Vancouver Adult Child Support Termination Lawyers deal with family disputes over:
- how long child support should be paid when a child is in post secondary school part-time;
- if a child wants to take more than one degree or diploma whether support should continue;
- how realistic the child’s education plans are;
- how loans, scholarships and bursaries impact child support;
- how RESP’s should be applied;
- whether the child should work and how should their income be allocated to their post secondary needs; and
- whether a child’s relationship with their parent has become so dysfunctional as to result in a unilateral termination of the relationship caused by the child alone.
Vancouver Adult Child Support Termination Lawyers know that one of the sad side effects of a divorce or separation involving children, is that children may take sides with one parent. Sometimes a child and parent don’t even meet or talk after a separation. When the parent who has no relationship with their child is asked to pay support in these circumstances cases- some parents resist.
Our Vancouver Adult Child Support Termination Lawyers can help answer the questions regarding adult child support continuation or termination. Contact our Vancouver Adult Child Support Termination Lawyers at any of our 7 offices across BC and in Calgary.
Vancouver Adult Child Support Termination Lawyers 1-877-602-9900
MacLean Law’s Vancouver Adult Child Support Termination Lawyers note the most recent case on child support for adult children of Childs v Childs and when it may be terminated starts by analyzing the child’s educational situation:
[30] It is not disputed that Alexandria has been in full-time attendance at the Royal Military College in Ontario since September 2012. She anticipates that she will graduate with a degree in chemical engineering in May 2017. The evidence of Ms. Childs is that Alexandria contributes what she can to her education costs by working during the summers but she is unable to work during the school year as she plays elite level soccer for the Royal Military College.
Vancouver Adult Child Support Termination Lawyers Explain Unilateral Termination Of Parent Child Relationship
Vancouver Adult Child Support Termination Lawyers explain, next the court looked at whether the child had unilaterally terminated the parent child relationship by themselves and without a legitimate basis:
[32] On the evidence before me, I am not satisfied that Alexandria has “unilaterally” terminated her relationship with Mr. Childs. Rather, the affidavit evidence suggests that the decision to cease contact between them was eventually mutual. Mr. Childs deposed that he gave up trying to see the children for access because they stopped wanting to see him. While he suggests that he tried to maintain contact by text and phone when the children were older by sending them texts on birthdays and Christmas, this seems to have either ended prior to Christmas 2013 or else was not consistent. I note that he acknowledges receiving a text from Alexandria in January 2014 “chastising” him for not contacting Samantha at Christmas 2013.
[33] It is clear from the decision of the British Columbia Court of Appeal in Shaw v. Arndt 2016 BCCA 78 that the factors described in Farden are not “iron-clad” requirements that must be met by older children who propose to pursue education with financial assistance from their parents. The Court in Shaw conducted a thorough review of the law with respect to child support for estranged adult children and concluded that there is a discretion to take into account unilateral termination of the parent child relationship in determining support for adult children but this factor rarely stands alone as the sole factor for denying support. The Court referred to a decision of the Ontario Superior Court in A.C. v. M.Z. 2010 ONSC 6473 in which Pazaratz J. noted:
We recognize that spousal support is intended to address financial realities and consequences, unrelated to post-separation attitudes and feelings. We no longer ask whether a needy spouse deserves to receive money. Why then do we invite inquiry as to whether a needy adult child deserves to receive money?
And if we are going to consider evidence of the current relationship between the adult child and the estranged parent, how much background information; how much context; how much unpleasantness and recrimination do we want to invite in an otherwise “no fault” system? Parent-child relationships are complex even with intact family units. Current problems and rifts always have antecedents, whether apparent or not.
In the case at bar, the Respondent does not want to pay support for the three oldest children primarily because none of them are on speaking terms with him. But none of the four children have been on speaking terms with him for about a decade. Is it the children’s fault in 2010? Was it the children’s fault in 2000? At what age; at what stage, did the onus shift to each child to assume responsibility for a parental relationship whose flaws were perhaps decades in the making?
[emphasis added]
[34] Even if I were satisfied that Alexandria had unilaterally terminated her relationship with Mr. Childs, which I am not, it is clear from the affidavit material before me that this situation has existed for more than a decade. It is apparent that the relationship between Alexandria and her father was significantly damaged when the parties separated and in the aftermath of that separation and the passage of time has done little to repair that damage.
[35] In my view, this is not one of those egregious cases where termination of support would be justified. The poor quality of the relationship between Alexandria and Mr. Childs is not sufficient reason for me to find that Alexandria is no longer a child of the marriage and I decline to do so.
Vancouver Adult Child Support Termination Lawyers Note Termination May Not Be Forever
[36] Similarly, I have concluded that Samantha has not unilaterally terminated her relationship with Mr. Childs. On the contrary, the evidence before me suggests that Samantha has continued to make efforts to remain in contact with Mr. Childs, however infrequently. Her efforts to contact Mr. Childs appear to have been on par with Mr. Childs’ efforts to contact Samantha.
[37] Samantha’s situation is different in that she is no longer attending post-secondary education. There is no evidence before me as to whether her attendance at UNBC until December 2016 was full-time or part-time. Samantha has received 12 credits to the end of 2016 but has clearly struggled in her post-secondary program, failing more courses than she has passed. To her credit, she has taken steps to adjust her aspirations to something more realistic and plans to return to full-time studies in September 2017 or September 2018, depending on when she is accepted into the dental assistant program. She continues to work part-time at Sportchek until she returns to her post-secondary studies.
[38] I do not agree with the submission of counsel for Mr. Childs that Samantha ceased to be a child of the marriage on November 26, 2015 when she turned 19 years of age. While her course of study at UNBC may not have been full-time, given her academic struggles, one could assume that her failures might have simply been more extensive had she been enrolled in a full-time program.
[39] Samantha’s lack of success in her chosen field of study is only one of the factors to consider under Farden and, in my view, it would have been much more relevant had Samantha chosen to continue on with her previous studies despite her lack of success. In this case, Samantha recognized by the end of 2016 that her post-secondary education aspirations were not realistic and ceased those pursuits.
[40] I have concluded that Samantha ceased to be a child of the marriage on December 31, 2016 when she ceased attendance at UNBC. After that date, Samantha was over the age of majority. While she intends to return to full-time post-secondary education either this year or next, at the present time there is no evidence before me that, due to illness, disability or other cause, Samantha is unable to withdraw from the charge of the respondent or obtain the necessaries of life. That is not to say that Samantha may not once again become a child of the marriage under the Divorce Act if she resumes a full-time post-secondary program but I am satisfied that after December 31, 2016, she no longer meets that definition.
Vancouver Adult Child Support Termination Lawyers
Vancouver Adult Child Support Termination Lawyers know these cases are complex. Improving the parent child bond is also a prime directive in cases where an adult child clearly qualifies for support by being in school but refuses to communicate with one of their parents.
