Articles Posted in Divorce

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Divorce attorney’s in Miami, Coral Gables, Hallandale, Plantation and other South Florida cities are preparing for a statutory overhaul regarding legislative modifications to the statute governing alimony. One of the most significant changes is the codification of bridge-the-gap alimony.

Bridge-the-gap alimony assists a party in making the transition from being married to being single. It assists a party with identifiable short term financial needs. A marital and family law judge may not award bridge-the-gap alimony for a period in excess of 2 years. Bridge-the-gap alimony terminates upon the death of either party or upon remarriage of the party that receives alimony. Last but not least, bridge-the-gap alimony is non-modifiable in amount or duration.

Another important change to alimony relates to rehabilitative alimony. Rehabilitative alimony assists a party in redeveloping previous skills or credentials. It also helps a spouse acquire education, training or work experience necessary to develop employment skills. In the Final Judgment of Dissolution of Marriage, the court must detail a defined rehabilitative plan. A party may modify or terminate rehabilitative based upon a substantial change in circumstances or compliance with the rehabilitative plan.

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The Miami Herald is reporting that Tiger Woods and his wife have many different options if they decide to file for divorce in Florida. Their personal financial information may be kept away from the public eye if agreed to by both parties. In order to pay the least amount of taxes, Mrs. Woods would likely file for divorce in Florida rather than where the parties own additional homes in Sweden and California. In light of the fact that Florida is a no fault divorce state, they would only need to inform the Florida marital and family judge that the marriage is irretrievably broken.

In order to keep their divorce confidential, they could file for their divorce in any county in Florida. It is most likely in the best interest of the children if the court balances the public right to know and the privacy of the Woods family in disclosing details of the case. However, divorce lawyers in Miami believe that it would be difficult to conceal the location of the divorce filing in Florida since a clerk of court could easily divulge this information.

While Tiger Woods and his wife would be required to file a child support guidelines worksheet and financial affidavits listing their income, assets and liabilities, a judge may seal financial aspect of the case to keep it away from the public eye. However, this will really depend upon the judge who is assigned to the case.

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Divorce attorneys in Broward are often told by clients that the sex life with their spouse is troubled or virtually non-existent. While many clients first seek marriage counseling instead of alimony, child support and child custody in the Fort Lauderdale marital and family court, some focus on improving their sex life by taking Viagra. However, the Sun Sentinal questions if Viagra can lead to the filing of a divorce petition.

Viagra is an erectile dysfunction drug that has been sold in Florida for a period of 10 years. According to a report from the Harvard School of Medicine, while Viagra can resolve erectile dysfunction it can also cause other problems in a marriage if the man no longer feels a sexual desire for his wife. If the parties are both aware that the man is taking Viagra it may benefit the marriage.

Some women report that the increased sex drive by the man can become problematic. While many men use Viagra, they neglect to talk with their partner about how the medication should be utilized to maximize the sexual benefits of the relationship. Experts believe that Viagra is not the only problem in a marriage if a divorce is caused by sex or if a husband is having and affair.

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When a client meets with their Broward divorce lawyer, nine times out of ten they will ask if they will have to pay alimony or if they will receive alimony. Effective July 1, 2010, there will be significant revisions to Florida law governing alimony. The amendments apply to all initial awards and modifications of these awards entered prior to July 1, 2010. However, the statutory amendments will not serve as a basis to modify alimony awards or change the amount or length of alimony awards entered before July 1, 2010.

The Florida marital and family court will now consider three additional statutory factors when awarding alimony. First, the court will consider each party’s responsibilities for children of the marriage. Next, the court will consider the tax consequence of the alimony award and whether all or a portion of the award should be nontaxable and nondeductible. Finally, your Fort Lauderdale divorce lawyer will now have the ability of presenting evidence of all sources of income available to either party from investments and assets.

Another significant change to Florida’s alimony law are the statutory presumptions regarding length of marriages which will help the court determine which type of alimony is the most appropriate. A short term marriage is now considered a marriage that is less than 7 years. A moderate term marriage is a marriage greater than seven years but less than 17 years. Last but not least, a long term marriage is a marriage that is in excess of seven years.

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Many divorce lawyers in Fort Lauderdale often wonder why long term marriages with history and commitment, children and grandchildren often wind up in the marital and family law court. One half of all divorces take place during the first eight years of a marriage. When considering data compiled from the US Census Bureau from 1955 to 1994, 25% of parties have been married for at least 20 years and 4% of the divorced couples have been married at least 40 years.

Couples who enter into their 60’s no longer view themselves as old. They are often optimistic about their future and are willing to change a situation that makes them unhappy. Sometimes a long term marriage runs its course because there is not enough attention, time, empathy and play. Other times people look at each other and wonder who the other person is since they remained married until their children entered university. However, married couples in Broward who wait to hire a divorce attorney to file often find themselves in a highly contested divorce since they have had time to build up their assets.

Women in long term marriages tend to be the party that initiates a divorce. Men often hesitate because they are comfortable with their wife. In a long term marriage you must stay connected, keep things fresh and remain interested in your partner. However, this is sometimes easier said then done.

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In Purrinos v Purrinos, the wife appealed the decision of the Miami-Dade divorce court that failed to award her any type of alimony. The parties were married for 16 years. At the time of the dissolution of marriage action, the husband and wife has three young children. The only marital asset was the marital residence. While both parties were employed during the marriage, the husband earned more than the wife. At the trial, the husband testified that he was involuntarily and temporarily employed. However, he expected to find a new job in the future.

In reversing the decision of the divorce court, the Third District Court of Appeal held that the trial court abused its discretion in failing to award the Wife alimony. The court reasoned that while an alimony award was inappropriate at the time of trial because of the husband’s inability to pay at that time, he may possess the ability to pay alimony in the future. Accordingly, the case was remanded to the trial court with instructions to award the wife a nominal amount of permanent periodic alimony.

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Your Fort Lauderdale divorce lawyer should join you and your spouse’s corporation as a party to your dissolution of marriage case if you are requesting the transfer of any of the corporate assets as part of the equitable distribution. In the event that the corporation is not a party to your action, the marital and family law court does not have jurisdiction to order that corporate assets to be transferred to you as part of the equitable distribution. In addition, if your spouse is ordered to transfer a corporate asset to you, you may not be able to have the corporation do so and then you would be left with no recourse. Another reason that a corporation owned by you and your spouse should be joined as a party is when both parties have access to the corporate books, checkbooks, bills and personal expenses are paid by the corporation
Joining a corporation is not necessary when a party is not requesting a claim against the corporate entity or an unequal distribution in any of the corporation’s property. In the event that your divorce lawyer in Broward does not join you and your spouse’s corporation, the Florida marital and family law judge can still prevent the disposal of corporate assets or corporate stock to a third party.

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The purpose of civil contempt is to obtain compliance with a child support, alimony or general court order and can only be used when the contemnor has the ability to comply.

First, your divorce lawyer in Fort Lauderdale must have the court determine whether the defaulting party has willfully violated the court order. Next, the court must determine the appropriate remedial measure. If the Florida marital and family law judge orders that the contemnor is to be jailed, the court must make a specific finding that he or she has the present ability to pay the purge.

In Aburos v Aburos, the former husband appealed an order finding him in indirect civil contempt and requiring him to be incarcerated which was entered by Miami divorce court Judge Amy Steele Donner for failing to pay the former wife alimony and child support pursuant to the Final Judgment of Dissolution of Marriage. Specifically, the former wife asked the trial court to find the former husband in contempt of court for his failure to pay $1,700 per month for permanent periodic alimony and $1,693 per month in child support.

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Disagreements over finances are one of the leading causes for divorce filings in Fort Lauderdale. When money is tight or investments are performing poorly, even couples who are happily married may encounter disagreements. However, before you talk to a divorce lawyer about alimony, child custody matters and a parenting plan, perhaps you should make some adjustments to your finances by having a financial divorce from your spouse.

In the past, a majority of financial decisions were made by the husband. Today, women depend on men far less than they did years ago. Women are now employed and have their own investments. In light of the climbing divorce rate, women do not want to be in a position where they rely upon men for alimony, support and maintenance.

A large percentage of marital disagreements deal with how money is spent. In addition, some couples have different investment objectives, methods and risk tolerances. South Florida couples with strict budgets who struggle to make ends meet may also fight about which bills to pay first.

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In Greenwald v Greenwald, the husband and wife were married on May 18, 2004. Fourteen months later, the parties filed for divorce in Miami-Dade. In support of her claim for permanent alimony, the wife claimed that the husband induced her to quit her job were she earned $100,00 per year. At trial, e-mail evidence proved that this claim was false since the wife wanted to quit her job prior to the marriage.

While the wife’s request for permanent periodic alimony was denied, Judge Scott Bernstein awarded her $65,000 in attorney’s fees and costs to be paid by the husband. In reversing the trial court’s award of attorney’s fees and costs to the wife, the Third District Court of Appeal held that the Miami divorce court should have denied the wife’s request for attorney’s fees and costs. The court reasoned that the wife made a claim for permanent alimony in a short-term marriage which is rarely successful, the case went to trial on the permanent alimony issue, the basis of the claim was false and the wife turned down a favorable opportunity to settle the alimony matter before trial in a lump sum payment of $36,000.