SUPPORT FOR "EMANCIPATED" CHILDREN

Pennsylvania law requires parents to support their children until the children are 18 or have graduated from high school, whichever occurs later. Children who graduate from high school while 17 are still entitled to support after high school. Conversely, children who turn 18 while enrolled in high school are not entitled to support after they graduate.

What happens to children who drop out of school? If a child is found by a judge to be "emancipated," his or her parents are no longer obliged to support the child. The child's age, marital status, ability to support himself or herself, and desire to live independently of the custodial parents are all taken into consideration by the courts. Each case is considered separately, and the detailed facts of the child's circumstances and lifestyle are relevant. The most important facts on which the courts focus relate to the child's ability to be self-supporting. If the child is unemployed and does not have a stable, regular, independent household of his or her own, the courts will be reluctant to find the child emancipated, even if the child has dropped out of school and is acting independently. In the case of divorced parents, as long as the custodial parent continues to make efforts to care for and support the child, the non-custodial parent will be required to continue to make support payments.

The information you obtain at this site is not, nor is it intended to be, legal advice. You should consult an attorney for individual advice regarding your own situation.

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