Category Archives: Family Law
COVID-19 Lockdown Could Lead to More Divorces
Ever since the World Health Organization (WHO) announced that the COVID-19 outbreak is a pandemic on March 11, 2020, the United States and many countries throughout the world have issued “stay-at-home” orders to have people isolate themselves at home in order to “flatten the curve.” Although being at home with a spouse all day… Read More »
Should I Wait Until the New Year to File for Divorce?
Are you thinking of leaving your spouse? Are you already in the middle of the divorce process? If so, you might want to speed things up and get your divorce wrapped up before the end of the year. In this blog, we explain why new changes to the tax code will impact divorces that… Read More »
Second Time Not a Charm for Family Law Reform Bill
Florida Governor Rick Scott recently vetoed legislation that would have created a presumption of equal time timesharing for divorcing parents and overhauled the alimony awards. Governor Scott cited concerns of shifting the focus of courts considering such issues from the best interest of children and each unique situation to the desires and preferences of… Read More »
Bankruptcy and Family Law Case Participants Beware
People in Florida who have filed for Chapter 7 Bankruptcy, Chapter 13 Bankruptcy, or who have filed paperwork in Family Court are the target of a new telephone scam. The scammers are using information taken from court documents to learn about court cases and which lawyer represents an individual. They then call the client… Read More »
Same-Sex Marriage Spurs Floridian Legislators to Propose New Religious Protection Acts
The Pastor Protection Act and a proposed “Clergy and Religious Institutions Tax-Exempt Protection Act” are currently gaining support in Florida in the weeks following the United States Supreme Court’s decision to legalize same-sex marriage nationwide. The bills would protect religious individuals and organizations from federal retaliation should they refuse to perform same-sex marriages or… Read More »
Will the NFL’s New Domestic Violence Penalties Protect Abusers?
NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell recently announced that any NFL player who is found to have engaged in domestic violence, among other crimes, will be suspended for six (6) games without pay for a first offense. A second offense will result in a minimum one year suspension. This is a good thing, right? Tougher penalties… Read More »
17 Year Marriage Raises Presumption of Permanent Alimony (Motie v. Motie)
One of the most important determinations a court must make during divorce proceedings is the appropriate award of alimony due to a party in the inferior financial position following a divorce. Alimony is money paid from one former spouse to another following the dissolution of a marriage, and the purpose is to ensure both… Read More »
Buying and Selling Time with Children
Parents in a divorce or paternity action will oftentimes fight over the number of overnights their child gets to spend with them. Sometimes this is because the parent wants more time with their child. Other times it is all about money. This is because the number of overnights a child spends with each parent… Read More »
Equity Compensation, Stock Options, Taxes and Divorce
Most people who are contemplating divorce are well aware of the house, car, bank account and credit card debts. However, if you or your spouse works for or owns a company that provided stock as part of the compensation package, you should be thinking about tax planning and the possible tax consequences of transferring… Read More »
Florida’s Ban on Gay and Lesbian Adoption Ends
On October 12, 2010, Department of Children & Families’ (DCF) Director, George Sheldon, announced that the agency will not appeal the September 2010 court ruling which struck down Florida’s ban on gay and lesbian adoption as “unconstitutional.” In an official statement from DCF spokesman Joe Follick, he made clear that the 33 year ban… Read More »
