Documents That Might Be Necessary in a Family Law Case Involving Child Support and Special and Extraordinary Expenses (Post Secondary Education)
Written by Lori Gerbig
The Specific Documents That May Be Useful Regarding Post Secondary Education Expenses Include:
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- Registration documentation for the institution and particular courses;
- Background information regarding the institution and the particular degree or diploma;
- Information from the institution as to any required prerequisites;
- Information from the institution as to anticipated overall cost of the program and length of the program;
- Information from the institution or elsewhere as to career opportunities;
- Tuition invoices and receipts or other proof of payment for each course;
- Course requirements in terms of books or supplies for each course;
- Invoices and receipts or other proof of payment for required books or supplies;
- Transcripts to confirm number of courses, applicability of courses toward specific program, and successful completion of courses;
- Income tax returns for the children regarding their income (and ability to contribute to costs);
- Student loan applications and responses;
- Bursary or scholarship applications and responses;
- RESP statements.
We at First Law have found that many clients don’t really have a good idea of what to expect from their lawyer or from the litigation process as a whole. So we thought that we’d put some thoughts together to give you, the client, an outline. This time we’re concentrating on documents related to child support.
The legal system is very document intensive. It is always necessary for the parties to prove what the facts are. You prove facts generally by swearing to the truth in an affidavit or in court but also by having documents to substantiate what you’re swearing to. Different documents are necessary for different purposes.
The suggestions in this post aren’t exhaustive. Every situation is different. Documents that are absolutely necessary in one case may not even be especially helpful in another case. But even if documents aren’t ultimately used, it is better to show all potential documents to the lawyer. The documents listed above are suggestions regarding what documents you may be able to show your lawyer.
Documents That May Be Helpful Regarding Child Support and Special and Extraordinary Expenses
Child support starts with basic child support which comes from the tables of child support under the Child Support Guidelines. There is a possible additional component to child support being a contribution by each parent (the parent who pays child support and the parent who receives child support) to special and extraordinary expenses. Sometimes the child is also expected to contribute.
Special and Extraordinary expenses are defined in the BC Child Support Guidelines with some additional guidance provided by judges in writing decisions in past cases. Special and Extraordinary expenses are also known as “Section 7 expenses” because it is section 7 of the BC Child Support Guidelines where the definition is found. Special and Extraordinary expenses include the following:
- Daycare (required for the parent’s employment or education);
- Medical or dental expenses that are not covered by any medical or dental insurance;
- Certain expenses for primary or secondary education;
- Certain post secondary school expenses for reasonable full time post secondary education associated with a realistic career goal for future; and
- Certain expenses for extracurricular activities.
The contribution by each parent is based on that parent’s income. To determine the amount payable for special and extraordinary expenses, both parents have to produce their income tax returns and possibly other income related documents.
It is necessary to determine exactly what the special and extraordinary expenses are (or to decide if certain expenses even qualify as special and extraordinary). For that determination proof is required of:
- Exactly what the expense is for; and
- The amount of the expense.
The Specific Documents That May Be Useful Regarding Post Secondary Education Expenses Include:
-
- Registration documentation for the institution and particular courses;
- Background information regarding the institution and the particular degree or diploma;
- Information from the institution as to any required prerequisites;
- Information from the institution as to anticipated overall cost of the program and length of the program;
- Information from the institution or elsewhere as to career opportunities;
- Tuition invoices and receipts or other proof of payment for each course;
- Course requirements in terms of books or supplies for each course;
- Invoices and receipts or other proof of payment for required books or supplies;
- Transcripts to confirm number of courses, applicability of courses toward specific program, and successful completion of courses;
- Income tax returns for the children regarding their income (and ability to contribute to costs);
- Student loan applications and responses;
- Bursary or scholarship applications and responses;
- RESP statements.
In other blog posts we give suggestions of specific documents to gather together to address other special and extraordinary expenses and other issues like parenting time and asset division. So check back for more information.
We at First Law look forward meeting with you soon and working together to resolve your family law issues.
Russell Tretiak Q.C.
Lori Gerbig
Candice Hall
Brandon Hastings
Rasjovan Dale (Articled Student)
Written by Lori Gerbig
Lori Gerbig