Is a parent, who is paying for a child’s tuition, entitled to see the child’s transcripts?

The case of Lewis v. Correia, 2014 ABQB 314 stands for the principle that a parent paying support is not an automatic wallet with no rights.

In Lewis v. Correia the father, who was paying for his daughter’s post-secondary tuition, was not convinced that his daughter was continuously attending class, and therefore requested updated transcripts from his daughter. The daughter refused to provide her father with her grades, and eventually the father applied to the courts to compel his daughter to submit regularly updated transcripts.

Justice Veit stated that:

"A minor child on whose behalf s.7 expenses are claimed for attendance at post-secondary educational institution must provide basic information to establish active attendance in the program; it is not sufficient for the debtor parent to be provided with information that their child is enrolled in a post-secondary education program. A requirement to provide information is not equivalent to requiring the child to maintain a filial relationship with the support debtor."

Justice Veit determines that proof of enrolment does not suffice with respect to the daughter’s ongoing obligation to provide information to her father.

Furthermore, Justice Veit states that an adult child that is not merely looking to be awarded s.7 expenses but also ongoing financial support, must provide the father with her updated transcripts.

The Court also recognized that adult children may be obligated to pay for a portion of their s.7 expenses if they have an opportunity to work part-time.

To learn more about adult child support as well as the services provided by Krol & Krol, call 905.707.3370 today.