Written By: Lenorae C. Atter, Attorney
Wood, Atter & Wolf, P.A.
Florida divorce/family law courts recognize discrepancies in the incomes of both parties and have developed access to courts early in the process through a Motion for Temporary Needs. Once filed, there is a hearing to establish the needs of the parties until the divorce can be finalized. The motion for temporary needs can include the following issues:
Written By: Lenorae C. Atter, Attorney
Wood, Atter & Wolf, P.A.
Florid child support payments are required by law and an order is established either through an action for divorce or paternity. If child support is not paid, the responsible party’s driver’s license can be suspended through the Division of Driver’s License (Department of Highways and Motor Vehicles). According to Florida Statutes, §322.058 suspension of a driver’s license can be done when the Division of Driver’s Licenses has notice that the responsible party failed to comply with the law.
Written By: Lenorae C. Atter, Attorney
Wood, Atter & Wolf, P.A.
While Jacksonville, Florida has an influx of bankruptcy filings over the last few years, child support continues to be ordered in divorce and paternity actions. If a parent files bankruptcy after child support is ordered, then Bankruptcy does not discharge that support obligation.
Written By: Lenorae C. Atter, Attorney
Wood, Atter & Wolf, P.A.
In Florida, if you are going separate ways in your marriage, divorce is not a requirement to receive alimony and/or child support in Florida. If you and your spouse are separated, then the party in need of spousal or child support may petition the court without filing for divorce (Florida Statute 61.09). This allows for parties to separate without the pressure of divorce if that is not their ultimate goal.
The Court establishes alimony based on the same factors that are considered in a divorce proceeding, per Florida Statute 61.08, such as length of the marriage, contribution of the parties during the marriage, lifestyle of the marriage, etc.
Child Support is determined based on the child support guidelines in Florida Statute 61.30, as it would be under any other proceeding in family law matters ( divorce, paternity, etc.).
Child Support is based on the income of the parties, so if alimony is awarded, it will be factored in as income to the receiving party for purposes of child support.
Written By: Lenorae C. Atter, Attorney
Wood, Atter & Wolf, P.A.
In Florida, a Birth Certificate signed by both a mother and father lays a presumption that the one signing as the father is the child’s biological father, however, it does not lay a foundation for the father to have rights or obligations to the child in the eyes of the law. Therefore, if you have a child and are no longer in a relationship with you child’s father and you were never married, then you must establish that the father’s paternity in order to establish his obligation to pay child support.
In order to establish paternity, you must file a petition with the court alleging paternity of the respondent and seek support for the child. The alleged father can file a counter-petition for timesharing (previously known as visitation).
If you choose not to establish paternity of the alleged father, then he does have the right to file a petition for determination of paternity so that he may establish his rights to the child. Once those rights are established, the obligation for support follows. Until either you or the father file for said establishment of paternity, the father has no legal recognition as the child’s father. However, if you ever seek assistance from the State of Florida, such as Medicaid, then the The State of Florida may require a petition for determination of paternity in order to protect the State from having to pay assistance for a child that another individual is obligated to support.
Written By: Lenorae C. Atter, Attorney
Wood, Atter & Wolf, P.A.
Florida enforcement of child support can be brought through a Motion for Contempt if the responsible parent, the obligor, fails to pay child support per the order of child support entered by the Court. When a child support order is entered, it is done so based on the reported income of each parent and if an issue of nonpayment arises, then there is a presumption by the Court that the obligor maintains the ability to pay and it is up to that parent to prove otherwise.
If the obligor informs the court that s/he is unemployed or underemployed involuntarily, then the Judge may order that party to do the following:
1. Look for employment
2. File reports with the court, or the Florida Department of Revenue if the obligor is in receipt of Title IV services, that explain the party’s efforts in the search for employment.
3. Provide notification to the Court once employment is found.
4. Take part in programs that provide job training, placement, work experience or other similar programs that may be available to the obligor (chapters 445 and 446 of the Florida Statutes).
If the obligor voluntarily and unilaterally decides not to comply with the Court’s order, then s/he may be held in contempt. Contempt matters can range in punishment, but can include time in jail, with a purge or release amount totaling the owed child support amount.
Written By: Lenorae C. Atter, Attorney
Wood, Atter & Wolf, P.A.
Florida divorce cases involving children, child support cases and paternity cases often provide for support of the children based on Florida Child Support Guidelines in Florida Statute 61.30. However, the guidelines do not address medical expenses regarding the children, except for health insurance coverage purposes. So, how does Florida divide the parental financial responsibility for uncovered medical expenses for the children?
Often, agreements reached by the parties will include language that the parties are required to equally split the uncovered medical bills. These issues recently came up in the Florida 2nd District Court of Appeals, which ruled that uncovered medical expenses should be divided in relation to each parents percentage of income, as in the child support guidelines. Zinovoy v. Zinovy, 36 FLW D34 (Fla. 2nd DCA, December 29, 2010).
So, what does this mean? Florida child support is based on the overall income of the parents. Basically, if each parent makes $5,000 per month, then the overall monthly household income is $10,000 and each parent is 50% responsibility for that amount. So, their children’s uncovered medical expenses would be divided 50/50. If one parent makes $4,000 per month and the other makes $6,000 per month, then the uncovered medical expenses would be divided 40/60. This helps maintain a fair balance based on the incomes of the parents.
Florida paternity and divorce cases involving children require child support to be calculated. Child support is based on the income of both parties and in order to establish that the Court does not simply accept testimony. So, how do parties actually provide proof of their individual incomes?
Florida divorces are ruled by Florida Family Law Rules of Procedure, which requires that both parties file a financial affidavit. A financial affidavit details the monthly expenses of the individuals including their income and expenses. In addition to personal expenses, the financial affidavit requires the children’s expenses be calculated as well. That way the court knows which parent is paying for childcare and the child’s health insurance, which all goes into the child support calculation. Since it is an affidavit, the parties must sign and have the affidavit notarized.
In addition to the financial affidavit, the parties are required to provide documentation outlined in Mandatory Disclosure, also detailed in the Florida Rules of Family Procedure. Some of the documents required are the following:
a) At least three (3) months of bank statements for all accounts held individually and jointly. Joint accounts are any accounts with the party’s name on them, including those held for elderly family members.
b) At least three (3) months of paycheck stubs. If you are paid hourly and work overtime, it is a good idea to provide as many months as possible.
c) Any and all loan applications filled out by the individual or done as a cosigner. This documentation often has questions related to your income and allows the Court to see what type of loans you may have outstanding.
All of these items help establish the actual income of each party and what the children’s needs are. Child support is based on the combined income of the parties and what each individual’s percentage of contribution is to that combined amount.
Written By: Lenorae C. Atter, Attorney
Wood, Atter & Wolf, P.A.
As a Jacksonville, Florida family law attorney, I represent clients in paternity, child support and divorce cases. Payment of obligations for child support and alimony seem to weigh on both parties because one needs the support and the other wants to make certain payments are made on time so there are no future actions for lack of payment. The answer is that Florida does allow income deduction orders to be entered against the party responsible for payment, which means that wages can be garnished for the support. Income deduction is an easy way for the obligor to pay the money owed and it allows the money to be direct deposited into the proper account. In addition, it allows for proper accounting of all monies paid so that accusations of nonpayment can be properly defended.
According to Florida Statute 61.103, an income deduction order can be entered in connection with an order that establishes the support obligation for child support or alimony. The income deduction order must state that an order for the obligation has been entered by the court and it must include the date the order was entered, the court that entered the order (i.e.
Jacksonville is the Fourth Judicial Circuit) and it must provide the court number associated with the original order.
Once the income deduction order is entered, the court must furnish the obligor with a statement rights and remedies associated therewith and provide details of the fees associated with the deduction, the amount to be deducted, that notice will be given to the obligor’s employer and that subsequent employers must be notified by the obligor, and other factors related to Title IV-D cases.
Income deduction orders can be a good tool used by both parties in a divorce, paternity or child support case because it helps protect the interests of both parties. and
Written By: Lenorae C. Atter, Attorney
Wood, Atter & Wolf, P.A.
In Florida, to file for divorce, you must reside in the State for at least six (6) months prior to filing a petition with the court. The Florida residency requirement only requires one of the parties to have residence in Florida, to file here and actions can be brought against a party that resides outside of Florida.
An example would be if you and your spouse live in New York and decide to separate and during the separation you move to Florida for at least six (6) months, then you can file for divorce in Florida though your spouse still resides in New York. Typically, if there is an issue with children, the matters involving the children will be in the court where the children physically reside. However, the actual divorce, equitable distribution of assets, etc. can be decided by a Florida court.
The easiest method of proving your residence is by showing the Court a Florida drivers license. If you do not have one or it was not issued six months prior to your filing for divorce, then you can use the following: lease agreement that signed and dated; utility bill, in your name; or anything that may show the court that you have actually resided in Florida for six (6) months. If you do not have one of those available, then you may have a signed affidavit by someone that can attest that you have lived in Florida for the required time.
Jacksonville Divorce Lawyer Blog