Legal Question in Family Law in Maryland

emancipation of child re child support

Whether you can legally avoid paying support based on emancipation will probably depend on the language of your husband's separation agreement if one was made at the time of or prior to the divorce. A well-written agreement would define emancipation. If there was no agreeement, just the fact that the child is no longer living with the mother is grounds for applying for termination of support. Since child support stops when she turns 18, it may not be worth it to file court papers at this late date, especially if you would expect to hire an attorney to do so. You can't legally stop support without a court order, unless the existing child support order provides for automatically stopping payments once a certain event takes place (such as turning 18, getting married, full-time employment, etc.). The order can be made retroactive to take effect on the day you file your court papers in the discretion of the judge who hears the case later on.