A question often asked of family law practitioners is whether child support continues when a child attends college. In the early 1990s, this issue was addressed head-on by the Pennsylvania Supreme Court as well as the legislature. In the seminal case of Blue v. Blue, 616 A.2d. 628 (Pa. 1992), the Supreme Court of Pennsylvania held that a parent owes a duty of support to a child until he or she graduates from high school or turns 18, whichever occurs later. After the Blue decision, the Pennsylvania Legislature passed 23 Pa.C.S. Section 4327, which provided that divorced parents could be ordered to pay post-secondary educational expenses. Thereafter, the Pennsylvania Supreme Court concluded that 23 Pa.C.S. Section 4327 was unconstitutional, in the case of Curtis v. Kline, 666 A.2d. 265 (Pa. 1995), because the statute permitted similarly situated young adults to be treated differently by obtaining post-secondary educational support from parents, as there is no statutory obligation for a parent in an intact family to pay for post-secondary educational expenses.

Since the Blue decision, the courts have not banned parents from contracting to pay post-secondary educational support for their children. The courts have applied the law of contracts to interpret agreements written between parties obligating a parent or parents to provide such support. Therefore, if parties enter into a written agreement for child support after age 18 or graduation from high school, whichever occurs last, it is enforceable by the court.

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