Opinion
April 18, 1994
Appeal from the Supreme Court, Westchester County (Donovan, J.).
Ordered that the order is affirmed insofar as appealed from, with costs.
The parties' separation agreement, which was incorporated into and survived the judgment of divorce, was silent on the issue of the children's college expenses. The former husband claims that in the absence of a voluntary agreement between the parties as to college costs, and further because the former wife failed to meet her burden of showing that special circumstances existed (see, Matter of Ragazzo v Murray, 175 A.D.2d 247; Romansoff v Romansoff, 167 A.D.2d 527; Matter of Montagnino v Montagnino, 163 A.D.2d 598; Jackson v Jackson, 138 A.D.2d 455; Keehn v Keehn, 137 A.D.2d 493), he was not required to pay any of his daughter's expenditures at Tufts University.
Pursuant to Domestic Relations Law § 240 (1-b) (c) (7), the court may now direct a parent to contribute to a child's private college education, even in the absence of special circumstances or a voluntary agreement of the parties, as long as the court's discretion is not improvidently exercised in that regard (see, Manno v Manno, 196 A.D.2d 488). In determining whether to award educational expenses, the court must consider the circumstances of the case, the circumstances of the respective parties, the best interests of the children, and the requirements of justice (see, Domestic Relations Law § 240 [1-b] [c] [7]). The record shows that before directing the former husband to contribute $15,000 toward his daughter's college education at Tufts University, it took into account all of the aforementioned factors.
The record further shows that the court did not improvidently exercise its discretion when it awarded the wife outstanding unpaid support arrears and counsel fees in conjunction therewith. Bracken, J.P., O'Brien, Copertino and Hart, JJ., concur.