High school senior suing parents for college tuition

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Ive heard about this case and cant believe the girl went to this extreme, I wonder why she doesnt just get loans and apply for grants like most other people if she wants to attend college, why does she feel her parents MUST give her money for this?

Im not sure how well off the parents are, but Im assuming they are pretty wealthy…?

Something else that I thought of, when it comes to civil and Govt litigation, when a judge finds the state or fed govt liable, they usually appeal and go ‘judge shopping’ until they find a judge who will agree with them and overturn the lesser courts decision, why should this not be the case when it comes to regular people suing other people?

Im not saying I agree with the girl in this case, but I do believe if states and our govt are able to judge shop to find one who agrees with them, I think the general population should be able to do this too.
 
mikekle said:
Ive heard about this case and cant believe the girl went to this extreme, I wonder why she doesnt just get loans and apply for grants like most other people if she wants to attend college, why does she feel her parents MUST give her money for this?
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I wonder what else parents MUST give their children, and what some kids will try to go to court to get?
 
mikekle said:
Ive heard about this case and cant believe the girl went to this extreme, I wonder why she doesnt just get loans and apply for grants like most other people if she wants to attend college, why does she feel her parents MUST give her money for this?

Im not sure how well off the parents are, but Im assuming they are pretty wealthy…
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You answered your own question. When your parents are wealthy, you are virtually unable to access any loans or grants whatsoever due to their wealth acting as a toxic stain on your FAFSA report. She got some grants due to academic skill, but she won’t be able to get any financial loans or grants due to their competitive nature, and due to the fact that she’ll be beaten out by every kid who doesn’t have wealthy parents who claim her as a dependent.

I hope she is able to access her entire college fund. The parents have claimed that they’ve given her complete access to it. If so, this should be a quick trial. If not, they should be forced to, considering they’ve already said that it’s hers publicly.
 
DeniseNY said:
I wonder what else parents MUST give their children, and what some kids will try to go to court to get?
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Well, if she does win and get her college money, it will set a precedent. Only a matter of time before the next kid attempts something similar if she wins.
 
SMGS127 said:
You answered your own question. When your parents are wealthy, you are virtually unable to access any loans or grants whatsoever due to their wealth acting as a toxic stain on your FAFSA report. She got some grants due to academic skill, but she won’t be able to get any financial loans or grants due to their competitive nature, and due to the fact that she’ll be beaten out by every kid who doesn’t have wealthy parents who claim her as a dependent.

I hope she is able to access her entire college fund. The parents have claimed that they’ve given her complete access to it. If so, this should be a quick trial. If not, they should be forced to, considering they’ve already said that it’s hers publicly.
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If she is considered emancipated then she could apply for grants and loans, but she wants her cake and eat it too. She isn’t suing for complete emancipation because she, or at least her lawyer, knows her parents would than not have to give her any kind of support, including support to fund her college tuition. She wants to not have to follow her parents’ rules, yet also wants to be like a dependent child and taking their money so that she doesn’t have to go into the serious debt that so many students have today after attending college. Basically, she wants all of the benefits and perks without having to follow the rules.

I guess I’m an old fogie, but when I was a kid, if you wanted the privilege of your parents still helping to support you in school, you had to follow their rules. If you didn’t like the rules, you moved out and you were on your own and we accepted that. I know a few people who decided to not want to follow the rules of their parents’ house. So, they left, got low-paying jobs, took out school loans, attended classes that worked with their work schedule and either lived in scuzzy studio apartments or found a bunch of roommates to afford a slightly better apartment.

If this girl wins, she will set a frightening precedent.
 
SMGS127 said:
You answered your own question. When your parents are wealthy, you are virtually unable to access any loans or grants whatsoever due to their wealth acting as a toxic stain on your FAFSA report. She got some grants due to academic skill, but she won’t be able to get any financial loans or grants due to their competitive nature, and due to the fact that she’ll be beaten out by every kid who doesn’t have wealthy parents who claim her as a dependent.

I hope she is able to access her entire college fund. The parents have claimed that they’ve given her complete access to it. If so, this should be a quick trial. If not, they should be forced to, considering they’ve already said that it’s hers publicly.
Click to expand...
If she is considered emancipated then she could apply for grants and loans, but she wants her cake and eat it too. She isn’t suing for complete emancipation because she, or at least her lawyer, knows her parents would than not have to give her any kind of support, including support to fund her college tuition. She wants to not have to follow her parents’ rules, yet also wants to be like a dependent child and taking their money so that she doesn’t have to go into the serious debt that so many students have today after attending college. Basically, she wants all of the benefits and perks without having to follow the rules.

I guess I’m an old fogie, but when I was a kid, if you wanted the privilege of your parents still helping to support you in school, you had to follow their rules. If you didn’t like the rules, you moved out and you were on your own and we accepted that. I know a few people who decided to not want to follow the rules of their parents’ house. So, they left, got low-paying jobs, took out school loans, attended classes that worked with their work schedule and either lived in scuzzy studio apartments or found a bunch of roommates to afford a slightly better apartment.

If this girl wins financial support for college, she will set a frightening precedent.
 
Sarabande said:
If she is considered emancipated then she could apply for grants and loans, but she wants her cake and eat it too.
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Not necessarily. Even if you live on your own, pay your own bills and have absolutely no contact with your parents, (except under very limited circumstances) your parent’s income counts against you until you are 25. This was how it has been for at least 20 years. The most you can do is plead with the school’s financial aid office, who may or may not do anything.

Had this happen to me when I was on my own and wanted to attend college. I ended up postponing college until I was in my 30s because I just couldn’t afford to go without assistance.
 
Dawnia said:
Not necessarily. Even if you live on your own, pay your own bills and have absolutely no contact with your parents, (except under very limited circumstances) your parent’s income counts against you until you are 25. This was how it has been for at least 20 years. The most you can do is plead with the school’s financial aid office, who may or may not do anything.

Had this happen to me when I was on my own and wanted to attend college. I ended up postponing college until I was in my 30s because I just couldn’t afford to go without assistance.
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That’s interesting. I guess it depends on the state? Because the people I knew who went off on their own and came from privileged backgrounds were able to get financial aid because they were “emancipated” from their parents.
 
Sarabande said:
That’s interesting. I guess it depends on the state? Because the people I knew who went off on their own and came from privileged backgrounds were able to get financial aid because they were “emancipated” from their parents.
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Nope. It’s a federal thing. (I was a year off on the age…it’s 24 not 25)

From the FAFSA website:
I support myself 100%, can I file as independent?
No. Unfortunately, federal regulation is specific in that supporting yourself is not sufficient for filing as independent.
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I am divorced, am I independent?
You only qualify as independent if you are married as of the day you file, or are 24 years of age or older.
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Dawnia said:
Nope. It’s a federal thing. (I was a year off on the age…it’s 24 not 25)

From the FAFSA website:
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Thanks. I wonder how my classmates/friends/cousin got the aid, then. They were under 24. I’m guessing special exceptions were made? For my cousin’s situation it was discovered that the college fund given to him as a baby by another relative was spent by the parents on trips and other things There were other problems as well, but he basically left their home had barely anything to do with them for a few years, and was able to get aid on his own.
 
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