Guardianship for a Minor in Florida

[yellow06]

I'm 17 years old and I moved to Florida Dec. 2005 to finish high school and go to college, but I came without my mom; she stayed in El Salvador, and I'm living with a relative. When I came here, I brought a document signed by my mom and an attorney that states that she is declaring the relative I'm living with my legal guardian, but now that I'm filling out my college applications it says that I shoud send a document from a Florida court that declares legal guardianship. The document I have was not issued by a court in Florida, and this is very important for me because that is the only way that I would be considered a Florida resident for tuition purposes. My question is, what is the process to get a Florida court document for legal guardianship for minors with my mother being outside the U.S.? I would appreciate your help.
Thank you

[seniorjudge]

Q: My question is, what is the process to get a Florida court document for legal guardianship for minors with my mother being outside the U.S.?

A: Hire a lawyer and to get your guardianship set up. Don't necessarily expect a Florida school to accept it as bona fide evidence of your residency.

[aaron]

Your relative may wish to check with the county court to see if they have forms she can use to petition for a guardianship of you. If they're comfortable doing so and standard forms are available, they should be able to handle the petition and court appearances themselves and save the cost of legal fees.