Is your marriage is over?
Not many people recite their vows in front of friends and family expecting their marriage will end in divorce. Over the many years of marriage, events can create conflict that is sometimes too much for spouses to resolve. Our office advises individuals contemplating divorce to seek professional or spiritual counseling, or advice from friends and family prior to resorting to divorce. When one or both spouses decide divorce is the only option for their family, it can be an emotionally charged time that can take several months, if not years, to resolve. Our goal is to get your case resolved as quickly and amicably as possible. Unfortunately, there are a number of concerns spouses and the Court must consider when couples get divorced, including: time-sharing, child support, and division of marital assets and liabilities.
Sharing time with your children
The State of Florida encourages parents to work out an amicable time-sharing schedule that is in the best interest of the child(ren). Parents should sit down and discuss the schedule and maturity of the child(ren) and parents’ availability when considering a time-sharing plan. Depending on a number of factors, some parenting plans have the child(ren) spending every other week with each parent. Others are better suited for a 3 day on, 4 day off schedule. Some work best with a rotating schedule of every other day. Still others, often due to distance, require time-sharing with one parent during the school year and time-sharing with the other parent on holidays and school breaks. Try to keep an open mind when discussing a time-sharing schedule and focus on what is best for the child(ren).
Child support
Children cost money to raise. It’s a simple fact that when you have more members in a household, expenses increase. Please keep in mind that when you are paying child support to your former spouse, it is not paying them. It is paying for your child(ren) to be housed, clothed, feed, etc. Child support is the right of the child(ren) and is based on each parent’s net income, the number of overnights spent with either parent, and credits for the child(ren)’s health/dental insurance, childcare, and non-covered medical expenses. You can review the formulas used to calculate child support at Florida Statute 61.30.
Dividing marital assets and liabilities
Often times couples have spent years commingling their assets and liabilities and trying to save for retirement. During a marriage couples can build a number of assets together, including but not limited to: the marital home, investment properties, vehicles and vessels, retirement and investment accounts, life insurance, and businesses. They often also acquire liabilities such as: student loans, credit card debts, mortgages, and judgments. The State of Florida views divorce in a business-like manner. One spouse may have contributed more financially, however if the assets were accumulated during the marriage, it is still marital property and needs to be equitably divided. Seeking informed counsel is essential during this sometimes very complex process. Once you execute a Marital Settlement Agreement allocating the marital property, it is an enforceable contract.
Spousal support
Depending on the length of the marriage one spouse may be entitled to spousal support or what is also referred to as alimony. There are a number of types and duration of alimony and many factors are considered when the Court awards it. Florida Statute 61.08 outlines what the Court may consider when awarding alimony: