Legal Question in Family Law in New York
My husband had joint custody of his two sons that reside in the state of Florida with their Mother. The sons are now twenty and eighteen. According to NYS, child support is paid until they reach the age of 21 unless emacipated. We are only paying for one as the twenty year old did emacipate himself in accordance to the custody agreement.
Last week we found out the Mother died. The CS check was endorsed by someone who deposited it into her account the day before she died. No one called us including the children who were sadly punished through Parental Alienation and other forms of abuse through the years. So in essense...my husband was considered nothing more than a monthly check. He had been to court many times, but PA is difficult as you certainly must know.
The boys do have grandparents, an uncle and two aunts they are close to in the State of Florida. We are assuming they are living with one of them. It would appear they do not want us to know the Mother died in hopes of receiving more CS checks. My husband would like his sons to come to our home and attend a local university. We feel this would be in their very best interest. The problem is they are both at an age where custody doesn't apply and they can just refuse. We do not feel it would be wise to send a monthly child support check to the eighteen year old, nor do we feel obligated to send money to the grandparents or anyone else since they will continue the Mother's position against my husband and myself. We are shortly going to let the children know we are aware of their Mother's dealth and give them the choice of either coming to NY to live with their father and I or they will be financially on their own.
My question is do we have a legal responsibility to continue child support should the son not choose to live with us until 21? Are there legal steps we need to take? It is extremely doubtful that anyone in Floida will take this to court due to cost factors and the fact that New York has sole juridiction over any legal procedures pertaining to custody/CS, not the State of Florida. They would have to hire an attorney here which we are quite positive they will not do. I appreciate any advice.
Sincerely,
dee
1 Answer from Attorneys
Your question is a difficult one because of the many factors you mention. What you should consider is that the law seeks to do what is in the child's best interest. It appears from your comments that your primary concern is to exert control over the child by requiring that he move to New York in order to receive support.
Your husband is required to provide support until his son is emancipated or reaches 21-years of age. There are other factors that may be considered. First, if the 18-year old wants to stay in Florida, to be closer to his older brother, who may be unwilling to leave the state, as well as his friends and other relatives you mention, certainly that would be viewed as a reasonable decision on his part.
If the son chooses to attend college or a trade school in Florida, or merely needs some help getting by, your husband should consider voluntarily supporting his son. Obviously, if he does choose college, it would be better for him to attend college in Florida than to not attend college at all. If your husband refuses and, to your surprise, a lawsuit is commenced in New York at some point, your husband would not only likely find himself on the loosing end of that argument but, that he would have to be forced in court to pay, would probably destroy any chances of him ever reconciling with his son.
Even if your husband's 18-year old son, by way of his relatives in Florida, lacks the sophistication or means to directly take appropriate legal action against your husband, your husband may want to consider the law's guidance as to what is the right thing to do in this instance. The law would not require that his son live where and how your husband wants as a condition for receiving support. Your husband should realize that this is a critical time in his son's life and that his son will forever remember how his father handled this situation.
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