21 Year Old Sues Parents for College Tuition - and Wins!!

a reply to: Woodcarver

Taught mine to work .. be responsible and save to get what they want. All paid their own way through uni with money they saved and earned .. two are now doctors and two are apothacaries running their own chinese herbal medicine shops.
Helped them study when they needed and encouraged them along the way . They didnt get a free ride.
All are successes in their careers now.

a reply to: Benevolent Heretic
Thanks for posting that, BH. Don't know how I missed that. It's good to see that the judge made a decision based on present laws, and not arbitrary justice.

This young lady has burned some bridges though, and that's going to come back and bite her in the ass later on.

All of that money went to pay for med bills. I saw no money from their savings and insurance. I was alone and broke at 15. Cleaning stalls before school and washing dishes after. I spent many nights in a tent in the woods or bouncing around on couches while i finished high school.

Now i own several businesses including an engineering firm and a wood shop among other projects. My story is an exception to the norm. And not relevant to this case

So sorry to revoke your TKO.

This girl's particular case is valid and upheld in a courtroom.

My point is. Why have kids and then expect them to raise themselves. And then be surprised when they don't turn out as you wanted them too. Parenthood is a lifelong obligation. Till one of you is dead.

a reply to: FlyersFan

a reply to: Hoosierdaddy71

Flyer Fan

As a college student who lives his parents, I would say she is like you said a spoiled evil brat.

While my parents do give things for free, I will try to help them in any way if they need help and plus I made a promise to myself that after I graduate from college and get a job I will try to support them financially if they need it because in the end I owed them.

Hoosierdaddy:

I agree that little brat better pay for all the parents' expenses since she owed them a lot.

sueing your parents is just not cricket. bad show.

double post

originally posted by: Woodcarver
The parents had a kid. The responsibility lands on them. Period.

The 'kid' is an ADULT .. a 21 year old adult .. who hasn't spoken to her parents in two years. The responsibility to pay for her college education lands on the 21 year old. PERIOD.

I dont know if you have kids or not.

Yes. And if my child behaved in such a disrespectful manner as this and then came looking for a free ride YEARS after they became and adult, i'd kick 'em in the backend and get a restraining order from the cops.

ABSURD!

originally posted by: Woodcarver
Dont have kids if your not willing to take responsibility.

Parental responsibility stops when the child becomes an adult. My mother is 80 years old. Is she still responsible for me? I'm 52. When does responsibility stop?? Answer - when the child is an adult. And this 'child' is a 21 year old ADULT. She is responsible for herself.

The 21 year old needs to GROW UP, take personal responsibility, and stop treating her parents with such disrespect.

a reply to: Benevolent Heretic

I completely agree. The parents said they simply can't afford it. The adult child, who hasn't spoken to them in two years, can get off her backend and get a loan and/or a job. (And yes, stripping can make a ton of money in a short amount of time. )

a reply to: Woodcarver
I agree with the crux of what you're saying, but your personal story does have relevance, because you are obviously not coming from an unbiased perspective. IMHO.

But then, neither are the rest of us. Objectivity in a case like this isn't easy.

These particular parents made a binding legal document stating that they would in fact pay for her education. So yes. They should and do have to fulfill that obligation.

As far as the rest of us goes, i would expect my children to expect that i would do anything within my power to help them.

All children start off selfish, self centered, greedy, needy, and violent. It is a parents job to teach them to be adults. If that means they have to pay for school then so be it. If your kids work hard and can pay their own way, then you have done a fine job of instilling good values upon them. Congrats. Your a good parent.

If this girl is still selfish and lazy, then in my opinion, the parents should still be responsible to bring them up to adults.

Adult is not a line you cross. It is not an age you reach. It is an attitude you have about yourself and your place in the world. It is a parents obligation to fulfill their children's potential. Doesn't that sound about as true a statement as you've ever heard?

Now i know the law doesnt recognise this thought. But if you are only interested in how the law permits or prohibits you. Then perhaps you should start thinking about the world a little differently.

I know you to be one of the nicest people on these boards. Generally much nicer than me. So i am going to appeal to your inner idealist. I know you read this article, you read the way it describes the child and the language it uses. It uses words like lazy, and greedy. The article is biased because its not a good unbiased article. Had it been biased on her side it would have used language like. Neglected, abused, abandoned. We would be haveing a different conversation.

My point is. Parents are responsible for their children. You brought them into the world. It was your choices which built the environment they were formed in. Garbage in/garbage out. All parents are responsible for their kids. The law lets you off the hook when they reach 18 or whatever arbitrary number the lawyers decide is appropriate.

a reply to: FlyersFan

I'm going to play devil's advocate for a second since everyone is on the parents' side...

If this woman holds so much animosity toward her parents, there's a possibility she was abused. There are a lot of "model families" out there with some very dark secrets.

Although clearly not a new or different sentiment.... I'll throw my $.02 in.


My own past is not stellar when it comes to education. H.S. dropout. Only a few months in college.

I am just about the most successful person in my family, if not the most successful. Dirt farmers is a good title for the majority of my family from the St. Louis area. My father sold and owned his own Kirby Vacuum dealership for an entire and sizable chunk of the state we lived in. Before that, he worked as a mechanic. Both in the AF and through GM Motors. My immediate and once removed family? Not a single college diploma.

Through making myself noticed, I was given an opportunity at a lucrative career in IT. The majority of my clientele and employers are major world movers and shakers. Multi-nationals. I ran with this opportunity. I made something of myself.

When I got tired of feeling my brain dissolve behind a bar tapping kegs, my family offered to help with college. I don't blame them for not coming through with a single dime towards my education in the College area. What I b]THANK them for was giving me the impetus to move forward. Almost a dare. With about a third of the credits necessary for a Bachelors, I had the opportunity to start my career and make something of myself.

Even through a good career and providing for my own and extended family, I have not been able to really put anything at all into savings.

I'll be there in every way possible for my children. But I also expect them to do everything humanly possible to make something of themselves. Unfortunately, as I really do not see retirement in my future, or as long as my mental faculties are available, I cannot see being able to do much for my children financially.

I don't make promises I cannot keep. And even if I could help financially, I'm not certain I would. Doing so, does not make an individual understand their self worth or ability to make something of themselves. This is not because "I didn't get a damned dime!". It is because I expect more from them. More than what amounts to an assumed privilege.

There are no victims. Especially amongst my children. Nor that of my hard working, and respectable family.



-NF

The McGarvey's are planning to appeal this...

I hope they do.

There has been a great deal of concern about my "net worth" as my daughter's lawyer gave a misleading statement to the press. When he stated our family income, he was combining the income of two separate households, mine and my husband's plus my ex-husband's and his wife's - (4 adults, 5 minor children, 2 mortgages, etc.) As a public school teacher, my salary of approximately $67,000 per year is public record - I have no reason to hide it. My "net worth" is negative...I have more debts than assets. Neither the FAFSA nor the family court took this into consideration. I want to appeal this case, because I firmly believe that it is unconstitutional and I do not want any other parents to have to go through this ordeal. However, I have been advised that the judgement may need to be bonded (meaning we would need to come up with $16,000 just to get our case to be heard by the appellate court, in addition to the filing fees and attorney fees.)

My ex-husband and I are planning to appeal the court's decision, but we have been advised by our attorneys that this will cost upwards of $16,000. We want to take our case to the New Jersey Supreme Court so that no other parents have to go through this. This was a family matter, and the courts and judges should not have the authority to override parental decisions when they have been made with the child's best interest at heart. Please, help me fund this appeal so we can make a difference in these laws that govern what parents can and cannot do when it comes to their adult children's education.

www.gofundme.com...

originally posted by: Klassified
a reply to: Woodcarver
I agree with the crux of what you're saying, but your personal story does have relevance, because you are obviously not coming from an unbiased perspective. IMHO.

But then, neither are the rest of us. Objectivity in a case like this isn't easy.

Yea. You're right, but objectivity in opinions is rarely useful either. We are supposed to use our experiences in life to raise others around us. It is up to every individual to make good choices and to do what is right. It seems a near impossible mission for the average person to think further than their initial emotional reaction. And on to the greater picture. The article is written in a way to elicit a desired emotional response. And a lot of people ran with it. They could not put themselves in the girls shoes because of the language that was used to describe her.

I read this yesterday and I'm just at a loss for words really. This judge is an idiot and should be reprimanded for this action. I hope to God that I one day am able to pay something for my kids education. I've worked my ass off to better myself so I can get out of student loan dept. I hate to use this word but the stupid bitch should have done better in high school so she could get scholarships.

originally posted by: Woodcarver
These particular parents made a binding legal document ...

... and they don't have the money to pay for college.
... and the brat adult-kid hasn't spoken to them in YEARS.

... the parents should still be responsible to bring them up to adults.

Right. 'UP TO ADULT". And the 21 year old woman IS an adult.

Adult is not a line you cross. It is not an age you reach.

Since you are legalistic in saying there is a binding document so the parents somehow owe the 21 year old woman money in an open ended agreement ... then you have to be legalistic about the age of adulthood. That is the adult womans 18th birthday which happened at least 3 years prior.

My point is. Parents are responsible for their children.

My point is that the 21 year old woman is NOT a child, hasn't been for more than three years, has been disrespectful to her parents and hasn't spoke to them in years, and she is responsible for herself.

a reply to: jtrenthacker

I did not say that.

I said that if they are declaring her as a dependent and reaping the financial benefits of claiming to be supporting her, then they absolutely should be forced to do so.

She is over eighteen and therefore they do not automatically have the legal right to claim to be supporting her. In the event that they are legally claiming to be supporting her, then they are reaping significant financial benefits from it, and she is absolutely entitled to receive her fair share of those benefits by actually being supported.

a reply to: jhn7537

I agree with you but, if they have money, why not help the kid out with college funds? I m now it can be done without parents help, but as a parent that's one thing you need to save for. "COLLEGE FUNDS"

If they don't have a lot of money theb like I said, she doesn't deserve sh.t.

originally posted by: FlyersFan
I'd go to jail before I'd give this spoiled evil brat a single penny.

Yahoo - 21 Year Old SUes Parents for College Tuition and Wins

A judge reaffirmed his order on Monday that Maura McGarvey and Michael Ricci pay 21-year-old Caitlyn Ricci’s community college tuition.

Caitlyn Ricci brought the suit against her parents in August 2013, suing them for $906 in tuition to Rowan College in Pennsylvania, according to The Inquirer. A few months later, a judge ruled in her favor. On Monday, he upheld his decision, ordering the parents to pay by the end of the year.

But all is not settled: In October, Caitlyn Ricci also sued her parents for another $16,000 in tuition from Philadelphia’s Temple University, where she is currently a student. In October, a judge ruled in her favor, but Michael Ricci and McGarvey are planning to appeal, saying their daughter didn’t apply for all eligible loans and scholarships, The Inquirer reported.

This adult child hasn't spoken to her parents in nearly two years. When she lived in her parents home she refused to obey house rules, she drank heavily and she refused to help out with home chores. The adult child refused to work and help pay for her own expenses. This woman is an adult and should be responsible for her own college costs. Her parents can't afford it and they don't owe her a thing. The ruling in favor of the adult child is dead wrong - IMHO.

She will make a fine young liberal