Hello,

If you are under the age of 18, can you go to court to be declared an
adult? If so, what is involved in that process?

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Clarification of Question by ghard296-ga on 11 Feb 2003 19:41 PST

There is a tip in it for you if you can give me the URL of a website
with lots o' laws on it and stuff.

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Request for Question Clarification by justaskscott-ga on 11 Feb 2003 19:42 PST

Which country/state/province should the answer relate to?

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Clarification of Question by ghard296-ga on 11 Feb 2003 19:57 PST

It should relate to both MA and CA.

A minor who has been declared an adult by court order is called an
"emancipated minor." This status may be granted by a judge upon
demonstration of the individual's maturity and independence from
parental control and financial support.

Here are a couple of interesting articles on the subject:

"Although in some states a minor can become emancipated simply by
declaring himself or herself emancipated, in California a minor over
the age of 14 has to petition the court and obtain a declaration of
emancipation from a judge (in) a complex proceeding."

The Latest Magazine: Emancipation of Minors or How to Divorce One's
Parents
http://www.thelatestmagazine.com/issues/0601/article7.html

"By Massachusetts law, for instance, someone under 18 is emancipated
if he or she is married, widowed or divorced; is a member of the armed
forces; has a child; or lives independently from parents and is
managing his or her own financial affairs (even if, as some interpret
it, this means living on the streets and panhandling.)"

Boston Globe: For Teenager, 'Confidential' Is Conditional
http://www.boston.com/globe/columns/foreman/archive/011899.htm

Here are details on the emancipation of minors in California:

Emancipated Minors
http://chhd.csun.edu/shelia/436/lecture0405.html

The actual California code which relates to this matter:

Official California Legislative Information: Family Code, Section
7000-7002
http://www.leginfo.ca.gov/cgi-bin/displaycode?section=fam&group=06001-07000&file=7000-7002

Here you will information and reference sources related to
emancipation of minors in Massachusetts (very vague, compared to
California):

http://www.lawlib.state.ma.us/emancipate.html

The actual Massachusetts code regarding minors:

General Laws of Massachusetts
http://www.state.ma.us/legis/laws/mgl/gl-201-toc.htm

Here are a number of links relating to the emancipation of minors in
other states:

Juvenile Law Center: Emancipation in the United States
http://www.jlc.org/home/info/FAQ/emancipUSA.html

Boston Coop: Statutory and Judicial Emancipation of Minors
http://www.bostoncoop.net/lcd/emancipation/emancipation_chart.html

Cornell Law School: Laws of the Fifty States, District of Columbia and
Puerto Rico Governing the Emancipation of Minors
http://www.law.cornell.edu/topics/Table_Emancipation.htm

My Google search strategy:

Google Web Search: "emancipated minor"
://www.google.com/search?hl=en&ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8&q=%22emancipated+minor

Google Web Search: "emancipated minor" + "california"
://www.google.com/search?hl=en&ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8&q=%22emancipated+minor%22+california

Google Web Search: "emancipated minor" + "massachusetts"
://www.google.com/search?hl=en&ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8&q=%22emancipated+minor%22+massachusetts

Keep in mind that this answer is for purposes of information only, and
should not be taken as authoritative legal advice. I would strongly
advise a person who is seriously considering petitioning the court for
emancipated minor status to consult an attorney.

I hope this is useful. If anything I've said is unclear or incomplete,
please request clarification before rating my answer, and I'll try to
offer further assistance.

Best wishes,
pinkfreud