Note: The DearEsq free 'ask a lawyer' site is offered as a free informational service to the public and is not intended as legal advice. Laws vary from state-to-state, and in addition every situation is unique, and relevant facts may not be known. The answer to the question posed below may not apply to in your state or to your situation. For legal advice in your state and your situation you should consult with an attorney in your state who is familiar with the rules and laws in your state.
“My daughter is 18 and diabetic. She is a senior in high school. She completely depends on me for everything – food, shelter, medical. She does have a part time job. She has pulled so many things with us and we have tried counseling and all the good things but she continues to push at us. I live in Indiana. All she talks about is getting emancipated so she can do whatever she wants. Can this be done? Because I looked and everywhere I have looked says that it can’t.”
If your daughter is 18, she is already technically an adult, and so does not need to get emancipated. She can do whatever she wants, *legally*. But if she is in your home, she has to live with your rules. That means that your choice is to work with her, or kick her out.
Indiana *may* have a law that says that you are responsible until she finishes high school or turns 19, whichever comes first, but that would mean at most you have until she is 19 or graduates from high school (again, whichever comes first) before you are no longer legally responsible, and in many states you would be off the hook right now. And, that is a different question – again, at 18, your daughter *is* effectively emancipated. Tell her that, and tell her “let us know where to send your things.”
Relatedly, typically a parent cannot emancipate their children – only a child can request emancipation (or an agency on their behalf), and this is specifically so that parents cannot get out of their obligations to their children until they reach the age of majority.
But, again, your daughter has *already* reached that age.
Have you considered talking to the guidance counsellor at her school, and asking them for, well, guidance, and asking them what the ramifications would be if you kicked her out at this point?
