I’m fifteen and I’m looking into emancipation from my parents. I’ve googled and searched and such… but I need help.
first of all, I live in Missouri.
Do I need a lawyer? How would I find one? How much would it cost?
What are the requirements? Do I have to be over a certain age or have my parents’ consent or stay in school or what?
Once I’m emancipated, what do I do about things like contracts and consent? Can I sign them myself, or do I have to still have a parent? What about my bank account? Will I be able to get my driver’s license by myself? buy a car?
Would my recent hospitalization for anorexia pose a problem? I heard that it might but the person I heard it from wasn’t sure.
What do I do about health insurance? Just… go without until I can afford to pay for it myself?
What if my parents are not on board with this idea? A lot of the people I’ve talked to who moved out before age 18 were either pregnant, married, or had parents who didn’t mind. my parents would never agree to something that would make them look bad.
I do have a job and have had several offers for other jobs, so if I made a few (big, but worth it) sacrifices, I could actually support myself and stay in school. I do think it might be a good idea to wait til I turn 16 to actually launch, but I still want to know what I’m doing.
I am not a lawyer. However, I’m almost positive that you will need a lawyer, and that it will cost a lot of time and energy.
Do you have anyone at all who would act as your guardian for the next few years? A grandparent, uncle or aunt, older sibling? When I was 16 and living in Missouri, I was able to go back to Texas and live with my grandparents for the next couple of years, which was the best thing for everyone involved. IMO, getting someone else to act as a guardian would probably be better for you than emancipation.
I haven’t been here in a while, so I don’t know if you still are looking for answers…
I am not a lawyer, but a Mental Health professional who worked with adolescents in Massachusetts. 2 of the adolescents I used to work with sought emancipation.
First of all, you should definitely think about who will be your support during this. Are there people you can stay with? This can be a long and ugly process, and you can’t fight with your parents in court and then all go home together and coexist. It just doesn’t work. What happens if you are not emancipated? Will you still have to live with your family? That might make a bad situation even worse. Are there other family members who could be your guardian?
Yes, your hospitalization will be used against you. Very likely your parents’ lawyer will try to use this as proof that you cannot make good decisions for yourself. One of the kids that I worked with had had a psych hospitalization and her mother’s lawyer did just this. However, her treatment team was prepared for this and had lined up enough opinion that the psych problems were at least partially a result of mental cruelty. Who is on your treatment team? Can they help? I know you are trying your hardest in recovery, but you do need to make sure that you are healthy when you appear in front of a judge.
As for health insurance, some states (maybe all?) require that children have access to subsidized care, so you might be automatically enrolled in your state’s medicaid plan. Since you work, you may have to pay into it; I have no idea.
Incidentally, both of the kids I worked with eventually decided (with guidance) to accept other relatives as guardians. In both cases, it was very difficult to get the parents to terminate parental rights. I tell you this not to discourage you (quite honestly, your parents sound like assholes) but to provide you with the reality that you will have to work very hard for this AND that you might want to consider other acceptable solutions as well. But I have long wondered how you can live with your family treating you the way they do, and it doesn’t surprisse me that you are thinking of this. The good news is that you are bright and articulate and that will help your case a lot.
I have to go, but these are just some ideas for now.