A court ruled in favor of a divorced father who refused to pay for his daughter's private university

Barcelona Provincial Court decided in favor of a divorced father who refused to pay the 7,000 euros ($ 7,985) that his ex-partner was asking to pay for the private university of his daughter in common.

His ex-wife claimed this amount for tuition at the university, as well as transportation costs. He understood that it was an ordinary expense. He therefore claimed the money as part of the monthly maintenance. However, the court released the father from this responsibility.

The decision determined that the high cost of tuition made this expense extraordinary, the consent of both parents is required. This implies that both parents should have accepted that their daughter enrolls in a private school, which far exceeds the cost of public higher education.

The court therefore established its jurisdiction by finding that, even if the expenses related to the education of minor children are considered ordinary, and both parents must bear them, in this case, the economic level of the family makes them exceptional.

In his letter, the father, identified as Luis María, alleged that, although he agrees with his former partner to pay for university studies, his power of purchase did not allow him to pay the registration fees of the University of Sant Cugat del Vallés.

In his defense, he said that his daughter worked, as evidenced by the conversations between WhatsApp and his brother, statements that the room did not take into account. He also explained that his ex-wife had some savings, the amount of which was equivalent to the cost of registering, and both had taken care of the future expenses of their children in the past.

He explained that he was not opposed to the enrollment of his daughter in the center, but that he could not afford to pay a salary of € 1,400 (1,596 USD). He badured that if they sold the apartment together, he would allocate the money obtained for this purpose.

The Provincial Court of Barcelona has declared that the refusal of the father to pay the registration is justifiedand released him from this responsibility. He recalled that the Supreme Court (the highest instance of Spain in all areas: civil, criminal, administrative and administrative) has repeatedly stated that the statement of ordinary or extraordinary expenses should be estimated in depending on the economic level of the family and the existence of people. an agreement between the parents.

In addition, he stressed that the private university can not be understood as a "necessary expenditure in the sense of inevitability" although the girl did not have enough money to enter the public university "can access higher education through another training".

Alimony in Spain

Maintenance, or alimony, includes not only the cost of food, but also other expenses considered ordinary, such as: costumes, medical expenses, housing derivatives or education (registration, books, school supplies, uniforms …).

During this same trial, a complaint was filed by the father, who claimed to pay more living expenses than his ex-wife. The couple has two children in common: the eldest resides with his mother and the little one with his father.

While he pays a sum of $ 200 ($ 228) to his ex-wife to cover his daughter's expenses, she pays child support of $ 175 ($ 199), the difference with which the parent does not pay. was not in agreement. . During the trial, he proposed that any amount be canceled and that everyone be responsible for the expenses of the child with whom he lived.

The court rejected his request because he understood that, in this sense, it was necessary to take into account the economic situation of the parents. In this case, he was earning € 200 more per month than it, so his contribution should be higher.

It follows that the amount to be paid for maintenance depends on the income and purchasing power of each. The university is usually an ordinary expense, except in cases where it exceeds "significantly" what has been paid until now or when it has been proven that children do not pay during their studies.