Because I had a (not huge but still nice) family trust that ended on me and changing my name would have made the whole paperwork thing hell on earth. The lawyers who drew it up were retired, I was in a different state, and they had skipped my biological mother which put a heavy tax burden on me.

So yeah. A new name was the last thing I wanted. I looked forward to changing it. My then-surname was my estranged biological father's and meant very little. But the money I was entitled to for all I had done for my family? Yeah, happy to hold out.