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Family Law

Recent Posts in Family Law Category

  • How Does Inheritance Affect Equitable Distribution?

    Property division in divorce can be incredibly complicated. If you’re getting a divorce, you might be worried about what will happen to your inheritance. Does it have to be divided during equitable division or can you keep it? While Florida does divide property equitably, it only does so with marital assets. Marital assets and liabilities are property and debts that the couple acquired together ...
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  • The Advantages of a Temporary Support Order

    Getting a divorce can be a lengthy and emotionally draining process, especially when there are children involved. It’s important to make sure your kids have the financial support they need not only in the long term, but also while you and your former partner go through the divorce process. One way to do this is to obtain a temporary child support order. Temporary support orders provide the ...
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  • What Effect Can Remarriage Have on Timesharing Rights?

    When going through a divorce, a couple with children needs to establish a timesharing agreement, to which they both must adhere as they move forward with their lives. However, if one or both of these individuals decides to later get remarried, it’s important to understand the effects the action might have on the timesharing custody agreement. If one parent was not granted full or partial ...
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  • The Many Shades of Alimony in Florida

    Ideally, when a couple divorces, both spouses are able to walk away from the marriage financial independent and able to strike out on their own. However, occasionally the divorce will leave one spouse in a poor financial condition and the other will be required to provide some degree of support for that spouse. Known as alimony, this support can be temporary or may even be set up as a permanent ...
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  • Adultery and Divorce: Does Cheating Matter in Florida?

    Florida takes a “no fault” approach to divorce. This means that either spouse may seek a divorce and does not need to actually prove that the other did anything “wrong” to trigger the divorce. Florida courts presume simply that the marriage is “irretrievably broken” and allow the divorce to proceed on those grounds. This saves both spouses the trouble and stress of having their personal lives ...
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  • Divorce vs. Annulment in Florida

    What's the Difference Between Annulment and Divorce? An annulment is quite different from divorce; although both proceedings involve a change in marital status, annulments are legal proceedings that nullify a marriage that was never actually valid, whereas divorce terminates a valid marriage. To qualify for an annulment in Florida, a couple needs to meet certain specific requirements. While there ...
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  • Can Stepparents Legally Adopt Stepchildren?

    In some cases, stepparents may wish to take the next step in making their new relationship with their stepchildren legal. Florida allows stepparents to adopt their stepchildren under certain circumstances if it is in the best interest of the child. The first step any stepparent seeking to adopt his or her stepchildren must take is seeking consent from the noncustodial parent. When that parent is ...
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  • What Are Your Options If Your Ex is Not Paying Child Support?

    When couples with children divorce, each parent is expected to continue to provide support for their children. The exact nature and expectations of this support are laid out in a child support agreement, which both parents sign. This document explains what each parent must financially contribute for the development and support of their children. However, occasionally one parent will fail to meet ...
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  • The Two Types of Divorce in Florida

    If you and your spouse have decided to seek a divorce in Florida, the first thing you will need to decide is what kind of divorce to pursue. There is actually more than one type of divorce. The first is what is known as a “simplified dissolution of marriage” and the other is a “regular dissolution of marriage.” Understanding the difference between these two types is key to knowing which is right ...
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  • Marital vs. Separate Property: Dividing Assets in Florida

    When a couple gets married, any types of property earned or gained after the marriage begins are considered marital property. However, a divorce can lead to messy disputes over who gets what property. When this happen, they must seek legal assistance to divide these assets, which can be a difficult and emotionally stressful experience. Every state takes a different approach to asset division. In ...
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  • How Do Florida Courts Determine Child Custody?

    As a divorcing parent, perhaps one of your biggest concerns is losing custody of your child. There was a time, not that long ago, when Florida courts favored the rights of mothers and fathers did not have much chance of gaining custody of their children. However, these days, Florida courts have adopted a far more gender-neutral approach to child custody. Instead of presuming one parent is more ...
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  • Imputing Income in Florida: Should You Be Worried?

    In Florida, whether parents are married or not, they are expected to both take an active role in the care and support of their child. Occasionally, however, a parent will purposefully skirt his or her financial responsibilities and attempt to decrease his or her income to lower their child support obligations. Florida courts have zero tolerance for this kind of action and will impute income to the ...
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  • Do Grandparents Have Any Visitation Rights in Florida?

    Florida is home to hundreds of thousands of grandparents, but if you’re attempting to secure visitation rights with your grandchildren, it can be an uphill battle in our state. For years Florida law allowed for grandparents’ visitation rights, but a series of court rulings, in the name of expanding the right to personal privacy, have found the old law unconstitutional. Additionally, while the ...
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  • Options for Collecting Child Support

    In Florida divorce proceedings that involve children, family court uses a standard formula to determine child support, with the expectation that both parents are going to adhere to the schedule of payments. No parent should have to shoulder an unreasonable financial obligation and each has the right to request a modification of terms if his or her financial situation changes. Even so, more than ...
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  • Can I Move With My Child After a Divorce?

    After a divorce, a parent with whom a child lives may wish to relocate to a different city, state or country. This can happen for a number of reasons, including a new job, a new spouse or romantic partner, a desire to be closer to extended family for financial or emotional support, schooling or job training, military assignment, or health and safety needs. Parental relocation usually calls for a ...
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  • "Substantial Change" Required for Child Timesharing Modification

    In Florida, divorcing parents must adhere to a parenting plan that establishes timesharing, decision-making, and communication responsibilities between parents. This recent development in custody determination reflects the State’s interest in emphasizing the importance of children’s relationships with both parents. After the timesharing agreement is accepted and the divorce is finalized, parents ...
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  • Moving Out? Now What?

    Although many states recognize separation as a legal status, Florida does not. This means there is no complete system of modified marital obligations for separated spouses, which can leave such couples in confusion about who should do what. However, there is legal guidance for couples during the divorce — or dissolution, as it is referred to in Florida — to clarify each spouse’s marital ...
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  • Does Living Together Constitute a Legal Marriage?

    Back in the old days, when two people lived together for a long time and acted as though they were a couple, the law recognized them as married. However, over the years many states have passed laws that define marriage as a legal contract between two people that must be signed by both parties to be recognized. A common law marriage is one in which the parties have lived together for many years, ...
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