Category Archives: Family Law
Setting and Modifying Child Support Obligations in Florida
Most states, including Florida, are income share child support jurisdictions. The child support guidelines take a number of factors into account so that, as closely as possible, the children have the same standard of living they would have had if their parents remained married. The guideline amounts are presumptively reasonable, and judges very rarely… Read More »
Seven Key Property Division Factors in Florida
Here in the Sunshine State, a legal marriage dissolution must divide marital property in a just and right manner. That’s an important principle, but it is also rather subjective. To flesh out this general rule, state lawmakers outlined a series of factors in Section 61.075 of the Florida Statutes. These factors play a prominent… Read More »
The Three Cs of Mediation
Most divorce cases are extremely complex. There are lots of emotional and financial issues, and many times, these issues overlap. Additionally, in many cases, the spouses do not trust each other. That’s especially true if there was trauma in the marriage, like an affair or a secret bank account. In situations like these, professional… Read More »
Top Three Best Interest Factors in a Port St. Lucie Child Custody Dispute
Two broad presumptions dominate Florida parenting time laws. First, all these decisions must put the children’s interests first. Second, most children benefit from meaningful and consistent contact with both their biological parents. But these abstract presumptions are difficult to apply. Furthermore, they are subject to different interpretations. To assist in an initial determination or… Read More »
Does Child Support Include College Tuition in Florida?
In many states, child support rarely ends at age 18. Instead, it often continues until age 22. But instead of making direct payments to the residential parent, the non-residential parent must pay a share of college expenses. That’s not the case in Florida. In the Sunshine State, unless the child has a serious mental… Read More »
The Changing Face Of Alimony In Port St. Lucie
This post is not about structural alimony reform in Florida. That issue was a political hot button a few years ago, but it appears to be dead in the water now. Instead, this post focuses on the monumental tax law change which took effect on January 1, 2019. For decades, obligors have been able… Read More »
Five Property Division Factors In A Florida Divorce
The Sunshine State is an equitable division jurisdiction. Upon marriage dissolution, marital property must be divided in an equitable manner. In this context, “equitable” is usually, although not always, synonymous with “equal.” Overall, the divorce must not be an unfair financial burden on either party. This goal is a little broad and subjective. So,… Read More »
Is Divorce Mediation Worth It?
Prior to mediation, the vast majority of people would say “no.” They reason, somewhat correctly, that if they could talk through their problems, they would not be in this situation to begin with. The expense of mediation also puts off many people. Mediation is not terribly expensive, but it is not cheap either. However,… Read More »
What You Can (And Should) Do About PAS
In one way or another, Parental Alienation Syndrome affects almost all post-divorce relationships between parents and their children. Knowing how to recognize PAS, and knowing what to do about it, can make a tremendous difference in a relationship with one’s children. PAS is an umbrella term for a wide range of situations. In all… Read More »
The Three Cs Of Family Law Mediation
Very few divorce cases go all the way to trial. That’s especially true in the no-fault marriage dissolution era. Typically, the only issues involve child custody and property division. So the vast majority of divorce cases settle during mediation. One of the reasons that mediation is so successful is that the primary issues… Read More »
