NC Law on Child Support for College?

[Isis]

What is the law in North Carolina regarding modification of existing child support order to require the non-custodial parent to pay for college (or help pay for college)?

What is the law regarding increasing or continuing child support because the child is in college?

Original order states child support stops at age 18.

Appreciate any help. Thanks!

[LadyBlu]

Originally posted by Isis
What is the law in North Carolina regarding modification of existing child support order to require the non-custodial parent to pay for college (or help pay for college)?

What is the law regarding increasing or continuing child support because the child is in college?

Original order states child support stops at age 18.

Appreciate any help. Thanks!

§ 50-13.4. Action for support of minor child.
(a) Any parent, or any person, agency, organization or
institution having custody of a minor child, or bringing an
action or proceeding for the custody of such child, or a minor
child by his guardian may institute an action for the support of
such child as hereinafter provided.
(b) In the absence of pleading and proof that the
circumstances otherwise warrant, the father and mother shall be
primarily liable for the support of a minor child. In the absence
of pleading and proof that the circumstances otherwise warrant,
parents of a minor, unemancipated child who is the custodial or
noncustodial parent of a child shall share this primary liability
for their grandchild's support with the minor parent, the court
determining the proper share, until the minor parent reaches the
age of 18 or becomes emancipated. If both the parents of the
child requiring support were unemancipated minors at the time of
the child's conception, the parents of both minor parents share
primary liability for their grandchild's support until both minor
parents reach the age of 18 or become emancipated. If only one
parent of the child requiring support was an unemancipated minor
at the time of the child's conception, the parents of both
parents are liable for any arrearages in child support owed by
the adult or emancipated parent until the other parent reaches
the age of 18 or becomes emancipated. In the absence of pleading
and proof that the circumstances otherwise warrant, any other
person, agency, organization or institution standing in loco
parentis shall be secondarily liable for such support. Such other
circumstances may include, but shall not be limited to, the
relative ability of all the above-mentioned parties to provide
support or the inability of one or more of them to provide
support, and the needs and estate of the child. The judge may
enter an order requiring any one or more of the above-mentioned
parties to provide for the support of the child as may be
appropriate in the particular case, and if appropriate the court
may authorize the application of any separate estate of the child
to his support. However, the judge may not order support to be
paid by a person who is not the child's parent or an agency,
organization or institution standing in loco parentis absent
evidence and a finding that such person, agency, organization or
institution has voluntarily assumed the obligation of support in
writing. The preceding sentence shall not be construed to prevent
any court from ordering the support of a child by an agency of
the State or county which agency may be responsible under law for
such support.
(c) Payments ordered for the support of a minor child shall
be in such amount as to meet the reasonable needs of the child
for health, education, and maintenance, having due regard to the
estates, earnings, conditions, accustomed standard of living of
the child and the parties, the child care and homemaker
contributions of each party, and other facts of the particular
case. Payments ordered for the support of a minor child shall be
on a monthly basis, due and payable on the first day of each
month. The requirement that orders be established on a monthly
basis does not affect the availability of garnishment of
disposable earnings based on an obligor's pay period.
The court shall determine the amount of child support
payments by applying the presumptive guidelines established
pursuant to subsection (c1). However, upon request of any party,
the Court shall hear evidence, and from the evidence, find the
facts relating to the reasonable needs of the child for support
and the relative ability of each parent to provide support. If,
after considering the evidence, the Court finds by the greater
weight of the evidence that the application of the guidelines
would not meet or would exceed the reasonable needs of the child
considering the relative ability of each parent to provide
support or would be otherwise unjust or inappropriate the Court
may vary from the guidelines. If the court orders an amount other
than the amount determined by application of the presumptive
guidelines, the court shall make findings of fact as to the
criteria that justify varying from the guidelines and the basis
for the amount ordered.
Payments ordered for the support of a child shall terminate
when the child reaches the age of 18 except:
(1) If the child is otherwise emancipated, payments
shall terminate at that time;
(2) If the child is still in primary or secondary
school when the child reaches age 18, support payments shall
continue until the child graduates, otherwise ceases to attend
school on a regular basis, fails to make satisfactory academic
progress towards graduation, or reaches age 20, whichever comes
first, unless the court in its discretion orders that payments
cease at age 18 or prior to high school graduation.
In the case of graduation, or attaining age 20, payments
shall terminate without order by the court, subject to the right
of the party receiving support to show, upon motion and with
notice to the opposing party, that the child has not graduated or
attained the age of 20.
(c1) Effective July 1, 1990, the Conference of Chief
District Judges shall prescribe uniform statewide presumptive
guidelines for the computation of child support obligations of
each parent as provided in Chapter 50 or elsewhere in the General
Statutes and shall develop criteria for determining when, in a
particular case, application of the guidelines would be unjust or
inappropriate. Prior to May 1, 1990 these guidelines and criteria
shall be reported to the General Assembly by the Administrative
Office of the Courts by delivering copies to the President Pro
Tempore of the Senate and the Speaker of the House of
Representatives. The purpose of the guidelines and criteria shall
be to ensure that payments ordered for the support of a minor
child are in such amount as to meet the reasonable needs of the
child for health, education, and maintenance, having due regard
to the estates, earnings, conditions, accustomed standard of
living of the child and the parties, the child care and homemaker
contributions of each party, and other facts of the particular
case. The guidelines shall include a procedure for setting child
support, if any, in a joint or shared custody arrangement which
shall reflect the other statutory requirements herein.
Periodically, but at least once every four years, the
Conference of Chief District Judges shall review the guidelines
to determine whether their application results in appropriate
child support award amounts. The Conference may modify the
guidelines accordingly. The Conference shall give the Department
of Health and Human Services, the Administrative Office of the
Courts, and the general public an opportunity to provide the
Conference with information relevant to the development and
review of the guidelines. Any modifications of the guidelines or
criteria shall be reported to the General Assembly by the
Administrative Office of the Courts before they become effective
by delivering copies to the President Pro Tempore of the Senate
and the Speaker of the House of Representatives. The guidelines,
when adopted or modified, shall be provided to the Department of
Health and Human Services and the Administrative Office of the
Courts, which shall disseminate them to the public through local
IV-D offices, clerks of court, and the media.
Until July 1, 1990, the advisory guidelines adopted by the
Conference of Chief District Judges pursuant to this subsection
as formerly written shall operate as presumptive guidelines and
the factors adopted by the Conference of Chief District Judges
pursuant to this subsection as formerly written shall constitute
criteria for varying from the amount of support determined by the
guidelines.
(d) In non-IV-D cases, payments for the support of a minor
child shall be ordered to be paid to the person having custody of
the child or any other proper person, agency, organization or
institution, or to the State Child Support Collection and
Disbursement Unit, for the benefit of the child. In IV-D cases,
payments for the support of a minor child shall be ordered to be
paid to the State Child Support Collection and Disbursement Unit
for the benefit of the child.
(d1) For child support orders initially entered on or after
January 1, 1994, the immediate income withholding provisions of
G.S. 110-136.5(c1) shall apply.
(e) Payment for the support of a minor child shall be paid
by lump sum payment, periodic payments, or by transfer of title
or possession of personal property of any interest therein, or a
security interest in or possession of real property, as the court
may order. The court may order the transfer of title to real
property solely owned by the obligor in payment of arrearages of
child support so long as the net value of the interest in the
property being transferred does not exceed the amount of the
arrearage being satisfied. In every case in which payment for the
support of a minor child is ordered and alimony or postseparation
support is also ordered, the order shall separately state and
identify each allowance.
(e1) In IV-D cases, the order for child support shall
provide that the clerk shall transfer the case to another
jurisdiction in this State if the IV-D agency requests the
transfer on the basis that the obligor, the custodian of the
child, and the child do not reside in the jurisdiction in which
the order was issued. The IV-D agency shall provide notice of the
transfer to the obligor by delivery of written notice in
accordance with the notice requirements of Chapter 1A-1, Rule
5(b) of the Rules of Civil Procedure. The clerk shall transfer
the case to the jurisdiction requested by the IV-D agency, which
shall be a jurisdiction in which the obligor, the custodian of
the child, or the child resides. Nothing in this subsection shall
be construed to prevent a party from contesting the transfer.
(f) Remedies for enforcement of support of minor children
shall be available as herein provided.
(1) The court may require the person ordered to
make payments for the support of a minor child to secure the same
by means of a bond, mortgage or deed of trust, or any other means
ordinarily used to secure an obligation to pay money or transfer
property, or by requiring the execution of an assignment of
wages, salary or other income due or to become due.
(2) If the court requires the transfer of real or
personal property or an interest therein as provided in
subsection (e) as a part of an order for payment of support for a
minor child, or for the securing thereof, the court may also
enter an order which shall transfer title as provided in G.S. 1A-
1, Rule 70 and G.S. 1-228.
(3) The remedy of arrest and bail, as provided in
Article 34 of Chapter 1 of the General Statutes, shall be
available in actions for child-support payments as in other
cases.
(4) The remedies of attachment and garnishment, as
provided in Article 35 of Chapter 1 of the General Statutes,
shall be available in an action for child-support payments as in
other cases, and for such purposes the child or person bringing
an action for child support shall be deemed a creditor of the
defendant. Additionally, in accordance with the provisions of
G.S. 110-136, a continuing wage garnishment proceeding for wages
due or to become due may be instituted by motion in the original
child support proceeding or by independent action through the
filing of a petition.
(5) The remedy of injunction, as provided in
Article 37 of Chapter 1 of the General Statutes and G.S. 1A-1,
Rule 65, shall be available in actions for child support as in
other cases.
(6) Receivers, as provided in Article 38 of Chapter
1 of the General Statutes, may be appointed in action for child
support as in other cases.
(7) A minor child or other person for whose benefit
an order for the payment of child support has been entered shall
be a creditor within the meaning of Article 3A of Chapter 39 of
the General Statutes pertaining to fraudulent conveyances.
(8) Except as provided in Article 15 of Chapter 44
of the General Statutes, a judgment for child support shall not
be a lien against real property unless the judgment expressly so
provides, sets out the amount of the lien in a sum certain, and
adequately describes the real property affected; but past due
periodic payments may by motion in the cause or by a separate
action be reduced to judgment which shall be a lien as other
judgments.
(9) An order for the periodic payments of child
support is enforceable by proceedings for civil contempt, and its
disobedience may be punished by proceedings for criminal
contempt, as provided in Chapter 5A of the General Statutes.
Notwithstanding the provisions of G.S. 1-294,
an order for the payment of child support which has been appealed
to the appellate division is enforceable in the trial court by
proceedings for civil contempt during the pendency of the appeal.
Upon motion of an aggrieved party, the court of the appellate
division in which the appeal is pending may stay any order for
civil contempt entered for child support until the appeal is
decided, if justice requires.
(10) The remedies provided by Chapter 1 of the
General Statutes, Article 28, Execution; Article 29B, Execution
Sales; and Article 31, Supplemental Proceedings, shall be
available for the enforcement of judgments for child support as
in other cases, but amounts so payable shall not constitute a
debt as to which property is exempt from execution as provided in
Article 16 of Chapter 1C of the General Statutes.
(11) The specific enumeration of remedies in this
section shall not constitute a bar to remedies otherwise
available.
(g) An individual who brings an action or motion in the
cause for the support of a minor child, and the individual who
defends the action, shall provide to the clerk of the court in
which the action is brought or the order is issued, the
individual's social security number. The child support order
shall contain the social security number of the parties as
evidenced in the support proceeding.
(h) Child support orders initially entered or modified on
and after October 1, 1998, shall contain the name of each of the
parties, the date of birth of each party, the social security
number of each party, and the court docket number. The
Administrative Office of the Courts shall transmit to the
Department of Health and Human Services, Child Support
Enforcement Program, on a timely basis, the information required
to be included on orders under this subsection. (1967, c. 1153,
s. 2; 1969, c. 895, s. 17; 1975, c. 814; 1977, c. 711, s. 26;
1979, c. 386, s. 10; 1981, c. 472; c. 613, ss. 1, 3; 1983, c. 54;
c. 530, s. 1; 1985, c. 689, s. 17; 1985 (Reg. Sess., 1986), c.
1016; 1989, c. 529, ss. 1, 2; 1989 (Reg. Sess., 1990), c. 1067,
s. 2; 1993, c. 335, s. 1; c. 517, s. 5; 1995, c. 319, s. 9; c.
518, s. 1; 1997-433, ss. 2.1(a), 2.2, 4.4, 7.1; 1997-443, ss.
11A.118(a), 11A.122; 1998-17, s. 1; 1998-176, s. 1; 1999-293, ss.
3, 4; 1999-456, s. 13.)



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