Sometimes life circumstances place a young person in need of legal emancipation from parents. Perhaps the parents are in jail or incompetent because of drug or alcohol addiction. Perhaps a parent is homeless, destitute and impoverished, and the other parent’s whereabouts are unknown. Perhaps a teenager is estranged from his or her parents. Perhaps the parents died in a recent car accident, and the young person is capable of managing without a legal guardian.
Experienced Help for Minors Seeking Emancipation
Whatever the situation, a teenager may need to be emancipated in order to drive a car, enroll in school, get medical care, marry while still a minor, tap into a trust fund or get access to life insurance benefits without a parent’s permission or involvement.
Assuming that the young person is financially self-sufficient and has valid reasons for wanting or needing legal emancipation from parents or guardians, a judge may approve of a petition for emancipation. A knowledgeable family law and child custody lawyer is a valuable resource for a young person seeking an emancipation order for legitimate reasons.
Alternatives to Legal Guardianship
Perhaps you are a caring adult in such a young person’s life and are looking for legal advice on how to help that child without becoming a legal guardian. You may have been appointed a temporary legal guardian after the accidental death of the parents, but now the young person feels ready to make his or her own decisions. Guardianship may solve some of the legal issues that the young person is grappling with, but you may feel that emancipation of the minor is more appropriate in this teenager’s life.
What are the steps needed for an Arizona minor to be emancipated? Lawyer Stephanie Jackson or lawyer Nicole Lasiter can answer your questions and guide you as you pursue an emancipation order if it is the best solution to your family situation.
Contact Our Caring Family Law Attorneys
At Lasiter & Jackson, we provide understanding and compassion for the delicate issues associated with guardianship, adoption, divorce and other family law matters. We serve clients from throughout Maricopa County and Pinal County. Temporary guardianship may be an option that would work better in your case. Individual circumstances vary greatly, so the best way to get the answers and direction that you need is to discuss your situation with an experienced attorney.
Contact our law office in Phoenix to discuss your family law or probate issues.