As a minor, you have a legal “disability” that prevents you from entering into contracts, filing lawsuits on your own behalf, or getting married. Among other decisions, your parents have the legal right to control these choices until you turn 18. Seeking emancipation in Texas can remove this legal disability and give you the right to make these decisions for yourself.
To discuss the benefits of emancipation and schedule a confidential legal consultation with our Houston, TX emancipation attorneys, contact The Queenan Law Firm today. Our family law attorneys help 16- and 17-year-olds petition the court for emancipation and claim the legal right to make these powerful decisions for themselves. To set up your legal consultation with our attorneys, contact our law offices today at (817) 476-1797.
Reasons for Emancipation from Your Parents Texas
Minors in Texas are beholden to their parents for many legal decisions. With emancipation, you remove your legal “disabilities” and take back the right to make the following decisions for yourself:
- Form contracts
- Get married
- Make educational decisions
- Make healthcare decisions
- File lawsuits
- Make other legal decisions
In many cases, emancipation is used to give minors the right to make these decisions because their parents will not permit them to make decisions that would be beneficial in their lives. In other cases, emancipation can be good for the whole family.
Many families choose to have their children emancipated for beneficial reasons. Emancipated minors entering into contract or filing lawsuits may gain a stronger benefit of the transaction by performing the business or filing the lawsuit in their name as opposed to filing through their parents. Additionally, emancipation is a necessary step for a minor to get married, even if they have their parent’s permission to get married.
Whether you are involved in a dispute with your parent and need to be emancipated to pursue your own best interests or emancipation would be helpful for your whole family, you should speak with an attorney to understand your eligibility and the effects of emancipation in your case.
Eligibility for Emancipation in Texas
To file for emancipation, you need to meet certain standards. Even though the court typically requires you to file lawsuits and other petitions through your parents or another responsible adult, you may file petitions for emancipation on your own. Since emancipation severs legal ties and gives you a right to file in your own name, it would be backward if the courts required your parent’s permission to file an emancipation petition.
Before a court will consider your petition, there are certain requirements to meet:
- You must reside in Texas.
- You need to be 16 or 17 – Emancipation is not available for minors younger than 16.
- You must have financial independence from your parents. Sixteen-year-olds must also live apart from their parents.
The petition you file with the court mostly contains biographical information, such as your address, your name, and the addresses and names of your parents or guardians. However, you must also provide information about the reasons you are seeking emancipation. This means telling the court why emancipation would be in your best interests and what you would use the emancipation for. If your goal is to enter into a business agreement, seek healthcare your parents will not approve, or get married as a minor, you would include this kind of information in your petition. An attorney can help you write a petition that best explains your case in a way that the court should accept.
Once the court receives and reviews your petition, it will schedule a court date to examine your case. The court must determine that emancipation is a good option before they will grant your emancipation. If the judge doubts that you have the ability to support yourself financially or thinks that your decisions will be harmful without a parent’s approval, the judge might deny the petition, and you will have to wait until you are 18 to make these decisions for yourself.
To present your case in the most convincing way, it is important to talk to an attorney about your case so that they can advocate for you and your best interests before the court, working to get your emancipation granted.
For a Confidential Legal Consultation on Your Emancipation Case, Contact Our Houston Emancipation Lawyers
If you are seeking emancipation to take back the power to make your own healthcare decisions, educational decisions, and legal decisions, contact The Queenan Law Firm. Our Houston emancipation attorneys represent minors seeking emancipation and families seeking to emancipate their children and remove legal disabilities associated with being a minor. To schedule a legal consultation on your case, contact our attorneys today at (817) 476-1797.