If you have school-age children, chances are that college expenses are on the horizon for you. Therefore, you may not be surprised that this issue comes up fairly frequently during New Jersey divorces. The state has some unique rules, so please do not follow any generalized information when planning this step.
Do you have to plan for your child’s college expenses during divorce? Unfortunately, there is no quick answer for this question. Many divorcing couples do include details about tuition, room and board and other expenses associated with secondary education, but it is important to find the strategy that works best for your family’s situation.
As mentioned above, New Jersey is different from many other states when it comes to this issue. Generally, the court could order support for children up until a certain age — usually until they finish high school. In some cases, your children might not be considered emancipated from your obligation to support them until they secure a degree after college.
The main difference here in the Garden State comes from the laws on child emancipation. As you can read on FindLaw, courts determine the age of emancipation on a case-by-case basis. It is important to get an up-to-date assessment of your case in order to plan correctly.
There are options available to prepare and predict, even though New Jersey does not specify an age of emancipation. As always, you should seek a solution that is based on the unique needs of your family. Please do not use this as specific legal advice. It is only intended as background information.
