Allen v. Allen

David Allen (Father) and Kimberly Allen (Mother) divorced in 2002. The parties agreed to share custody of their two children, with Father paying child support to Mother. The parties’ settlement agreement and dissolution decree did not provide for payment of college expenses. In 2010, the parties agreed to an order whereby basic child support for their daughter, Hunter, was terminated, Father became responsible for Hunter’s undergraduate educational expenses, and Mother became responsible for providing Hunter’s health insurance. In 2013, shortly before Hunter’s 21st birthday, when Hunter was a senior at Indiana University, Father petitioned the court for modification of the agreed order. Father advised the court that Hunter was considering post-graduate education in dental school and Father requested, among other things, an order regarding Hunter’s graduate educational expenses. Specifically, he sought to have Hunter’s dental school expenses apportioned between him and Mother. The trial court ordered that the 2010 agreement between the parties was to remain in effect: Father continued to be responsible for education expenses, this time, the cost of dental school for Hunter (less any contribution from Hunter through grants, scholarship, loans, etc.); Mother was responsible for Hunter’s health insurance. Father appealed, arguing, among other things, that the trial court erred in not determining each parent’s presumptive share of educational expenses according to the Child Support Guidelines. Mother cross-appealed, arguing that the trial court did not have statutory authority to enter an educational award for graduate school expenses. The Court of Appeals reversed, agreeing with Father that the trial court erred by essentially making Father liable for all dental school expenses that Hunter did not otherwise cover. It rejected Mother’s cross-appeal argument that the trial court lacks authority to order parents to pay for their child’s graduate school expenses. After its review, the Indiana Supreme Court found that while the statutory provision at issue provided for payment of “postsecondary” educational expenses, the term postsecondary was undefined. The Court held that the term “postsecondary,” as used in the provision permitting an award for postsecondary educational expenses, did not include graduate or professional school expenses. The Court reversed the trial court's order that Father pay the costs of Hunter's dental school. View "Allen v. Allen" on Justia Law