Q: Can my ex take me for court for not paying tutor fees that she incurred without my consent?
Our final divorce papers do not indicate that educational expenses are to be an expense that my ex and I are to share. I told her I did not approve of the tutoring expense and she went ahead with it anyways. I want the best for my daughter and have been helping her, along with my family, on her needs. Now she is sending me a bill for a years worth of tutoring and threatening to take me to court if I do not pay it to amend our final decree. Should all expenses not specifically identified in our final decree be agreed upon in order to get reimbursement? If a judge allows her to amend our decree, would I be forced to pay on these past expenses?
A: Basic child support does not usually include these types of expenses. If your judgment does not specifically address these types of expenses, you are not legally obligated to pay them or help pay for them. A judge could allow her to amend the judgment or modify the support orders in the judgment, but her burden would be to show a significant change in circumstances warranting the change/modification.
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A: I agree with my colleague. If the expenses were not listed in a parenting plan or some type of judgment from the court then she cannot require you to pay them unless the judge orders it. This means that she will have to go to court to ask for this type of modification, at which time you will be allowed to respond with why you cannot/will not pay for this type of expense. If she does take you to court I encourage you to contact an attorney to help you.
1 user found this answer helpful
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