Recent Blog Posts
Due Process and Florida Divorce Cases
In divorce cases, as in other legal processes, every person has certain legal rights. When the court or the state fails to respect those rights, it is a violation of due process. In criminal court, many defendants have successfully argued that they could not be convicted because their right to due process had been… Read More »
Divorce and the High-Income Stay-at-Home Dad
Life is expensive, so expensive that, unless you write out a budget and keep written records of all your transactions, you might not even realize how much you spend. Most married couples raising young children have dual income households. When you are unhappily married but not seriously considering divorce, it is easy to construct… Read More »
Agreements to Waive Alimony Only Become Effective When the Divorce Becomes Final
The percentage of divorce cases in which the court orders one spouse to pay alimony is decreasing, and when the court does order alimony, it is usually only for a few years. Prenuptial agreements are becoming increasingly popular among young couples, but that is not the main reason for the trend away from alimony;… Read More »
Equitable Distribution and Late-in-Life Marriages of Short Duration
Divorce courts in Florida divide property according to what is fair for both parties; the legal term for this is equitable distribution. Decisions about alimony follow the same logic, but not all divorce settlements include alimony, whereas all of them involve equitable distribution. This means that some people who were financially dependent on their… Read More »
The Court Cannot Hold You in Contempt for Failing to Pay Alimony That Was Improperly Calculated
Contempt of court is when the court declares that you have disobeyed a court order. Depending on the nature of the court order and the period of time that you have been failing to comply with it, the court might hold you in civil contempt or criminal contempt of court; if it is criminal… Read More »
When Parents Divorce in Florida and Each Parent Moves to a Different State, Which Courts Have Jurisdiction?
As a legal term, “jurisdiction” means the geographic area or subject matter about which a court has the authority to make decisions. Most of the time, the matter of which court has jurisdiction in a certain case is straightforward. Family courts in Florida definitely have jurisdiction in a case where a person who got… Read More »
Can You Modify Your Parenting Plan in Florida If You Got Divorced in Another State?
Although it doesn’t feel like it now that you and everyone you know has been staying at home for the past two months, people today are more well-traveled than at any other time in history. Families spread out across multiple states, or even more than one country, stay in close contact with each other… Read More »
How Does the Court Determine Alimony When One Spouse Has a Cash Only Business?
When one spouse is not honest with the other about finances, it often leads to marital conflict. Although some couples agree to maintain some degree of financial independence from each other, so that they don’t have to argue or negotiate over every penny, it is hard to trust someone who refuses to tell you… Read More »
When You and Your Ex-Spouse Disagree About Whether You Are Healthy Enough to Work
Most alimony arrangements are temporary; Florida courts only entertain the possibility of permanent alimony when couples divorce after more than 17 years of marriage. Even then, it is not a done deal that the court will award permanent alimony. Even when the court does award permanent alimony, the amount is usually based on the… Read More »
When Parenting Plans Stipulate That a Third Party Can Transport the Children from One Parent to the Other
Florida parenting plans are wonderfully versatile. Parents have the freedom to divide the 365 days of parenting time in a year however they please. Also customizable are issues of decision making and transportation. For example, you can specify that Dad will visit the baby from 9:00 a.m. to noon, seven days per week. Likewise,… Read More »
