Q: My ex of 5 years is asking for child support for my 21 and 19 yr old. What is the law?
I live in NJ and have been divorced for 5 years. We had split custody of the children and the child support/alimony was for 10 yrs. My children are going to be 21 and 19 yrs old in the next 2 months. They both work and go to college. My ex makes a really good salary, I am living pay check to pay check. 6 months ago I moved in with my BF which dissolved his alimony obligations. The boys stood with dad since its closer to college and work. He text and is demanding child support. I do pay for car insurance and a phone bill for the one son. He pays car insurance for the other. His salary is way more than mine. What am I responsible for on my salary?
A: The first and most important question is what state entered the judgement of divorce ( if not NJ) and what does the agreement say as to jurisdiction for addressing financial issues outstanding between the 2 of you concerning child support. Presuming you were divorced in NJ and presuming both children are in college full time, then you may have an obligation to contribute to their college costs ( if your ex is paying for all or a portion of same), child support ( based on whether the children are living at home with dad or living on campus) or some alternative contribution to their expenses. The fact that your ex may earn more than you does not mean that you do not have an obligation to share in the childrens expenses - it simply means that your share of their expenses will be based on your income setting. If you are paying for expenses for the children currently, then those payments are also relevant to your obligation since he cannot ask you to pay XXX in child support and not factor in your payment of XXX in other expenses for the children. It probably makes sense for you to have a consultation with a family law specialist to review your income setting, what payments are being made by you currently for the children and what their current college costs are to figure out how best to respond to your ex.
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