Morality clauses used to be popular in the South. These clauses were included in a Judge’s divorce order and usually required one or both of the divorcing parents to take some action (or refrain from taking some action). For example, a common morality clause was to require that a woman…
Florida is a “no fault” divorce state, meaning that either spouse may seek a divorce without showing cause for the desired separation. The spouse seeking a divorce has the option to simply claim the marriage is “irretrievably broken.” Generally, Florida courts are not concerned with which party played the greater…
You might’ve heard that Hugh Hefner is getting married — yet again — at the end of this week. Keep in mind that Hugh is 85 years old and is engaged to a 24-year-old former Playmate. In other words, Hugh was a little over 60 when his soon-to-be wife was…
Florida Law is very specific as to when a marriage license may be issued to persons under 18 years of age. Generally, a minor must be at least 16 years old and obtain written parental consent before a marriage license will be issued. For minors under the age of 16,…
In a stunning announcement the Obama Administration just announced that it will no longer enforce a federal law barring gay marriage. In Florida, a constitutional amendment which bans same-sex marriages passed with 61% of the vote. Florida has adopted DOMA (Defense of Marriage Act) as state law. DOMA, which was…
A new North Dakota bill is getting a lot of attention in the North Dakota legislature, as it is proposing mandatory marriage counseling in all divorce cases. The drafters of the bill want all married couples, with the exemption of cases with substantiated allegations of domestic abuse, to wait one…
Jacksonville gay marriage proponents waiting for the oral arguments over California’s Proposition 8. Over the summer, a district judge held the ban on gay marriage unconstitutional and since August 16th the law has been on hold. Read more about the California panel of judges that will be hearing oral arguments…
A recent New York Times article detailed a study which found couples that cohabitate before marriage are less likely to stay married than their non-cohabitating counterparts. The study found that the odds that a marriage would last longer than ten years after first cohabitating decreased by 6 percentage points. Whether…
As of July 1, 2010 the State of Florida made significant changes to its alimony laws. These changes will affect all divorce proceedings initiated after July 1 as well as those that were initiated prior to July 1 and are still unresolved. Durational alimony’s predecessor, permanent alimony, gave the Judge…
In my Jacksonville, Florida divorce practice, many people going through a divorce ask me if they are entitled to get the ring back. Normally, Florida divorce courts view engagement rings in a contractual sense. The ring is given in contemplation of marriage and if the marriage does not occur then…