Oeler v. Oeler
Supreme Court of Pennsylvania
594 A.2d 649 (1991)
Richard Oeler (defendant) agreed to pay $900 monthly child support for his daughter Paula (plaintiff), with the order specifying support would drop to $300 if Paula no longer lived with her mother; when Paula's mother moved to Connecticut for an internship, she helped Paula secure her own one-bedroom apartment near her high school rather than have Paula move in with Richard, even though Richard had offered to house Paula at his own expense so she could finish school — Paula simply disliked living with her stepmother, and her mother declined to force the issue. Richard sought to terminate his support obligation given his standing housing offer, and the trial court found Paula had no justifiable reason for choosing to live alone and terminated the support order; Paula appealed.
Whether a parent may be compelled to pay child support enabling a minor child to live in her own apartment when the parent has offered to provide housing directly and the child has no justifiable reason for declining that offer.