<p>Depends on the state. Depends on the divorce agreement and how the courts uphold it. However, individual colleges can disregard all of this. Otherwise every single divorce agreement would exclude college costs in order for the kid to get the maximum financial aid and then the NCP can pay up through a “back door”. It all comes down to what the college decides to use, and they see plenty of this. They see unmarried parents, truly absent parents and most of all parents who do not want to pay. A lot of divorced, separated and non married partners in the mix, so it is not an unusual situation. I see it all of the time.</p>
<p>Regarding the possibility of a waiver for the non-custodial parent - there’s a difference between (1) a parent removing himself from the picture and refusing to cooperate and (2) the custodial parent saying, “Don’t worry about it. You don’t have to pay anything.” The CP’s agreement that the NCP not contribute has no legal weight whatsoever - the right to child support is the child’s, not the parent’s. I suspect colleges would view it the same way - it’s the college’s financial aid fund that’s on the line and just because CP thinks NCP shouldn’t have to pay doesn’t mean the college would agree.</p>
<p>About asking a court to “compel” the NCP to submit paperwork - whether or not that could be done depends on whether or not there’s a binding agreement requiring the NCP to participate in college funding. In some states, a divorced parent can be bound (under the terms of the divorce) to contribute, and that obligation would be legally enforceable. In other states, the NCP’s obligation ends when the child graduates from high school and agreements regarding college are unenforceable.</p>
<p>Jane, regardless of your child’s situation with her biological father, I have been doing the CSS PROFILE for a number of years now. Many schools ask “supplemental” questions and one of them includes do you live with someone who contributes to the household and expenses, etc… It does not matter if you are not married to this person, the school’s FA dept. wants to know! This certainly comes into play if you list mortagage payments, taxes, etc on the PROFILE and your income does not fit those financial obligations! In other words, if your boyfriend’s mortgage, taxes, etc are very high & it is your legal address, then you may have to answer this “supplemental” question with his information. I just wanted to point this out to you, this question can come up on the CSS PROFILE.</p>
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I wonder what happened with the OP for that thread and the d’s Brown ED acceptance?</p>
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I posted about a similar situation a month or so ago. The mother (CP) filed a motion to compel the financial information from father (NCP). It went to court quickly and the motion was denied. The judge refused to make the father provide his financial information. The reason given was that there was no prior agreement addressing college funding.</p>
<p>^“The judge refused to make the father provide his financial information. The reason given was that there was no prior agreement addressing college funding.”</p>
<p>That’s correct for this example because apparently the child must be residing in a state that does not provide for post-18 educational support, nor the parents had a written agreement about it. A custodial parent can file a motion to compel the parent do something for the welfare of the minor child. There are differences on whether the issue has to do with legal vs physical custody, whether the state-not just the divorce/parental agreement allows for educational tuition after the child becomes 18, etc. As long as the court has jurisdiction, then the ncp can be ordered to do an action for the child’s welfare. The court that has jurisdiction is where the child resided the last 6 months, but if the child is in college that’s the state where the cp lives with the child.
Examples to clarify:
1-If the minor child will travel unaccompanied to a country that requires both parents that share legal custody to sign the form. Chile is one of these countries, so if the cp wants to send the child to participate at a program there, the judge can force the ncp to sign the form.
2-If the child is under 17yrs old and parents have joint legal, then the ncp can be compelled to sign the US passport application. If there are issues about kidnapping the child, obviously that’s a different issue.
3-Regarding having the child participate in a religious ceremony in the religion that he/she has been baptized and the shared legal but ncp refuses to allow, the judge can compel to do so.
4-In states where the ncp has to share educational expenses post 18 yrs old, the judge can compel the ncp to present all required financial documents, eg MA. Also, when one party goes in front of the judge, both parties are supposed to file a current financial statement with the court.The cp has the right in these states to subpoena the financial records from IRS, employer, banks, etc.
5-In states that all support stops upon the child becoming 18, ie FL, the ncp can not be forced to provide the financial info as it relates to an issue that is post-18 because he/she is not legally bounded to contribute to the college expenses.
6-In ex5, if there was a parental/divorce agreement that the ncp has to contribute to college expenses, then the judge can compel that person to present the financial info.
7-In ex5, if the minor child needed the financial info to attend a specialized school due to disability, etc, while the child was under 18yrs old, then the ncp will be compelled to provide the info.</p>
<p>As another poster mentioned, the cp can not legally let the other parent off the hook for child support. The child upon becoming 18 yrs old can go to court, get child support for the last 2 years maximumm, and if the states provides for college tuition, also get tuition support from ncp.</p>