Ocala Divorce Lawyer Blog

According to Florida's recent legislation concerning temporary and concurrent custody of a child, effective July 1, 2010, military parents can feel that they are not losing any important parental rights knowing that the bill states:

-Parents assigned to military service on orders may designate a person to exercise time-sharing on that parent's behalf.

-Parents assigned to military service may petition for expedited hearings.

-Requires non-military parent to cooperate to resolve issues and share information regarding the child.

-Protects military parents that object to custody modifications and allows them to state their objection formally, prior to any final order being awarded.

-States that any order granting concurrent custody does not affect ability of the other parent to obtain physical custody of child at any time.

To read the general bill and/or receive additional information, please visit MyFloridaHouse.gov.

If you are in the Military, either active or reserve, and need assistance with creating a parenting plan, please call us to talk your case. Visit our website or call the office to schedule your low-cost consultation. We employ a client based approach, which means that we are selective in the cases we take so that we can be available to our clients. We spend time with you to thoroughly understand the facts of your case, so that we can provide you with a comprehensive and realistic legal evaluation. Our process begins with a half-hour low-cost consultation.

With the signing of Florida House bill 907, Florida Family Law statutes have had quite a few changes. The Child Support Statue update now mandates that effective January 1, 2011, any and all child support orders entered into on or after October 1, 2010 must provide:

1. The termination of the child support shall end on the child's eighteenth birthday, unless otherwise agreed to by the parties. This is a pretty significant change from the current statute, which mandates child support to continue past the 18th birthday with a reasonable expectation of graduation. So, if the child turns 18 in October but does not graduate until June, under the current statute the child support would continue until graduation.

2. A child support schedule. This schedule shall state the amount of the monthly child support obligation for all the minor children at the time the order is entered. The schedule shall also provide the amount of child support that will be owed for any children remaining after one or more children in the order are no longer entitled to receive child support.

3. The month, day and year that the reduction or termination of child support becomes effective.

The recent changes also provide the Child Support Guidelines and Principles that will be follow by the Florida family courts:

1. Each parent has a legal obligation to support his or her minor or legally dependent child.

2. The guideline schedule is based upon the parents' combined net income that the child would be receiving if the parents were still living in the same household.

3. The goal of the guidelines is to encourage fair and efficient settlement of child support issues between parents, as well as minimize the need for litigation.

It would seem that on the face of the update, the biggest change is how we actually calculate the child support number. Normally, the number of overnights needed to realize a significant change in the amount paid from one parent to another was 147 overnights, or forty (40%) of the whole year. That number has decreased to 73 overnights or twenty (20%) of the whole year. This change will be significant whether you are paying or receiving parent of child support.

If you have any questions about this new child support statute, please call us to talk your case. Visit our website or call the office to schedule your low-cost consultation. We employ a client based approach, which means that we are selective in the cases we take so that we can be available to our clients. We spend time with you to thoroughly understand the facts of your case, so that we can provide you with a comprehensive and realistic legal evaluation. Our process begins with a half-hour low-cost consultation.

There have been recent changes to Florida Statute §61.08, significantly affecting Florida alimony laws. This bill was signed into law over the summer and will not apply to all pending divorces.

The changes apply to all alimony awards entered on or after July 1, 2010. The updated statute cannot be used as the basis for a modification of an alimony award determined before July 1 2010. The changes bring some clarity to what has long been a very murky area of family law. The updated statute provides Judges additional guidance in making alimony award determinations and actually provide some bright-line rules. The first step is still a factual determination as to the financial status of the couple involved, focusing on the party's need for alimony and the other's party's ability to pay alimony.

Prior to the recent changes, a court had the authority to consider a number of factors as it determined whether alimony should be granted, and if so, in what amount. Those factors included:

a) The standard of living enjoyed by the couple;

b) The duration of the marriage;

c) Age and physical and mental condition of the parties;

d) The financial resources of each party;

e) Earning capacity, as well as education, skills and employability of the parties;

f) Contributions by the parties to the marriage;

g) Any other factors the court determines are relevant to an equitable alimony arrangement.

Under the new statute, there are now three additional factors for a judge to consider when making an alimony award in Florida:

a) The responsibilities each party will have with regard to any minor children they have in common.

b) The tax treatment and consequences to both parties of any alimony award, including the designation of all or a portion of the payment as a nontaxable, nondeductible payment.

c) All sources of income available to either party, including income available to either party through investments of any asset held by that party.

Under the new alimony statute, marriages are divided into three categories of duration and more concrete time frames are provided for categorizing a marriage's duration. The new law lengthens the amount of time the marriage must last before permanent alimony becomes a strong claim.

a) Short-term: less than seven years of marriage;

b) Moderate: between seven and 17 years;

c) Long-term: more than 17 years of marriage.

Continue reading "New Changes to Alimony Statute in Florida Divorce" »