It's That Time of the Year Again...Part 2

Get your motor boards ready as graduation is around the corner. And since every life event is just another way for the Illinois Marriage and Dissolution of Marriage Act to reach into your pocket, so it goes with College Contribution. College/secondary education expense contribution (or the only thing a court can make a divorced couple do that they cannot make a married couple) is governed by 750 ILCS 5/513. In reality, its less of a statute and more of a statutory construction of how the Wild West must of looked. Read it if that is your thing but in essence, the courts can consider any college related expense (with the dreaded language "including but not limited to") which includes not only tuition, room/board and school supplies, but also reasonable transportation from school and payments to the other spouse during "periods of recess" like summer and spring vacation periods. And since there is no limit to what the court can consider, expect that your spouse will adopt the time honored legal strategy of throwing every expense at the wall to see what the judge will allow.

Courts will typically allocate the costs of college proportional to each parties' income. The student also has the obligation to contribute towards their education and courts will usually give them credit for any scholarships/grants/loans obtained or through participation in a work study or similar program. If you are remarried, the court can also take into account the resources of your new spouse as well which I am sure will thrill them to no end. Total costs cannot exceed the amount charged by the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign for in-state tuition. And while the court can consider some limited factors, the bottom line is that if you or your spouse file a pleading for college contribution, you will both have to contribute something regardless of whether you wanted Junior to attend State U or Community College.

Allocating college contribution is complicated and you need to have an attorney to guide you through. Call me with any college contribution questions.