Marriage

July 3, 2023

What Does Alimony Reform Mean for Florida Residents?

What Does Alimony Reform Mean for Florida Residents?

Florida law changed on July 1, 2023. Permanent alimony is no more. Alimony can be durational, but it cannot exceed fifty percent of the time a short term marriage has taken place or sixty percent of the length of a moderate term marriage. Alimony may not exceed seventy five percent of the time a long term marriage has occurred. A short term marriage is one that has occurred for less than ten years. A moderate term marriage is defined as a marriage that is ten to twenty years in length, and a long term marriage is one that is twenty years or longer. Durational alimony is not available on marriages that are less than three years in length. Durational alimony may not exceed thirty five percent of the difference between the income of the parties. Retirement may be an event that can be used to justify a reduction in alimony.

What Types of Alimony Exist in Florida?

April 7, 2023

Florida Custody by Extended Family Member vs. Guardianship

by Neil Weinreb

What is the best fit for a child in your family?

There are numerous similarities between Temporary Custody by Extended Family Member and Guardianship, but there are differences, as well. Understanding the differences can be critical in deciding which one fits your situation the best.

What is Temporary Custody by Extended Family Member?

June 21, 2021

Do I Need a Domestic Violence Injunction

by Neil Weinreb

What is Domestic Violence?

Under the Florida Statutes, Domestic Violence is defines as “any assault, aggravated assault, battery, aggravated battery, sexual assault, sexual battery, stalking, aggravated stalking, kidnapping, false imprisonment, or any criminal offenses resulting in physical injury or death of one family or household member by another family or household member.” F.S. 741.28.

Is Domestic Violence Criminal?

May 17, 2021

Do I Need to File for Support Not Connected with Dissolution of Marriage?

by Neil Weinreb

What is Support without Dissolution?

Section 61.09 allows a married individual to file for support (child support and alimony) where a person does not seek a dissolution. This statute allows a party to seek alimony or child support. However, that party may or may not request the entry of a parenting plan. A final judgment of support does not include distribution of marital assets. This type of action is sometimes referred to as separate maintenance.

“If a person having the ability to contribute to the maintenance of his or her spouse and support of his or her minor child fails to do so, the spouse who is not receiving support may apply to the court for alimony and for support for the child without seeking dissolution of marriage, and the court shall enter an order as it deems just and proper.” F.S. 61.09.

April 6, 2021

BEWARE OF QUITCLAIM DEEDS

by Law Office of David M. Goldman

“I signed a Quitclaim deed so I’m not responsible for the mortgage anymore”. That statement is one of the most common mistakes that people make when it comes to Real Estate transactions. Quitclaim deeds are used most often between family members such as an owner of property adding their spouse to property after marriage or transferring property in a dissolution of marriage. Many people think that signing a quitclaim deed relinquishes them from any obligation regarding the property that is the subject of the quitclaim deed. A quitclaim deed can quickly remove you from a property’s title and terminate your ownership interests. A quitclaim does not however, remove you from the mortgage or the responsibility to make payments. Your Jacksonville Family law attorney can assist you with understanding and preparing the correct deed.

Another common mistake is that the Grantee of a quitclaim deed gets a right to the property when they really do not have any guarantee that he/she actually has an interest in anything. A person that transfers property by quitclaim deed makes no promises that he or she owns or has clear title to the property. So the drawback, quite simply, is that quitclaim deeds offer the grantee/recipient no protection or guarantees whatsoever about the property or their ownership of it. Maybe the grantor did not own the property at all, or maybe they only had partial ownership. A quitclaim deed transfers title but makes no promises at all about the owner’s title. It essentially says that I am transferring whatever interest I have in the property described to whoever is the Grantee. A person who signs a quitclaim deed to transfer property they do not own, results in no title at all being transferred since there is no actual ownership interest. The quitclaim deed only transfers the type of title you own. A property search can be done to determine what ownership interest the grantor of a Quitclaim deed actually has in the property. Your Jacksonville Family law attorney can assist you with the research regarding the property and drafting the appropriate deed.

Quitclaim deeds are also utilized as an estate planning tool instead of leaving property to family members through a Will or other estate document. Instead, the property owner simply signs a Quitclaim deed, which must be notarized and recorded with the county recorder. Quitclaim deeds are not taxable when they transfer ownership to a spouse or a qualifying charity. Other transactions may be liable to property and gift taxes. Once the quitclaim deed is signed and notarized, it is a valid legal document. The Grantee must also have the quitclaim deed recorded in the county recorder’s office or with the county clerk in order for the document to take full legal effect and notify the public of the transfer of interest in the property. If you want to make sure that you have the appropriate deed and it is filed correctly, call your Jacksonville Family law attorney to assist you.

March 1, 2021

What You Need to Know About Mandatory Disclosure in Florida

by Neil Weinreb

How do you and your spouse share the finances?

Most married couples have their finances mixed together. For instance, it is not unusual for a married couple to share credit cards, savings and checking accounts, real estate, and other property. When parties go through a dissolution, these finances must be untangled. The process of distributing assets to each party is known as equitable distribution. The process of exchanging financial information with the opposing party is known as mandatory disclosure. The Family Law Rule of Procedure, Rule 12.285 details what information must be disclosed as well as the time periods for disclosure.

What forms do you need to complete?

February 22, 2021

Do You Need a Prenuptial Agreement?

by Neil Weinreb

What is a Prenuptial Agreement?

A prenuptial agreement is a contract between two persons that are contemplating marriage that predetermines how property and other issues are to be dealt with upon divorce. Prenuptial agreements require full disclosure by both parties. This means that each party should be ready and willing to provide their present financial picture to the other. Without such disclosure, the agreement may be susceptible to legal challenge.

What are the advantages of such an agreement?

June 30, 2020

Do You Need A Prenuptial Agreement?

by Neil Weinreb

There may be some negative stereotypes that are associated with Prenuptial Agreements. Typically, neither party wants to detract from the blissful atmosphere typical prior to a wedding. However, a Prenuptial Agreement can also help preserve a marriage. This is because there is certainty as to how things will terminate should the marriage not last.

The thought alone of creating a prenuptial agreement can cast a negative light upon a wedding. To some, the contemplation of a prenuptial places a negative light upon wedding preparations and the future of the relationship. Having to plan for divorce is an admission that a relationship is not permanent. That said, it is far better to deal with the details of how a relationship is going to end (should it end) while a couple is reasonable and loving compared with being negatively affected by the hostilities and uncertainties of divorce.

In Florida, there are several types of alimony that courts may consider. There are factors that affect the amount of alimony that can be provided for such as, length of a marriage, the equality of earning ability between the spouses, and the assets that a court must divide. Florida law creates a rebuttable presumption against permanent alimony when a marriage is 7 years or less, which under the Florida Statutes is defined as a short term marriage. However, there is a rebuttable presumption for permanent alimony awards in marriages that are long term (greater than 17 years). Moderate term marriages are defined as between 7 and 17 years and no presumption exists.

June 22, 2020

Litigation After Divorce. Do You Know Your Rights?

by Neil Weinreb

It is important to know your rights following a divorce. The final judgment of dissolution and the parenting plan determine the legal playing field for the future. However, most issues are dynamic. Children get older and their schools change and sometimes their relationship with parents change. Incomes change, which can directly impact child support and people sometimes desire to relocate where child custody can be an issue. There are a myriad of circumstances that should be re-evaluated following divorce.

In Florida, the standard used to file an action to modify a final judgment is that a substantial change in circumstances occurred that was not anticipated at the time of entry of the final judgment. It does not always make practical sense to file an action to modify a final judgment just because a party can do so. The relationship that a party has with a former spouse is important, especially where children are involved. Every time a party considers filing a supplemental petition (this is the instrument filed requesting modification of a final judgment), one should consider how such will impact their relationship with their former spouse and other legal consequences. I frequently have parties coming to me that wish to file for a modification. I typically find that they have only evaluated a part of the effect of seeking a modification. For this reason, it is imperative that one review the ramifications of an action for modification with an experienced family law attorney.

Although a divorce is designed to deal with all of the legal issues concerning dissolution, the reality is that there are sometimes issues that are left unresolved. On occasion there are assets that neither party put on their financial affidavits that require addressing post dissolution. One example of such an issue involved a divorce of a long time married couple in which neither party included the child’s prepaid college fund account on their financial affidavit. The fund was cashed out by the Father/Former Husband after the divorce without permission from the court or the Mother/Former Wife. Since the asset was not listed on either party’s financial affidavit, the judge considered the asset marital property and ordered the Former Husband to pay back one half of the funds post dissolution.

June 5, 2020

In Florida, When Does Child Support End?

by Neil Weinreb

For some, child support is an ongoing obligation that holds no light at the end of a long tunnel that can extend over 18 years. Every situation is different and the answer as to when child support will end depends on your individual situation. An experienced North Florida Family Law Attorney can review your circumstances and help you obtain the best result for you under the law.

The answer to when child support ends is far from a black and white question in Florida. Conceptually, child support is the right of each child. Therefore, courts are reluctant to enter an order that does not provide for child support. As a practicing Family Law Attorney, I have encountered many individuals that believe that parents can simply agree that child support will not be provided for in a final judgment of dissolution or paternity. In Florida, a statutory guideline exists to determine what is presumptively reasonable for a parent to pay for child support. The court can depart from the statutory amount by up to 5%, but there must be specific findings of fact enumerated in the order to justify any departure beyond the 5%, up or down.

Under current law, when two or more children are provided for in a support order, that order must include provisions detailing when the support obligation terminates for each child. There should be a modification of the income deduction order to reflect the changes. There are circumstances that allow child support to continue past the age of 18. If a child is still in high school at age 18 with a reasonable chance of graduating before age 19, child support may continue through graduation. Where a child graduates high school prior to his or her 19^th birthday, support ends at age 18. If a child becoming an adult has a disability that would result in the child continuing to be a dependent, child support could continue indefinitely. There are other less conventional reasons that child support might end, the death of a child, the emancipation of a child, or a situation where a child is earning enough money that no support is required (this would be a rare occasion, but there are numerous child stars that have earned more than their parents). Under Florida Law, the only circumstance where one would be obligated to support a healthy adult child beyond the age of 19, would be where an Obligor agrees to such a duty in a contract (i.e. marital settlement agreement).