I will give you the NC code below, but if she can prove she is living on her own and able to support herself and has good cause for the emancipation she can apply for emancipation. She can get legal aid to assist her and depending on the case situation the court could make her pay, make you pay, make you split the court costs or even waive costs. The cost of any emancipation in NC is generally less than $500 if there is no contest and generally she can get legal aid representation. I know that this is not what you want for her, it would kill me too as a parent. However, fighting her would not help the situation either. If she is living on her own and able to support herself without governmental or parental assistance, the court can grant the emancipation.

Once the court declares emancipation, you are not liable for her or her debts. Once the emancipation is filed, you would not be liable for her if the emancipation is granted, back to the date of the filing of the emancipation petition.

Honestly, fighting with her over this is not going to help the situation. It is going to take her at least 3-6 months to get the hearing and order, which means by the time it is granted she will be only months away from 18 and being able to go off on her own anyhow. If you cannot resolve this rift with her and try to get counseling or someone to sit with everyone to negotiate it, I am afraid sometimes you just have to let go and hope that she will heal and come back.

Here are the NC codes:

§ 7B-3500. Who may petition.


Any juvenile who is 16 years of age or older and who has resided in the same county in North Carolina or on federal territory within the boundaries of North Carolina for six months next preceding the filing of the petition may petition the court in that county for a judicial decree of emancipation.


§ 7B-3501. Petition.


The petition shall be signed and verified by the petitioner and shall contain the following information:


(1) The full name of the petitioner and the petitioner's birth date, and state and county of birth;


(2) A certified copy of the petitioner's birth certificate;


(3) The name and last known address of the parent, guardian, or custodian;


(4) The petitioner's address and length of residence at that address;


(5) The petitioner's reasons for requesting emancipation; and


(6) The petitioner's plan for meeting the petitioner's needs and living expenses which plan may include a statement of employment and wages earned that is verified by the petitioner's employer.


§ 7B-3502. Summons.


A copy of the filed petition along with a summons shall be served upon the petitioner's parent, guardian, or custodian who shall be named as respondents. The summons shall include the time and place of the hearing and shall notify the respondents to file written answer within 30 days after service of the summons and petition. In the event that personal service cannot be obtained, service shall be in accordance with G.S. 1A-1, Rule 4(j).


§ 7B-3503. Hearing.


The court, sitting without a jury, shall permit all parties to present evidence and to cross-examine witnesses. The petitioner has the burden of showing by a preponderance of the evidence that emancipation is in the petitioner's best interests. Upon finding that reasonable cause exists, the court may order the juvenile to be examined by a psychiatrist, a licensed clinical psychologist, a physician, or any other expert to evaluate the juvenile's mental or physical condition. The court may continue the hearing and order investigation by a court counselor or by the county department of social services to substantiate allegations of the petitioner or respondents.


No husband-wife or physician-patient privilege shall be grounds for excluding any evidence in the hearing.


§ 7B-3504. Considerations for emancipation.


In determining the best interests of the petitioner and the need for emancipation, the court shall review the following considerations:


(1) The parental need for the earnings of the petitioner;


(2) The petitioner's ability to function as an adult;


(3) The petitioner's need to contract as an adult or to marry;


(4) The employment status of the petitioner and the stability of the petitioner's living arrangements;


(5) The extent of family discord which may threaten reconciliation of the petitioner with the petitioner's family;


(6) The petitioner's rejection of parental supervision or support; and


(7) The quality of parental supervision or support.

I hope you found my answer helpful, but please understand that if you did not get all of the information you may have wanted PLEASE USE THE REPLY TO EXPERT LINK IF YOU HAVE FOLLOW UP QUESTIONS AND NOT THE FEEDBACK BUTTON FOR BAD SERVICE. PLEASE CLICK ON “OK,” “GOOD” or “EXCELLENT” SERVICE. Kindly remember to ONLY rate my answer when you are fully satisfied. If you feel the need to rate anything less than OK, please stop and reply to me via the or REPLY TO EXPERT button with whatever issue or clarification you may need.

I truly aim to please you as a customer, but please keep in mind that I do not know what you already know or don't know, or with what you need help, unless you tell me. Please consider that I am answering the question or question that is posed in your posting based upon my reading of your post and sometimes misunderstandings can occur. If I did not answer the question you thought you were asking, please respond with the specific question you wanted answered.

Also remember, sometimes the law does not support what we want it to support, but that is not the fault of the person answering the question, so please be courteous.

PLEASE NOTE WELL, LEGAL ANSWERS TAKE MORE THAN “MINUTES” TO PUT TOGETHER AS WE ARE DEALING WITH LAWS OF 50 STATES PLUS FEDERAL LAWS, AS WELL AS DEALING WITH OTHER CUSTOMERS, SO PLEASE BE PATIENT IT WILL BE MORE THAN “MINUTES” IN SOME CASES BEFORE YOU GET A RESPONSE, BUT BE ASSURED YOU ARE NOT BEING IGNORED.

There can also be a delay of an hour or more in between my answers because I may be helping other customers or taking a break.

You can always request me through my profile at http://www.justanswer.com/law/expert-paulmjd/ or beginning your question with “For PaulMJD…”