Miami family law attorney blog
Posted by Nydia Streets of Streets Law in Florida Same-Sex Family Law
In a recent Florida appellate case involving same-sex family law, the court acknowledged “‘the law is slow to address" changes in this area ‘as society and medicine create new factual situations.’" In the case Springer v. Springer, 2D18-2265 (Fla. 2d DCA July 19, 2019), the court considered an appeal by a woman who wanted parental rights and timesharing with a child conceived during her relationship with her former partner.
Posted by Nydia Streets of Streets Law in Florida Alimony
A party who can no longer comply with an order to pay alimony in Florida may file a petition for modification or termination of alimony. In filing a petition, a party re-initiates a lawsuit and the steps to initiate a lawsuit must be followed in order to comply with due process requirements in Florida family law cases. The other party must be served with the petition by a process server. Once served, the other party usually has 20 days to respond to the petition or a default judgment may be entered against the party.
Posted by Nydia Streets of Streets Law in Florida Family Law Procedure
When a party fails to meet his or her obligations under a Florida child support or alimony order, he or she may be held in contempt of court. The party asking for contempt must show the other party had the ability to comply with the order but chose not to. But before taking the steps to prove this, a party must make sure he or she is in compliance with procedural rules to avoid having an order of contempt overturned on appeal. Such was the case in Hart v. Hart, 3D19-450 (Fla. 3d DCA July 24, 2019).
Posted by Nydia Streets of Streets Law in South Florida family events**
As we head into the last full weekend of August, take some time to relax with the family while enjoying a free movie in the park, arts and crafts, a beach clean-up and more in our South Florida weekend family fun guide!
Posted by Nydia Streets of Streets Law in Florida Alimony
When one spouse earns significantly more income than the other spouse, this does not mean that alimony is automatic in Florida. In order to determine if alimony is appropriate in a Florida divorce and what type should be awarded, the court must perform a “need and ability to pay” analysis. Determination of alimony is made on a case-by-case basis with a basic foundation of what needs to be analyzed to arrive at an equitable amount.
Posted by Nydia Streets of Streets Law in Florida Domestic Violence
What is needed to obtain an injunction against dating violence in Florida? According to the Florida Statutes, “Any person who is the victim of dating violence and has reasonable cause to believe he or she is in imminent danger of becoming the victim of another act of dating violence, or any person who has reasonable cause to believe he or she is in imminent danger of becoming the victim of an act of dating violence . . . has standing in the circuit court to file a sworn petition for an injunction for protection against dating violence.” 784.046(2)(b), Florida Statutes. The case Stefano v. Long, 2D18-3180 (Fla. 2d DCA August 9, 2019) illustrates how this statute is applied to the specific facts of a case.
Posted by Nydia Streets of Streets Law in Florida Child Custody
Temporary relief orders are routinely entered in Florida child custody cases. This is so that parties do not have to wait several months (and in some cases a year or more) for their final hearing to obtain relief. The case Beck v. Lewis, 2D18-2319 (Fla. 2d DCA August 9, 2019) explores how a court reviews a party’s request to set aside a temporary order on child custody.
Posted by Nydia Streets of Streets Law in Florida Domestic Violence
Neighbors who cannot get along are in the Florida family law case cycle again! In this stalking injunction case, one neighbor accused the other of “stealing, throwing, and damaging signs in the neighborhood that pertained to a lawsuit that some neighbors were involved in against a home builder [. . .], chasing him down the street while yelling profanities,” and sending an email to his employer, among other incidents.
Posted by Nydia Streets of Streets Law in South Florida family events**
You survived the first week of the school year, hooray! Kick back and relax with our weekend family fun guide which includes a free beach bash, free paddleboard lessons, vision board fun for the whole family and more!
Posted by Nydia Streets of Streets Law in Florida Alimony
When parties enter a marital settlement agreement or a final judgment is entered in a Florida divorce, the court will enforce the express terms of the agreement or order. So it is important that terms in the agreement or order are unambiguous and not open to different interpretations. Otherwise, the parties could find themselves embroiled in expensive and lengthy post-judgment litigation.
Posted by Nydia Streets of Streets Law in Florida Family Law Procedure
Florida family courts are courts of equity. This means the court has discretion with regard to certain aspects of a case to “balance the scales”. One such aspect is attorneys’ fees and costs. In a Florida family law case, attorneys’ fees can be awarded to a party based on a need and ability to pay analysis.
Posted by Nydia Streets of Streets Law in Florida Child Custody
When a party has a pending petition for relocation in Florida, that party can file a motion for temporary relocation so that the party does not have to wait until a final hearing if relocation must happen immediately due to a job offer or other exigent circumstance. In the case Miller v. Miller, 1D19-843 (Fla. 1st DCA July 16, 2019), the mother appealed an order granting temporary relocation for the father.
Posted by Nydia Streets of Streets Law in Florida Child Support
A central and interesting issue in a recent Florida appellate case involved the determination of the former wife’s income in computing Florida child support. In the case Jackson v. Jackson, 1D18-3533 (Fla. 1st DCA July 9, 2019) the former husband contended, among other arguments, that the trial court erred in failing to consider as income for the former wife her non-taxed disability and reemployment assistance payments.
Posted by Nydia Streets of Streets Law in South Florida family events**
For many in South Florida, this is the last weekend before school starts - how exciting! Celebrate back-to-school with our weekend family fun guide which is filled with biking fun, festivals, Comicon and more.
Posted by Nydia Streets of Streets Law in Florida Child Support
When a party wants to modify a Florida child support award, does it matter if the original support amount was ordered versus agreed-to by the parties? If a party is seeking a decrease in Florid child support, then yes, the fact that the parties agreed to an amount matters. The case Medalie v. Sparks, 4D18-1887 (Fla. 4th DCA July 10, 2019) explains this.
Posted by Nydia Streets of Streets Law in Florida Child Custody
It is important to note that if a party wants certain relief in his or her Florida family law case, that party must request the relief in pleadings. This is because the general rule is that if you do not ask for something, the court cannot award it. By asking for something in pleadings, a party is giving fair notice to the other party what to expect in the case. This rule was illustrated in the recent appellate case Ducali v. Ducali, 1D17-1002 (Fla. 1st DCA July 9, 2019).
Posted by Nydia Streets of Streets Law in Florida Family Law Procedure
Due process is required in Florida family law cases. This refers to the opportunity for each party to present his or her side of the case with fair notice. When a court takes action without notifying the parties or when there is no pending motion on the action taken, this usually results in a due process violation. Such was the case in Singer v. Singer, 4D18-1170 (Fla. 4th DCA July 3, 2019).
Posted by Nydia Streets of Streets Law in Florida Divorce
A recent Florida appellate case examines whether or not a decision during the marriage to purchase credit for premarital years of employment for a pension plan renders the pension a marital asset. This issue arose in the case Martin v. Martin, 1D18-2546 (Fla. 1st DCA June 20, 2019).
Posted by Nydia Streets of Streets Law in South Florida family events**
It’s tax-free weekend! In between your back-to-school shopping, check out our South Florida weekend family fun guide.
Posted by Nydia Streets of Streets Law in Florida Alimony
A former spouse who agreed to pay over $20,000.00 per month in permanent, non-modifiable alimony was found in contempt for his failure to pay this amount for about 9 years straight. He appealed in the case Accardi v. Accardi, 4D18-1669 (Fla. 4th DCA June 12, 2019).
