My question involves emancipation laws for the State of: New Jersey
I understand that there is no set age for emanicaption in NJ and that case law says that the court will look at when the child is no longer in the sphere of influence of his parents. (how is this determined?)
In the case, where a child has turned 18 years old, but continues to live with his mother, chooses to not seek full time employment (although has held two brief full time jobs since turning 18), and has completed only 2 college level classes in four years, must a father continue to pay child support despite there being no reason why this 18 year old cannot work full time to financially care for himself? (as shown by his ability to take on addition hours at his parttime job whenever he feels like it)?
The mother plans to continue to house the child as long as the father pays support. the children currently makes apprx $15000 or more per year and mom says he pays no bills, so therefore she is supporting him and he is still under her sphere of influence. Dad says there is no reason he cannot work full time, except that mom encourages him remain partially employed. Mom does not encourage the child to find full time work as a result the child continues to act irresponsible and at 21 years old is geting arrested for stealing and fighting, behaviors the father believes will stop once the child is required to act like a responsible adult.
In this case the "child" reached 18 in 2007. Child then waited several months post graduation, residing at home with his mother not seeking employment, before he submitted a late application to tech school. He was wait-listed. He then registered for 1 college class and dropped it. He continued to live with mother during this time, unemployed, not seeking work, and not attending school for the remainder of 2007, while continuing to live off the support of his parents.
By April he 2008, found part time work, which turned into Full Time work briefly for a few months until a lay off. Another parttime job, was found and lost due to him stealing items from that job. Eventally he briefly held another position working 35 hours per week and got fired from that job. Mom claims this to be parttime work.
In 2009 he took two classes at college and passed both but is not registered for any more classes as he claims to still be on the wait list he applied to in 2007. In 2010 The father found him a new part time position and the "child" works up to 35-40 hours per week when ever he feels like taking on extra hours, but is only required to work 20-24 hours per week. At the least he will make just over 10,000 per year at this job.
Dad wants to emancipate child from the age of 18 since he made no effort to attend school or work and then did work full time briefly.
Mom claims son is and has always been a part-time student, a part-time employee and always under her support and care and he should not be emanicipated. She claims he is currently still waiting to be accepted into that tech school in which she claims he has been wait listed for 3 years now?
Can a father be forced to pay child support to a child who refuses to get a job just because mother encourages him to remain at home so she can continue to collect child support? Can child be deemed to be in the sphere of influence just because one parent wants to continue to support him while the other wants him to grow up?
The reality here, is the son is working enough to pay for all his own needs, but the mother enjoys collecting continued support from the father for her needs and does not need it to care for basis needs of the son. Father has no problem financially assisting son on as needed basis, (i.e. when son needed a car, father gave him his old car, when son needed furniture in bedroom, father purchased it)... but father is tired of watching mom take CS $ to spend it on herself while encouraging son to be an unemployed, irresponsible adult.
Sorry for the length of this question.

