Abstract:
In deciding whether to award child maintenance in Singapore, the courts’ main considerations are the parents’ ability and the child’s needs. This is further complicated when it involves an adult child who has developed their own views and want to decide on their own future. This note explores the courts’ difficulty in exercising their discretion in UYT v UYU [2020] SGFC 81; [2020] SGHCF 8 to grant maintenance to an adult child when the child’s needs are in conflict with the parent’s wishes and the needs of the second family. The author suggests that future child support guidelines should include maintenance for further education.