By:
Attorney Nicole J. Huckerby
The Criteria Considered
By The Family Court To Determine The Obligation Of A Divorced Parent To
Contribute To The Cost Of A Child’s College Education
This is the first of two articles that address a divorced
parent’s obligation to contribute to the cost of a child’s college
education. This first article discusses
the subject matter generally. The second
will examine the impact of a damaged relationship between a college aged
student and a parent. Most of the time,
these issues arise in the context of a non-custodial parent’s obligation to
contribute.
New Jersey divorce law has long held that a divorced parent
may be required to contribute towards the cost of a child’s college
education. In determining the extent of
a parent’s obligation to contribute to college costs when the parties have not
previously agreed on specific amounts, family courts in New Jersey generally
consider the following criteria established in 1983 by our Supreme Court in a
case called Newburgh v. Arrigo:
1. Whether the parent, if still living with the
child, would have contributed towards the costs of college;
2. The effect of the background, values and goals
of the parent on the reasonableness of the expectation of the child for higher
education;
3. The amount of the contribution sought by the
child for the cost of college;
4. The ability of the parent to pay that cost;
5. The relationship of the requested contribution
to the kind of school or course of study sought by the child;
6. The financial resources of both parents;
7. The commitment to and aptitude of the child for
the requested education;
8. The financial resources of the child;
9.
The ability of the child to earn income during
the school year or vacation;
10.
The availability of financial aid in the form of
grants and loans;
11. The child’s relationship to the paying parent.
Including mutual affections and shared goals as well as responsiveness to
parental advice and guidance; and
12.
The relationship of the education requested to any
prior training and to the overall long-range goals of the child.
The above factors are comprehensive,
but may not be exhaustive. Family finances often expand or limit college
options. Regarding the child’s college
selection, the family court has the power to order a non-custodial parent to
financially contribute to college costs in an amount exceeding the costs of
attendance at Rutgers or one of New Jersey’s other state universities and colleges. For example, where a non-custodial
father encouraged his son to apply to George Washington University [“GWU”], was
a dentist with significant income, and attended an expensive out of state
university himself, the court rejected the father’s argument that his
contribution to the GWU tuition of his son should be limited to what he would
pay if the child attended Rutgers.