be known as Portia Lee James DeGeneres. The couple married in August 2008 during the five-month window in which gay marriage was legal in California. The 37-year-old Australian-born actress asked for the name change last month. Neither woman attended the hearing.

Portia DeGeneres is well-known for her roles on several television series, including Ally McBeal, Arrested Development and Better Off Ted.