General Blog

Legal Protections And Financial Implications In Florida, there aren't specific statutes providing explicit legal protections for stay-at-home parents. However, several common-sense protections and typical practices within the family law system help ensure their well-being during and after divorce proceedings. These measures aim to maintain stability and fairness for the stay-at-home parent and children. Many counties in Florida have Standing Family Law Orders that require both parties to maintain the status quo regarding living arrangements, finances, and childcare until the divorce is finalized. This means stay-at-home parents and their children are not abruptly displaced from their…Read More

Common Mistakes Parents Make In Parenting Plans When drafting parenting plans, parents often make several common mistakes that can lead to complications down the road. Being aware of these pitfalls can help ensure the plan is comprehensive, practical, and serves the best interests of your child. Lack Of Detail One of the most common errors is not being detailed enough. Parenting plans can be lengthy. As parents work through the document, they may become fatigued and impatient, leading to vague or incomplete sections. It's crucial to maintain thoroughness throughout the entire plan. Short-Term Focus Many…Read More

Common Sources Of Conflict In Parenting Plans In Florida, conflicts in parenting plans often stem from several common issues. Understanding these potential sources of conflict can help you create a more effective and detailed parenting plan that reduces misunderstandings and disputes. In this section, I’ll discuss just some of the most frequent sources of conflict I’ve encountered during my career as a family law attorney. Conflicts often arise when parents disagree on the specific times for picking up and dropping off the children. Differences in work schedules or other commitments can dramatically exacerbate these disputes.…Read More

In Florida, three forms of alimony are available: bridge-the gap, rehabilitative, or duration alimony. A court determines whether or not to award alimony by determining whether the party seeking alimony has a need, and the paying spouse has the ability to pay. Bridge-the-Gap alimony is awarded to help a party transition from being married, to being single. It is specifically awarded to assist a party with legitimate, short-term needs. Bridge-the-Gap alimony may not exceed 2 years in length. Bridge-the-Gap alimony terminates upon the death of either party, or upon the remarriage of the receiving spouse. It is important to note…Read More

As of July 1, 2023, permanent alimony is no more in Florida after Governor Ron DeSantis signed SB1416 into law on June 30, 2023. Changes to the law governing alimony awards will apply to any final judgment entered on or after July 1, 2023 include: The elimination of permanent alimony, leaving only bridge-the-gap, rehabilitative, and durational forms of alimony. Rehabilitative alimony is limited to 5 years. Durational alimony may not be awarded for any marriages less than 3 years in length. An award of durational alimony is limited based on the length of the marriage,…Read More

A common scenario during the initiation of child support proceedings is as follows: My child’s Mother/Father quit their job, or switched from full-time employment to part-time employment. What happens to child support now? Fla. Stat. § 61.30(2)(b) provides that “monthly income shall be imputed to an unemployed or underemployed parent if the unemployment/underemployment is found by the court to be voluntary on the parent’s part, absent a finding of physical or mental incapacity or other circumstances over which the parent has no control. How Is Income Imputed? If the Court finds the parent is voluntarily unemployed or underemployed, the…Read More

For those going through family law cases involving minor children, usually there are two big questions; what will timesharing look like, and what is child support going to be? Before considering child support, it’s important to write out a Parenting Plan. A Parenting Plan is a document that outlines the relationship between the parents, and the minor child(ren). Elements of a Parenting Plan can differ family to family, including specifics about child(ren)’s education, health care, religion, etc. Who Creates A Parenting Plan? A Parenting Plan can be developed and agreed to by the parents through…Read More

The Florida Department of Revenue (otherwise known as “DOR”) is authorized to administratively establish child support obligations. The DOR does not have the ability to determine issues related to a divorce, separation, alimony, spousal support, termination of parental rights, dependency, disputed paternity, or change of time-sharing. What does that mean? First, it’s important to note that the Florida Division of Administrative Hearings (DOAH) is not the same as the circuit court. These two court systems have concurrent jurisdiction. This means that both court systems may enter court orders related to child support at the same time if there is no existing court order of child support.…Read More

Being served can be a scary feeling. Seeing your name on legal documents and reading “A lawsuit has been filed against you” just might be one of your Top 10 scary moments. Unfortunately, pretending you didn’t receive the papers served on you won’t make the case go away. What Happens If I Don’t Respond? If you’ve been served any documents, you have twenty calendar days to file responsive documents and serve them on the other side. Contrary to popular belief, twenty days does include weekends and holidays. If you fail to file or serve any documents within twenty days…Read More

Divorce, separation, and/or a breakup is hard enough on parties emotionally, mentally, and physically, but when you throw children into the mix, it only gets more complicated. A big issue to tackle during any Divorce or Child Custody/Support matters is time-sharing. The Florida Courts utilize the word time-sharing, instead of using “custody.” However, time-sharing is the amount of time that the child, or children, are spending with each parent. Recently, there has been a push towards normalizing parents sharing 50/50 time-sharing with their children. In fact, there has been a trend towards creating a rebuttable presumption that 50/50 time-sharing is in…Read More