[tjewels]

I am the guardian of a teenage girl who has been through a lot lately. She is the child of her father's first marriage and her mother is deceased. He subsequently had two sons in his second marriage which just ended in divorce, resulting in a multimillion dollar settlement for his second wife (he is an MD with a successful practice). Those children are guaranteed more than ample child support from the divorce settlement. However, this same man has been physically abusing his daughter for years, which the stepmother also knew about. He was recently caught red-handed by police called by neighbors after having badly beat her while in posession of a loaded gun he wasn't legally allowed to own and she was taken away from him and put into my care. Although the court has ordered child support for her and he has been paying it to date, I have been told it is possible that he will not be required to pay it if he goes to jail for illegal posession of a handgun or loses his medical license (which I have been told is a real possibility given his offenses and the fact that his license was already on probation for something else). Some friends have suggested she should sue her father to get an equal share in his wealth as her other siblings (the idea being she shouldn't be penalized financially for being beaten by her father). I am more concerned about his being able to cover her college tuition when the time comes. Is there anything that can be done now to ensure that she at least gets what is due to her in terms of child support and tuition in case he goes to jail? I know she can't be able to have the same comfortable lifestyle as her siblings (who were not physically abused, ironically, since their mother protected them) but I would hate to see her completely cheated due to events in which she was the victim!

[Mr. Knowitall]

She may be able to sue her own parents, depending upon the laws of the state where this occurred. That's something to discuss with a personal injury lawyer in that state.