College Expenses in Divorce

When I am entering into my divorce settlement, If I agree to pay for college in the good times, years later when that even actually happens can that order be modified? This very question came up in a case, Drescher v. Gross (2014) 225 Cal.App.4th 478. In this case, both husband and wife were practicing lawyers when they divorced in 2001. In their Settlement Agreement, they agreed that they would split the costs associated with the attendance at undergraduate California state colleges or universities. This provision was found as a sub-section to the “Support” section of their agreement, unfortunately in a portion of that section that contained no instruction as to whether or not its terms were modifiable.
In 2011 Husband asked the court to reduce the amount of support he was paying for their children. He also asked that the Wife be required to contribute to their older child’s college expenses as per the agreement from 2001. The wife opposed these requests and asked the court to consider the fact that since the judgment had been entered Wife had become permanently disabled and her income was severely limited, whereas the Husband’s income had increased significantly. The trial judge determined that the Wife was contractually bound to contribute to the college expenses, even if the child was attending an out of state college and even though she had become disabled. The Case went up on appeal and was remanded for further hearing.
Personally, I NEVER EVER let my clients include payment of college in their agreements. The future is too uncertain to insure that the payments can be made or that the cost of college remains static. You have no idea what will happen tomorrow, much less years from now when college time arrives. You can each agree to pay for college when the time comes, when your circumstances are certain and fixed and without a written contract.
For more information on how you can avoid being trapped into an impossible agreement, call Certified Family Law Specialist Denise Lite at 877-317-8080 to set up your confidential consultation.