Jacksonville Divorce Lawyer Blog

The 5th Texas Court of Appeal in Dallas has just handed down a ruling regarding a gay couple that wished to obtain a Texas divorce: forget about it.

The appeals court said that a Dallas district court judge was in error when she ruled that she had the authority to hear the divorce case of two Dallas men who married in 2006 in Massachusetts. The court said that Texas courts lack the legal authority to grant divorces to same-sex couples because of the state’s constitutional ban on same-sex marriages.

The Texas constitution states that a valid marriage is a union between one man and one woman, and only when that union exists can a divorce be granted. Even though the same-sex marriage ban has existed under state law, Texas voters passed a constitutional amendment banning same-sex marriage in 2005 by a three to one margin.

Dallas district court judge Trena Callahan had originally ruled that Texas could not limit marriage to a man and a woman, but the appeals court overruled her, saying that the limitations were constitutional. They sent the case back to Callahan, who must vacate her order.

Attorneys for the gay couple said they were considering appealing the case to the Texas Supreme Court, but no decision has been made yet.

A Queens Supreme Court justice has turned down a New York couple’s request to set aside their November 2009 divorce, telling them that they should not have wasted the court’s time and money.

According to an article in the New York Daily News, the wife, who now lives in Rhode Island, and her former husband, who remains in Queens, told the judge that they had recently reconciled and wanted him to void their divorce from last year. They told Justice Charles Markey that even if they got remarried, “we would forever be aware that a divorce judgment still exists between us.” The couple also said they wanted to avoid any religious stigma because of the divorce.

However, Justice Markey told the couple that the court “does not bow to alleged religious sentiments or convictions that may attach to divorce” and questioned whether the couple had truly reconciled since they both lived in different states. He said that it appeared their reconciliation was premature, and suggested that if they were really serious about repairing their relationship, they could take another trip down the aisle.

Legal observers said that the judge made the right call, noting that the courtroom is not a place for marriage counseling at taxpayer expense.

Many people think that the hardest part about divorce is making the decision to get one. However, the divorce process itself can take quite an emotional and financial toll if you are not prepared. Here are some tips for getting through a divorce:

Find a good divorce attorney. People who have been through a divorce will tell you this is probably the most important thing. You need to find a divorce attorney who not only knows what they are doing, but who you can trust with every detail of your life. A good divorce attorney for your best friend may not be a good divorce lawyer for you. Do your homework and find one that “clicks” with you.

Be honest. After you find that divorce attorney, be honest with him or her. One of the worst things you can do is set your attorney up for a surprise in court. This could put you at a big disadvantage and compromise your case.

Get support. Divorce is an extremely emotional time for most people, so you need to have a good support network in place for you and your children. Not just family and friends, but also professional help when needed. Don’t be afraid to ask for help; it will make the divorce process easier for you.

Be patient. Divorces take time. Many states have waiting periods, but beyond that, it takes time to negotiate all the details of your future single life, especially if there are complex issues involved.

Be realistic. A divorce court is not a venue for you to “get even” with your spouse. The more contentious you try to make your split, the harder (and more expensive) it will be for you.

A Swedish study on the role genes play in relationship bonding suggests that some men may carry what researchers have called a “divorce gene”, although they say that it does not mean you can necessarily predict whether your husband will want a divorce based on his DNA.

The study was conducted at the Department of Medical Epidemiology and Biostatistics at Karolinska Institutet in Sweden, one of Europe’s oldest and highest ranked medical universities. One thousand couples participated in the study, which was inspired by an earlier North American study on field mice that showed genetics played a part in relationship bonding.

Lead researcher Hasse Walum said that researchers examined the association between the vasopressin receptor 1a gene and bonding behavior to see if a similar pattern could be detected in humans. The men in the study who had the gene scored lower on “affection expression” than men without the gene.

Walum said that while these results were “interesting”, they do not necessarily explain why some individuals struggle in relationships. He said that researchers plan to expand the study to search for similar results in women through an association between the oxytocin receptor gene and bonding.

In determining an award for alimony, Florida family courts may consider a considerable amount of factors. Among these factors is a rebuttable presumption regarding the duration of marriage. The length of marriage is the period of time from the date of marriage until the date of filing of an action for dissolution of marriage. Marriages fall into different categories: short-term, moderate-term and long-term. Pursuant to Fla. St. § 61.08, a moderate-term marriage is a marriage lasting greater than 7 years but less than 17 years. A long-term marriage is a marriage with a duration of 17 years or greater. And, a short-term marriage is marriage lasting less than 7 years.

There are four different types of alimony awards available in the state of Florida: bridge-the-gap, rehabilitative, durational and permanent. All of these awards have different durations and modification and termination requirements. Being in a short-term marriage may or may not affect your ability to recover alimony. Although short-term marriage may present extra hurdles in obtaining certain types of alimony awards, these hurdles are not insurmountable. There are always exceptions to the general alimony rules. Contact a Florida Divorce Attorney for legal representation in the dissolution of your short-term marriage to get you the type of alimony best suited for your situation.

Pursuant to Title VI, Civil Practice and Procedure, Chapter 61, Dissolution of Marriage; Support; Time-Sharing, Section 61.08, Alimony, Florida courts may grant alimony to either party, which may be bridge-the-gap, rehabilitative, durational, or permanent in nature or award any combination of these types of alimony.

Bridge-the-gap alimony is an unmodifiable alimony award that provides a party financial assistance to aid that party in transitioning from being marriage to being single. It is designed to assist the party with any legitimate and identifiable short-term needs. The length of any bridge-the-gap alimony award cannot exceed 2 years and will terminate upon the death of either party or if the receiving spouse remarries.

Rehabilitative alimony is awarded to assist a party in "establishing the capacity for self-support through either: (1) the redevelopment of previous skills or credentials; or (2) the acquisition of education, training, or work experience necessary to develop appropriate employment skills or credentials." Fl. St. § 61.08(6). A specific an defined rehabilitative plan must exist in order to receive this type of award. This type of alimony may be modifiable and terminated in accordance with Florida Law based upon a substantial change in circumstances or upon noncompliance or completion with the rehabilitative plan.

Durational alimony provides a party with financial assistance for a set period time and should be awarded in circumstances where permanent periodic alimony is inappropriate. This type of alimony is the most appropriate award regarding short- or moderate-term marriages. Durational alimony may also be modified or terminated based upon substantial changes in circumstances, in accordance with Florida Law. However, the length of a durational award may not be modified except under exception circumstances and may never exceed the length of the marriage.

Permanent alimony provides the needs and necessities of life as they were established during the marriage to a party who lacks the financial ability to meet his or her needs and necessities following a divorce. Permanent alimony is most appropriate regarding long-term marriages, but may also be awarded to a party in a moderate- or short-marriage if the circumstances are proper. This award is terminated upon death of either party or upon remarriage of the receiving spouse. An award can be modified or terminated based upon a substantial change in circumstances or upon the existence of a supportive relationship.

The Florida Legislature recently made amendments to the Florida Alimony Statute to include bridge-the-gap and durational forms of alimony. Contact a Florida Divorce Attorney to discuss your financial needs and the type of alimony that is most appropriate for you.

If you are serving in the military and become active, deployed, or are temporarily assigned military service and your ability to comply with a time-sharing agreement is materially affected as a result, under Fl. Stat. 61.13002, you should file a supplemental petition or a motion for modification of time-sharing or parental responsibility. Doing so will prevent the court from making any amendments or modifications to the time-sharing agreement in effect before the parent became active, deployed, or temporarily assigned military service. The only exception is if it can be shown by clear and convincing evidence that an amendment or modification should be made because doing so is in the best interest of the child.

If the court decides to issue a temporary order, the court shall consider and provide for contact between the servicemember and his or her child by feasible means of electronic communication such as webcam, telephone, or other available means. Because it is in the best interest of the child to maintain a bond with the parent serving the military, Florida courts will also permit liberal time-sharing during the periods of leave from military service. This temporary order will terminate and the previous time-sharing agreement in effect before the parent was called to military service shall be reinstated upon the servicemember's return from active duty, deployment, etc.

It is important to maintain a bond with your child while serving in the military. Being deployed or temporarily assigned military service may also affect any active child support obligations. Contact a Florida Family Law Attorney to discuss how military deployment may affect your time-sharing or child support obligations. An attorney can also file a petition with the court to make amendments or modifications to a time-sharing agreement or child-support obligation that will account for your active service.

It may seem strange for a Florida divorce lawyer to say, but a big part of our job is to keep you out of court. Because once you go to court for your divorce, your post-divorce life is in the hands of a stranger. Of course, this stranger – a judge – is supposed to rule fairly. But judges are human. They can have a bad day just like the rest of us. The best-case scenario is not to have a divorce case in court at all.

However, if your Florida divorce case does end up in court, here is how you should prepare yourself:

Confer with your attorney and take his or her advice on how you should dress and act in the courtroom. They know this judge a lot better than you do.

Always be respectful and address the judge as “Your Honor” if you are asked to speak. Which means you DO NOT speak unless you are asked.

It goes without saying, but we’ll say it: don’t make snide remarks or get into a spat with your spouse in front of the judge.

Take careful notes throughout the proceedings but do not interrupt your attorney at any time.
Be patient. You sometimes will have to wait for your case to be called – many times, cases before you run over and you may even be asked to reschedule.

Don’t expect the judge to believe everything you say or always rule in your favor. Make sure all your arguments are backed up with as much documentation as possible.

Don’t expect the judge to “get back” at your spouse for you; that is not the purpose of a divorce trial.

You should expend every effort to settle your divorce outside the court, but if you do have to go to court, you better your chances of getting what you want by playing by the rules.

In a Florida divorce proceeding, the family courts set aside all non-marital assets and liabilities and equitably distribute all marital assets and liabilities between the parities. Therefore, it is helpful to know what constitutes a martial asset in order to determine what property you are entitled.

Martial property includes any property acquired during the marriage by the efforts of either spouse. Also, a spouses retirement account, IRAs and 401k plans may be subject to equitable distribution if that plan or account was acquired by one spouse during the marriage. Marriage is defined as the date of marriage to the date of filing the divorce.

Some concrete examples of "marital property" include but are not limited to:
1. A home, if the home was purchased during the marriage with the earnings of one or both parties.
2. A pension plan, to the extent the plan accrued during the marriage.
3. The value of bank accounts, mutual funds, etc., to the extent the funds deposited were earned by either party during the marriage.
4. Gifts between spouses during the marriage.

See Florida Statute sec. 61.075: Equitable Distribution of Marital Assets and Liabilities for the exact language of the Florida Statute.

Continue reading " What Constitutes as a Martial Asset in Florida? " »

A Michigan appeals court has reversed the ruling by a lower court that allowed a lesbian couple to have joint custody of their three children after their relationship ended.

Together almost 20 years, Renee Harmon and Tammie Davis, who carried each of the three children, raised their children together. Their relationship ended bitterly, with Davis obtaining a court order to prohibit Harmon from having any further contact and Harmon responding with a lawsuit.

Because Davis was the legal biological mother, Harmon needed the court to grant joint custody. The appellate court said no, stating that parental rights in Michigan can only be bestowed through procreation, adoption or the assumption of parenthood in a legal marriage.

In 2004, Michigan passed Proposal 2, outlawing same sex marriage. Since that time, courts have determined that the law also applies to same sex civil unions.

In a Michigan adoption, the biological parents must place the child into the adoption process; in addition, only married couples or single parents may adopt.

If you are currently considering a divorce where child custody is likely to be an issue, you should consult with a Florida divorce and child custody attorney to learn what your rights are under Florida law.

One of the areas of confusion for clients who are getting a divorce in Florida is what constitutes marital and non-marital assets and liabilities for purposes of equitable distribution. The following is a list delineating each:

Marital Assets and Liabilities:

Assets (and liabilities) that have been obtained/incurred during the marriage, by one or both spouses;

The increased value of non-marital assets due to the actions of either spouse or because marital funds were used to add that value;

Gifts from one spouse to the other

Vested and non-vested benefits and funds (retirement accounts, pension plans, profit-sharing, annuities, insurance plans, deferred compensation, bonuses) that came during the marriage

Real and personal property held jointly, whether purchased before or after the marriage.

Assets (and liabilities) that were obtained/incurred before the marriage;

Assets acquired individually via bequest, inheritance, non-spousal gift;

All income received from non-marital assets unless that income was used by both parties during the marriage;

Assets precluded per a written agreement (i.e., pre- or post-nuptial agreement);

Liabilities incurred by one spouse via fraud or forgery.

Whenever a celebrity divorce is in the news, people always want to know two things: was there a prenup? And will it hold up in court?

Prenuptial agreements are challenged in court all the time and there are numerous cases where the courts have ruled against a prenup. There are even cases where egregious marital misdeeds have enabled aggrieved spouses to successfully negotiate larger payouts (hello, Tiger Woods) than their prenups specify.

There are a number of other reasons why a court may disregard a prenup, including:

• If the prenup was signed under duress. Prenups should be negotiated well in advance of the wedding, not sprung on the bride or groom the day before the ceremony.
• If one spouse did not have legal representation. Both spouses should have their own attorneys participate in drawing up a prenuptial agreement.
• If one spouse misrepresents assets or liabilities.
• If one spouse was incompetent or incapacitated at the time the prenup was signed, either by being under the influence of alcohol or drugs, or mentally incompetent.
• If the prenup limits future child support or custody rights.
• If the prenup does not provide for any spousal support.

Most challenges to prenups involve spousal support, generally because the couple accumulated many more assets during the marriage and the prenup no longer takes that into account.

A visit to your family law attorney to update your prenup via a postnuptial agreement may help your agreement survive a challenge in case of a divorce down the road.

In a first for the state of Maryland – but what may be an indication of things to come in family court – a judge has awarded joint custody of a dog to its owners in a divorce case.

Craig and Gayle Myers will now spend six months each with Lucky, a Shih Tzu mix they adopted during their eight-year marriage. The couple has no children, but considers Lucky to be the closest thing to it; apparently they found a judge -- retired Maryland Circuit Judge Graydon S. McKee II -- who agrees.

In a CNN story about the case, Judge McKee said that even though dogs are considered property in Maryland, like every other state in the U.S., “I really don’t think a dog is like a couch.”

According to the American Academy of Matrimonial Lawyers, pet custody disputes are steadily increasing. AAML president Marlene Eskind Moses says this trend could add to the congestion in the country’s family law courts, but she understands how important pets are to people, especially when they are experiencing so many other feelings of loss during a divorce.

A California-based animal rights group, the Animal Legal Defense Fund, is petitioning Congress for federal legislation to protect animal rights, including the right to have their interests represented in court and protected by law.

A new study by researchers at the University of Wisconsin-Madison’s Waisman Center has found that parents of grown children with autism have a higher rate of divorce.

Published in the August issue of the Journal of Family Psychology, the study is the first of its kind to track the marital history of parents who have adult children with autism. Its findings contradict earlier assumptions that parents of autistic children face a bigger risk of divorce during the child’s younger years.

Researchers studied 391 couples that are parents of adolescent and adult children with autism, comparing their rate of divorce with a sample drawn from another large study, the National Survey of Midlife in the United States. They found that the divorce rate for both sets of parents were relatively the same until the child reaches the age of eight; at that time, the incidence of divorce for couples with autistic children remains high while it goes down for parents of children without disabilities.

The lead author of the report, UW-Madison assistant professor of human development and family studies Sigan Hartley, Ph.D., said that the study clearly showed a “prolonged vulnerability” for divorce in parents of autistic children, primarily because there is a “lifelong profile of challenging behaviors and symptoms associated with autism.”

While money issues continue to be a leading reason couples divorce, in these tough economic times, divorce rates are actually declining.

Simply put, many people say they just can’t afford to get divorced.

Like any legal proceeding, divorce takes planning. While it may be hard emotionally to delay a divorce action, it may actually provide you with the necessary time you need to fully prepare yourself and your family for divorce, both financially and emotionally.

Here are some tips for divorce planning:

Get your financial paperwork in order. Organize bills, bank statements, mortgage statements, investment portfolios, IRAs and other financial documents to get a true picture of your financial condition.

Budget for your divorce. Determine what you are currently spending and break it out into “essentials” and “nonessentials”. Then cut that it half to see what you are likely to need for living expenses once a divorce is finalized. You will then be able to see how much you need to save or make plans for increasing income or decreasing spending.

Reduce your debt. By reducing your credit card debt now, you’ll be in a better financial position once your divorce is final.

Save. Financial experts are currently recommending at least a nine-month “cushion” of savings to see you through any emergencies or reversals like job loss, etc.

Going through a divorce is one of the most traumatic events in anyone’s life, but foresight and planning – and consulting with a Jacksonville divorce attorney -- can ease the pain for all involved.

Journalist and author Anneli Rufus recently blogged about 15 Ways to Predict Divorce at thedailybeast.com after crunching numbers from a variety of studies on divorce. Here are some of her findings:

Just by being an American, you have a 40-50 percent chance of divorcing.

If you live in a “red state”, you are 27 percent more likely to divorce. This is because red-staters get married at a younger age.

If you squabble with your spouse over money at least one a week, you are 30 percent more likely to divorce than if you argue about finances less often.

Did your parents divorce? The chances that the same fate awaits you are 40 percent higher than for those whose parents stayed married.

Does just one of you smoke? If so, you are 75 to 91 percent more likely to divorce than couples that both smoke.

Couples with a daughter are 5 percent more likely to divorce than those that have a son.
If both of you have been married before, you are 90 percent more likely to get divorced than those who are on their first marriage.

If you are a woman who has lived with more than one partner before marriage, you are 40 percent more likely to divorce.

If you and your spouse are contemplating a Florida divorce, there are some basic rules you need to know before you proceed:

Residency requirement. At least one of you must be a Florida resident for at least six months prior to filing for divorce.

Grounds. Florida is a “no fault” divorce state where most divorces are based on the grounds of “irreconcilable differences”. However, “fault” may be considered when it comes to awarding alimony or property division.

Child custody. As in other states, Florida courts decide custody issues based on the best interests of the child or children. One of the key presumptions is that having both parents involved in the lives of the child or children is in their best interests, barring any finding of abuse or unfit parenting.

Property division. Florida is an equitable division state, which means that the court will divide a couple’s property in a way that it deems is fair. This does not necessarily mean equal.

Child support. Like other states, Florida requires both parents to provide for their children, and the issue of child support is generally decided according to the financial ability and resources of each parent.

If you need more information about obtaining a Florida divorce, contact a Jacksonville divorce attorney.

A New York mother who was seeking permission to move to Florida with her children over the objections of her ex-husband has been granted that request by a Suffolk County Supreme Court Justice with a new twist: she must provide her ex-husband with Skype video conferencing technology that will allow him to speak to his children at least three times per week for one hour per visit.

The New York case – Baker vs. Baker – was reported in the New York Law Journal as being the first of its kind that sets a precedent that other judges may soon follow.

James and Debra Baker were divorced in 2008 after eight years of marriage. They have two children, a nine-year-old daughter and a six-year-old son. Debra Baker lived in the family home until she lost her job last December; the home is currently in foreclosure. She petitioned the court to be allowed to move to Venice Beach, Florida with the children and live with her parents until she could find a new job.

Her husband, a recovering alcoholic, opposed the move for fear that he would never be able to see his children. However, the court noted that he had not taken advantage of his visitation rights since the divorce, and – since the children were soon to be virtually homeless due to foreclosure -- the better prospects for the children lay in Florida.

If you have questions about child custody and relocation, consult with a Jacksonville child custody attorney.

If you are going through a Florida divorce and have children, one of the most important tasks that lie ahead of you and your spouse is to create a workable parenting agreement.

A parenting agreement is essentially a plan on how you and your soon-to-be ex will parent your children together. It covers decisions on custody, visitation, child support, education, religious training (if any) as well as how time is to be divided and shared between parents.

If you and your spouse have an amicable relationship, you can usually work together to create a parenting plan without the involvement of a mediator or other professional to assist you. If this is the case, then the plan you develop together should also be reviewed by your Florida divorce attorneyhttp://www.woodatter.com/lawyer-attorney-1163342.html prior to be made part of a court filing.

If there is likely to be a dispute regarding the children, you can negotiate through your divorce attorneys or call in a mediator to help you work through the issues you may have with your spouse regarding a parenting arrangement.

In either scenario, once a parenting agreement is reached, it is a good idea to make it part of the court record – and have the judge approve it – in case there ever comes a day when you may need the agreement enforced by returning to court.

A recent feature story at CNN.com chronicled the growing trend among engaged couples in their 20s and 30s to participate in premarital counseling that they hope will make it less likely that they are victims of divorce like their parents.

States have gotten into the act, too. Six states – including Florida – have passed legislation in recent years encouraging couples to attend premarital counseling by offering reduced rates on marriage license fees for those that do.

Dr. Alan Hawkins, a family life professor at Brigham Young University, was quoted in the story as saying that marriage prep education appears to be increasing nationwide. He says that no-fault divorce laws, changing gender roles and female economic independence have created a greater need for couples to work on their relationship skills in order for modern marriages to succeed.

In the past, engaged couples would usually participate in premarital counseling as a prerequisite imposed by their church. Today, however, many couples are taking a more thoughtful and planned approach to marriage, sometimes waiting years until well into their careers before tying the knot. Premarital counseling has become part of the landscape in their preparation for marriage, as many seek to avoid the divorce pitfalls that have befallen their parents or friends.

A new North Carolina insurance company – SafeGuard Guaranty Corp. --- has introduced what it is calling the world’s first divorce insurance product at wedlockdivorceinsurance.com.

Profiled in a recent New York Times blog, Safeguard says its divorce insurance is a form of casualty insurance that will cover the costs of divorce, including legal fees. The divorce insurance is sold in “units” of insurance protection, with each unit equaling $1,250 in initial coverage and costing $16 per month per unit.

To keep couples that are on the verge of divorce from buying divorce insurance to cover their expenses, the policy does not kick in for 48 months following the effective date. However, the company offers an “Accelerated Maturity Rider” that decreases the waiting period from 48 to 36 months. If you get a divorce before the maturity period ends, the premiums you have paid for the policy will be returned to you, minus any taxes paid by the insurer.

After the maturity period ends, divorce insurance benefits increase by $250 every year without an increase in the premium. The policy is renewable annually, and as long as you keep renewing it, the premium will never go up, according to the company’s website. The maximum payable benefit is $250,000.

The company also offers a Legal Separation Rider, which provides for a payment of half the face value of the policy if a separation occurs after the maturity date.

A potential downside: the policies are not covered by any state guaranty funds so if the underwriter – Prime Insurance Co. – were to go bankrupt, your policy would be worthless. The company says it plans to have future policies fall under state guaranty programs.

Under Florida Law, incarceration alone is insufficient grounds for terminating parental rights. Although Florida Family Courts may terminate parental rights where the court finds that the parent has abandoned, abused or neglected the child, incarceration, as a matter of law, does not constitute abandonment. That is not to say that terminating parental rights of a parent who is incarcerated is impossible. The efforts, or lack thereof, of the incarcerated parent to communicate with and support his or her children are measure against the incarcerated parent's limited opportunity to assume those duties while imprisoned.

Therefore, whether or not you can terminate the parental rights of a parent who is incarcerated is a case-by-case determination and will depend on the facts of your case. The parent's relationship with the child before his or her incarceration may have some bearing on the court's ruling as well.

Continue reading " In Florida, Can You Successfully Terminate Parental Rights because the Father is Incarcerated? " »

Pursuant to Florida Statute sec. 63.053: Rights and Responsibilities of an Unmarried Biological Father, "If an unmarried biological father fails to take the actions that are available to him to establish a relationship with his child, his parental interest may be entirely lost, or greatly diminished." Thus, as an unmarried biological father of a child, you have no parental rights until you establish paternity of the child.

Under Florida Law, the interests of the state, biological mother, the child and possible adoptive parents outweigh the interest of an unmarried biological father who does not take timely action to establish paternity. If you do not file a claim of paternity before the date a petition for termination of parental rights is filed, you are barred from filing your paternity claim under Chapter 742.

Continue reading " I am a Single Dad in Florida, What are My Parental Rights? " »

Before beginning – or replying to – any divorce action, people want to know how to find a good divorce lawyer. Rather than just hitting the Yellow Pages, you should consider asking friends or family members who’ve gone through a divorce to make recommendations, do some online research of divorce attorneys in your area and arrange to meet with several different divorce lawyers to see who would be the right fit for you and your circumstances.

As a general rule, you want to find a divorce lawyer who is:

A good listener – someone you can speak with frankly and confidentially and feel you can trust. Someone who returns your calls and keeps you up to date on your case.

A good problem-solver – someone who is willing to negotiate when it makes sense for you and who can structure a well-thought-out strategy for your case.

A good communicator – someone who keeps you informed every step of the way and encourages your involvement in your own case.

An experienced divorce attorney – someone who has a good track record in family law, who is respected by other attorneys and judges.

Divorce is a tough process – be sure you have the right partner going in, and you’ll fare better coming out.

While money issues continue to be a leading reason couples divorce, in these tough economic times, divorce rates are actually declining.

Simply put, many people say they just can’t afford to get divorced.

Like any legal proceeding, divorce takes planning. While it may be hard emotionally to delay a divorce action, it may actually provide you with the necessary time you need to fully prepare yourself and your family for divorce, both financially and emotionally.

Here are some tips for divorce planning:

Get your financial paperwork in order. Organize bills, bank statements, mortgage statements, investment portfolios, IRAs and other financial documents to get a true picture of your financial condition.

Budget for your divorce. Determine what you are currently spending and break it out into “essentials” and “nonessentials”. Then cut that it half to see what you are likely to need for living expenses once a divorce is finalized. You will then be able to see how much you need to save or make plans for increasing income or decreasing spending.

Reduce your debt. By reducing your credit card debt now, you’ll be in a better financial position once your divorce is final.

Save. Financial experts are currently recommending at least a nine-month “cushion” of savings to see you through any emergencies or reversals like job loss, etc.

Going through a divorce is one of the most traumatic events in anyone’s life, but foresight and planning – and consulting with a Florida divorce attorney -- can ease the pain for all involved.

The recent changes to Florida's alimony statute will apply to all initial awards of alimony entered after July 1, 2010 and modifications of such awards. These amendments cannot be the basis to modify awards or change the amount or duration alimony awards entered before July 1, 2010.

Below is a list of new factors the court will consider in determining the amount of the alimony award:
1. The responsibilities each party will have with regard to any minor children the parties have in common.
2. The tax treatment and consequences to both parties of any alimony award. This includes the designation of all or a portion of the payment as a nontaxable, nondeductible payment.
3. All sources of income available to either party. This will include income derived from investments of any assets held by either party.

Presumptions - Term of Marriage:
1. A short-term marriage is marriage lasting less than 7 years.
2. A moderate-term marriage is marriage having a duration of greater than 7 years but less than 17 years in length.
3. A long-term marriage is a marriage lasting 17 years or longer.

The new law codifies all forms of alimony: bridge-the-gap, rehabilitative, durational and permanent. A court may combine the forms in one award.

Continue reading " A Jacksonville, Florida Family Law Lawyer explains the recent Changes to Florida's Alimony Statute " »

A recent article in the Washington Post on interfaith marriages said that the rate of interfaith marriages is climbing, but so too is the divorce rate for those marriages.

In 2006, 25 percent of U.S. households were mixed faith, according to the General Social Survey. But calculations based on another survey – the American Religious Identification Survey of 2001 – showed that people in mixed-religion marriages were three times more likely to be separated or divorced than couples that share the same religious faith.

Many experts believe that as society becomes more tolerant and institutional ties become less important, interfaith marriages flourish. However, once couples are married and children come along, questions about how to raise them loom larger and seem more important than when they were first married. Couples who were more tolerant of differences prior to marriage become less so after being married for awhile.

A 1993 paper published by University of Illinois at Chicago economics professor Evelyn Lehrer found that if members of a mainline Christian religion marry, they have a 20 percent chance of being divorced after five years. If a Christian and a Jew marry, their chances of being divorced within five years are more than double that – over 40 percent.

Lehrer said this is because religion is much more than going to church on Sunday (or temple on Saturday) – it informs many of the activities that couples do together as well as their ideas about money, friends and professional networks, and the differences between spouses begin to add up.

Unfortunately, what they often add up to is divorce.

Continue reading " Interfaith Marriages Rising – and Failing – Fast " »

The Jacksonville Network for Strengthening Families, a city-run program that offered classes to families on preventing violence, marriage preparation and divorce prevention and that was eliminated last year when its federal grant money ran out, has been resurrected by FreshMinistries, a Jacksonville interfaith nonprofit group.

According to a story in the Florida Times-Union, independent research on the Jacksonville program showed it worked. FreshMinistries said it would continue to support the family outreach program until it can operate successfully on its own.

The Jacksonville Network for Strengthening Families started in 2005, and had served 5,000 Jacksonville area residents by 2009. Independent studies done on the program showed that it had improved family functioning and reduced recidivism for first-time juvenile offenders.
The classes, which are free of charge to participants and are conducted by volunteers, are held at the Jacksonville Children’s Commission. Classes are also taught at various nonprofits and churches around Jacksonville.

Organizers say the program, which includes courses for both married and engaged couples, will soon be offered through the Department of Children and Families and Family Support Services, and that a pilot program for first-time juvenile offenders and their families is being considered by the State Attorney’s Office.

Ikos, one of Europe’s oldest hedge funds, is at the center of a nasty divorce battle between its husband-and-wife founders, who started the company with $10,000 in 1992 and built it into a $3.4 billion financial powerhouse.

Martin Coward and Elena Ambrosiadou recently split over his affair with a 23-year-old Brazilian woman. Coward, who holds a Ph.D in math, developed Ikos’ quant trading operation, where computers – not humans -- choose trades. Greek native Ambrosiadou, formerly Britain’s highest paid female at $18 million annually, met Coward at Cambridge where she was a chemical engineering student. She went from there to BP, where she was the oil giant’s youngest international executive at age 27.

The high-stakes divorce turned particularly nasty when Ambrosiadou fired Coward’s team of researchers at Ikos, causing many investors to pull their funds in alarm and reducing Ikos’ fund to $1.35 billion. She also had police seize her husband’s jet while he was on vacation at a Greek island resort; he has since ordered his own $2 million jet and she has ordered her own nine-passenger private plane as well as a $120 million private yacht that she plans to use a few weeks a year.

Coward has left Ikos to start his own firm, leaving Ambrosiadou in control. She has attracted new investors to the fund, which now stands at $1.95 billion, according to her attorneys.

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With one of the highest foreclosure and mortgage delinquency rates in the nation, Florida homes have suffered devastating losses in equity over the past three years. So it’s no surprise that many Florida couples in the midst of a divorce no longer argue about who gets to keep the house – rather, the argument becomes about who has to keep the house.

Many divorcing Florida homeowners now face the possibility of being tied together not because of the children but because of the negative equity in their homes. This is because, from a lender’s perspective, both spouses are still responsible for the loan, married or not. If one spouse can qualify for a mortgage modification or refinance on their own, problem solved. However, in today’s current economic climate, this is a very big “if”.

Keep in mind, if your spouse cannot qualify for a refinance or mortgage modification without you still on the mortgage and note, do not think a quitclaim deed will absolve you of any responsibility. It will not.

Even if there is some equity still remaining, divorcing spouses will likely find it difficult to get at it when dividing assets. One spouse may find it necessary to “reimburse” the other over time as part of their divorce agreement.

A new study by Montclair State University researchers says that in marriages with a high degree of conflict, divorce is often better for children than “staying together for the sake of the kids.”

The study analyzed the results of a 10-year national survey of 7,000 married Americans and their children. Parents were first surveyed in 1987 about the level of conflict in the marriage. In 1992-93, both parents and children were surveyed and in 2001-2002, the children were surveyed again and asked about their own happiness and the level of conflict in their own relationships.

Researchers found that children who grew up with parents who argued a lot did better in their own adult relationships if their parents divorced. If the parents stayed together, the children were exposed to more years of conflict and were more likely to experience conflict in their own relationships as adults.The research also showed that in the short term, children of divorce experience a crisis period of one to two years, but then “bounce back” from the divorce. Conversely, the survey also found that adult children of happily married couples do not necessarily grow up to enjoy happy relationships themselves.