Emancipation in Pennsylvania

My question involves emancipation laws for the State of: Pennsylvania

I am 16 years old and a Junior. I lived with my grandparents for 13, I then decided to move in with my father. I have been living with him for almost 3 years. My mother has not been a part of my life very much but has always been somewhere around.

My dad is over controlling, and will not let me do anything that a 16 year old should be able to do. I am not a bad kid, I am on honor roll at my school. He will not let me play softball, hang out with friends, I had a tracking device on my phone, and does not seam to want to let me go to a college of my choice, instead community college so he can keep me in his control. These are just a few examples that I have.

My mom and dad are on their way to court, they just had a mediation a couple weeks ago. My mom wants to get full custody because I can not stand to lead the life that he is giving me. Only problem is that my dad is a contoling and will do anything in his power to not give up his power. Expecially because he hates my mom with a passion.

Living with my mom would not be my first choice because of the circumstances that she's in. She has a 4 year old and a 7 month old. I have been an only child for a while and I dont know if i could handle that. Also there is no room for me at her house and I dont know if I could live with her, we have never been that close.

I want to live with a family member, but with out the fighting and the battles from my dad. Do I have a case to get emancipated?

Read this.

Pennsylvania emancipation rules vary by county. But you haven't stated any grounds for emancipation. To start with, how are you able to financially support yourself, independent of your parents?

I would support myself by getting a job, I don't know what kind of job I would need to be able to support myself. Right next to my school is a shopping center, a place where I could find plenty of jobs, easly accesable to me.

What is your county?

Jobs really aren't that accessible as you may think they are right now. You will need to get said job and keep it for a while to gain employment history.

Emancipation is not and never was intended to be a way for a teen to leave home. It was and is intended as a way to provide legal protection to those teens who, for one reason or another, found themselves on their own.

But until you actually have that job and can show a judge a plan for independent living which involves being able to fully support yourself (even if you plan to live with a family member, you have to be able to prove that you will be able to COMPLETELY support yourself in the event that the family member kicks you out, gets hit by a bus, or is transferred to Belgium and cannot or will not take you with them) including rent, food, clothes, transportation, utilities, medical care, insurance, and all the other incidentals of life, while simultaneously going to school and keeping your grades up, you are wasting your time even thinking about emancipation. That's assuming that your county permits it in the first place.