Minor emancipation: What is it, and is it automatically conferred?

If you’re under the so-called “age of majority” and already perusing this blog from time to time, you certainly qualify as a comparatively unusual — even distinctly singular — young person.

And you could be demonstrating some of the traits that an Illinois court centrally looks for when it vets petitions for the emancipation of minors — a sense of awareness, independence, maturity and so forth.

That is not to say, of course, that most young people still living with their parents are interested in invoking the judicial process to break free of parental constraints and live independently. Statistically, an emancipated minor is a rarity. Most juveniles live with their parents until they are 18 — that aforementioned age of majority — and then automatically become legally emancipated.

In some instances, though, there can be exceptions, with emancipation orders being issued in select cases to persons younger than 18 who seek to live independently. As noted in an online primer addressing the emancipation of minors in Illinois, a judicial order can be issued in some cases for individuals as young as 16.

Sometimes a minor is deemed to be legally emancipated absent a judicial order even before reaching the age of 18, with a development such as marriage or military enlistment conferring that status.

In other situations, though, special circumstances can result in a judge granting an emancipation order. Those can include evidence of a minor already living independently and having steady income, and with parents not objecting to the emancipation request.

Minor emancipation is unquestionably an interesting area of law. Questions or concerns about the process and requirements can be directed to a proven minor emancipation attorney.