Legal Question in Family Law in New Jersey
Collage,child support, emancipation
My son is 18 years old and living with his father at the present. In December 2002 he left a university collage where he attended sice Sept. that year. His father took me to court and the judge ordered me to pay 30% of that collages tuition. In January 2003 my son signed up to attend a local(5 minutes away) community collage with full classes 15 credits for the semister. Am I still obligated to pay the orginal cost? Cause this collage is Alot less then the first??? Also when would he be considered emancipated? He has his own bills, credit card, auto insurence, and a $3000 student loan he took out for the first collage. His father seems to think I would have to pay more then what I'm already paying cause he says I would still have to pay for his child support(roof over his head and food) while he's living with him on top of the money I already pay for the collage. I am now a stay at home mom with a 15 month year old baby and have been since August of 2001. I know I have obligations but in our divorce degree the collage issue was Never mentioned.
I hope you can help me in some way, Thank you in advance.
2 Answers from Attorneys
Re: College,child support, emancipation
College issues can get very complicated and are very fact sensitive. How much you would be required to pay cannot be determined based on what you have provided in your question. You really need to have a consultation with an attorney before an answer can be given. Keep in mind that this advice is based purely on the little bit of information that you have given to me. There certainly may be other factors that would change my opinion. Further, no one can rely on advice from an attorney who has not been retained. Since it appears that you have not retained an attorney, you may want to contact an attorney (either me or someone else) to discuss your matter in more detail. Only then will you be able to rely on the advice. Good luck! Rob Gleaner
Re: Collage,child support, emancipation
You should only be responsible for a percentage of the actual costs. Child support often changes once a child reaches 18 as the Child Support Guidelines no longer apply. Further, the definition of emancipation is based upon the child reaching 18 and not being enrolled full time in a college or university and other issues. Based upon the information you provided, that is the only defining issue although there are other bases for declaring a child emancipated. If your son stops attending college full time, you may make an application with the Court for emancipation and to terminate child support. If you would like to further discuss this matter, please feel free to contact my secretary, Debbie, at 856-795-=6700 to schedule a consultation
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