The Pros And Cons Of Emancipation Of Minors

Child Emancipation is a decision between the teenager and the legal guardian. For most families, this isn’t an issue, but in some cases, it is a major life changer for the teenager. Child Emancipation is “a procedure by which a minor[teenager] may become independent of his or her parents before reaching the age of majority[age of 18 in most states]”(Arnest 1). Although an emancipated minor will take on their own responsibilities as a young adult at an early age, the option should be their last choice in order to preserve a stable transition from depending on someone else to an independent individual over several years. A teenager cannot simply leave his/her family and call themselves an emancipated minor. There is a long, technical process in the courtroom. Prior to even entering the courtroom, the child must meet requirements: minimum age in the state to apply for emancipation, parents acknowledgement[states may vary], residence, citizenship, and the reason for an emancipation (“Emancipation of Minors: The Court Procedure”). Most of the time, it is not even worth it if the individual is almost the age of majority. One of the few exceptions of becoming emancipated without going through the entire process is when the

It is usually the last resort decision upon careful analysis among the state and the family. In “What are the alternatives to emancipation of a minor,” the state provides “better options” before considering emancipation. The cases involving physical and/or mental abuse from the legal guardian, the state will “remove the child from the home and place them in foster care” until further notice. The state provides social workers, temporary custody of another adult, counseling for the family, etc for the individual (“What are alternatives to emancipating a minor”). The government will only intervene if it is necessary by the