Recent Blog Posts
Proposed Law Still Permits Harsh Child Support Penalties
Child support payments are significant and continuing financial obligations that can put a strain on parents struggling to meet their expenses. Few parents deliberately shirk paying this support, but falling behind due to loss of income, injury or illness can be hard to overcome. The Florida Department of Revenue and family court judges have… Read More »
Religious Disagreement and Child Custody
The tension between religion and parenting is an issue that can create a large gulf between spouses who cannot agree. Religion is one of those pivotal issues that can bring people together or drive them apart. When parents separate or divorce and cannot agree on the religious upbringing of their child, the opportunity for… Read More »
Getting a Spouse Out of the House in Divorce
When couples make the decision to get divorced, one of the first things that often must be negotiated is which one will leave the family home. For understandable reasons, the primary caretaker of the couple’s children will typically end up staying, but without a court order or some other legal mechanism to sever the… Read More »
Biology or Marriage: Which Wins in Paternity Cases?
Having the opportunity to create and raise a child is cited as a major achievement for many people. Parenthood is a great responsibility, but brings many rewards that cannot be fully measured. For most couples, there is never a question about who fathered a child, and the man is typically actively involved in raising… Read More »
How to Avoid Lengthy Divorce Mediation
Resolving outstanding issues in an amicable fashion is one the largest challenges faced by divorcing couples. Traditional litigation is time consuming, expensive and offers little flexibility in the outcome. Another, less contentious option is mediation, a process that gives spouses more autonomy and space to find solutions that work well for their situation. Mediation… Read More »
When Spouses Disagree on the Value of Assets
Agreeing on the value of a marital asset can provoke a significant amount of conflict between spouses getting divorced. Emotional attachment and differing opinions of financial experts are often the source of these disagreements, which can greatly complicate and affect the ultimate outcome of the case. Without an adequate valuation of assets, structuring a… Read More »
When the Other Parent Won’t Return Your Child
Divorced parents need to trust their child is safe with an ex-spouse, and that for the child’s well-being, he/she will be returned at the appointed time. Sharing child custody or time-sharing as it is now called is a complicated situation that is almost guaranteed to involve obstacles, even between parents with good communication and… Read More »
Bringing Outside Financial Experts into Your Divorce
Outside of child custody, one of the most complicated and contentious issues spouses face in divorce is the division of marital assets and liabilities. Florida law requires both parties to submit financial affidavits with the court outlining all property, both separate and joint. Florida follows an equitable division of property rule, and each spouse… Read More »
Mental Capacity and Its Impact on the Divorce Process
People tend to change over time as life experience and age influences how one sees the world, and these incremental changes can cause couples to grow apart, leading to divorce. The divorce process, with the complications of property division, child custody and support, is already an overwhelming experience, but if concerns about one spouse’s… Read More »
Dividing the Marital Estate When Assets vs Income Is Lopsided
The longer a couple is married, the harder it typically is to divide property acquired during marriage if divorce becomes a reality. Couples tend to accumulate a wide variety of assets and liabilities over time, but in some relationships, there may be a distinct lack of valuable assets to divide. This situation, while not… Read More »
