Heintz v. Heintz

The Georgia Supreme Court issued the following three questions to the parties with respect to their appeal of a child support order: (1) Did the trial court err in applying a deviation from the presumptive amount of child support for extraordinary educational expenses without complying with OCGA 19-6-15 (c) (2) (E)?; (2) Did the trial court err in ordering that child support would continue until the child reached the age of 20?; and (3) Did the trial court err in adjusting Mother’s gross income for a preexisting child support order under OCGA 19-6-15 (f) (5) (B)? The Supreme Court concluded, after review of the specific facts in the trial court record, the trial court erred in all three aspects: (1) the trial court erred in applying a deviation from the presumptive amount of child support for extraordinary educational expenses without complying with the statute; (2) the trial court omitted any requirement that the parties’ son be enrolled in and attending secondary school to extend support beyond the age of majority, therefore not complying with the plain language of the statute; and (3) no such preexisting child support order satisfying the time qualifications of the statute existed, therefore the trial court’s modification of a non-existent order was simply a nullity and had to be vacated. View "Heintz v. Heintz" on Justia Law