Parents Facing A Divorce Grapple With College Costs For Their Child
On September 5th, we posted a blog article about the necessity to be clear and precise in your divorce or dissolution documents if you chose to include a college expense provision. Truthfully, since my two sons have already graduated from college, I have not paid close attention to these escalating costs.
I recently saw a very interesting article in the online version of the Dayton Daily News addressing the increasing cost of a college education throughout Ohio and particularly the increasing costs of the room and board portion. That article also referred to a very interesting chart from the U.S. Department of Education (which I have a link to below) showing a breakdown of the present room, board and tuition costs at most Ohio college and universities. Those costs are staggering! Nearly every college or university in Ohio saw an increase in room and board rates of nearly 30% between 2002 and 2015.
Having handled divorce cases for over 34 years, I see parents fighting over some petty and nominal costs yet agreeing to divide future college educational expenses with very little consideration. Did you know that the total … Read More... “Divorce: College Costs – A Ticking Time Bomb?”
With the importance of higher education becoming more apparent every day, it is not uncommon for divorcing couples to decide to provide for their children’s college expenses. In Ohio, like many other states, domestic relations courts cannot ordera parent to pay these costs because the duty of support generally ends once a child reaches the age of 18 (or in some situations at 19) . Nevertheless, the parties can negotiate a division of the college expenses and incorporate it into a separation agreement.
A few years ago when Gwyneth Paltrow and Chris Martin announced they were “consciously uncoupling”, many rolled their eyes at what felt like pretentious language.
In a previous article written on July 25, 2015, titled, “
In September 2014, a luxurious resort in upstate New York became the first hotel in the United States in which you can check in married on Friday, and check out single on Sunday! The Gideon Putnam Hotel in Saratoga Springs has paired with Netherlands-based company, DivorceHotel, and is now officially catering to the needs of those looking for a vacation and a divorce all at the same time.
Memorial Day, Labor Day and 4th of July are holidays that celebrate different aspects of American culture. Memorial Day honors those who fought to defend our principles and ideals, Labor Day honors our work ethic, and 4th of July honors our fight for independence. We don’t consider them “big holidays.” They are, for most of us, times to be outdoors, watch some fireworks, and eat lots of good food. They also give us an extended weekend.
In the past, we’ve written multiple articles relating to social media. I have linked to some of them at the end of this article. Now, I would like to focus on an issue that may evolve during a marriage and can expand exponentially after a divorce; social media disputes between couples. This type of ugly dispute has led many in the legal world to conclude that some couples need a “social media clause” in their prenuptial agreement (s).