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You are here: Home States New Hampshire Paying for College After Divorce Part I Navigation New Hampshire Forum
DivorceNet divorce forms Customized Online Divorce Forms: Fast, Affordable and Easy Paying for College After Divorce Part I By Family Law Office of Amy G. Wolfson
Published: July 17, 2004 Traditionally in New Hampshire, court-imposed child support obligations have ended when a child reaches age 18. For most of us, this coincides roughly with high school graduation. Beyond that age, our pioneer forebears considered their offspring to be adults. And in pioneer days, they probably were. But our Internet-wired, bio-engineered, post-Monica world is far more complex than the world Daniel Webster lived in. Today, many see college as essential for a good start in life-and eighteen-year-olds as kids. Recent New Hampshire Supreme Court decisions suggest Granite State law may be catching up with these societal changes, and the horizon for court-ordered child support may be expanding. By statute, court-ordered child support in New Hampshire ends when a child turns 18 or finishes high school, whichever is later, unless a court extends it. The law in most other states is similar. But data compiled by the National Conference of State Legislatures (1999, updated October, 2002) indicate seven states extend support to age 21 or beyond by statute, in some cases conditioned on continued educational enrollment. In Massachusetts, for example, child support may continue to age 23 for a child attending college who is principally dependent on parents for support. | |
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