Posted by Nydia Streets of Streets Law in Florida Annulment
Florida does not have specific statutes that address annulment, and this area of law is based on common law. A plethora of appellate opinions give guidance on how to determine if a marriage can be annulled. Generally, impediments to marriage fall into two categories under Florida law - consent (invalidity or lack of consent) and capacity (to consent). Annulment was an issue in the case Rojas v. Londono, 3D24-0455 (Fla. 3d DCA January 8, 2025).
Posted by Nydia Streets of Streets Law in Florida Child Support
When calculating retroactive child support, if there is evidence of the parties’ actual incomes for the retroactive period, the court usually must use the actual income rather than the parties’ current incomes. This is because it may be unfair to apply current incomes if one parent’s income was much lower or much higher during the retroactive period. This was an issue in the case Rouson v. DOR, 2D2024-0107 (Fla. 2d DCA January 3, 2025).
Posted by Nydia Streets of Streets Law in Florida Divorce
A home that is owned by one spouse prior to marriage is that spouse’s separate, non-marital property. But if a mortgage was paid on the home during the marriage with marital funds, the non-owning spouse is likely owed a credit in equitable distribution for the payment of those funds. This was an issue in the case Kerrigan v. Page, 2D2023-2186 (Fla. 2d DCA December 27, 2024).
Posted by Nydia Streets of Streets Law in Florida Paternity
If a man listed on a birth certificate in Florida, and later DNA testing confirms he is not the biological father, is he automatically removed from the birth certificate? The short answer is no, because biology alone does not determine legal paternity in Florida. This was an issue in the case Bronner v. Longden, 4D2024-0638 (Fla. 4th DCA December 18, 2024).
Posted by Nydia Streets of Streets Law in Holidays
A very happy new year to you and yours! We wish you a healthy, loving, and prosperous new year. Enjoy!
Posted by Nydia Streets of Streets Law in Florida Child Custody
What is the effect of a default in a Florida child custody case? Despite a default, a court must find that parenting plan is in the best interest of a child. Rather than relying on a technicality such as a default, the court must still determine that, for example, a change in time-sharing is in the best interest of a child. This was an issue in the case Oria v. Velastegui, 3D24-1169 (Fla. 3d DCA December 18, 2024).
Posted by Nydia Streets of Streets Law in Florida Divorce
In a recent appellate case, an interesting issue arose in which the former husband sold his interest in the marital home (which was in foreclosure at the time) to a company owned by his mother and then deposited the sale proceeds into the court registry in an attempt to redeem the property. On appeal was the court’s ruling that the sale proceeds were subject to distribution in the divorce, and the court denied the former husband’s mother’s company’s motion to intervene and stay disbursement of those funds. The case is Meruelo v. Meruelo, 3D23-0617 (Fla. 3d DCA December 18, 2024).
Posted by Nydia Streets of Streets Law in Holidays
Happy Kwanzaa! Today we reflect on the seven principles of this holiday.
Posted by Nydia Streets of Streets Law in Holidays
It’s the most wonderful time of the year! Merry Christmas and Happy Hannukah to you and yours. May this day bring you the love of family and the gift of gratitude.
Posted by Nydia Streets of Streets Law in Florida Family Law Procedure
Issues that are ruled on at a hearing in a Florida family law hearing must be requested in the pleadings filed by the parties or tried by consent. To determine whether an issue was tried by consent, the following factors are considered: “(1) ‘whether there was 'a fair opportunity to defend' the issue’ and (2) ‘whether the defending party 'could have offered additional evidence' if the issue had been included in the operative pleading or motion." Campana v. Trabold, 2D2024-0216 (Fla. 2d DCA December 18, 2024).
Posted by Nydia Streets of Streets Law in Florida Divorce
How is a pension divided in a Florida divorce? It may seem difficult to divide a pension when a spouse is not yet retired, and therefore the amount to which the spouse is entitled is not yet known. However there are generally two methods in Florida for distributing a future pension benefit in a Florida divorce: “The first is to order an ‘immediate offset,’ in which the court distributes the portion of the pension's present value that was earned during the marriage. [internal citation omitted]. This marital interest is calculated by multiplying the present value of the pension by a ‘coverture fraction’ in which the denominator is the total time the employee has participated in the retirement plan and the numerator is the time the employee has been married during that participation. Id. [. . .] The other, simpler option is a ‘deferred distribution.’ Under this approach, the court must have evidence of the amount of the employee's benefit assuming ‘he retired on the date of the final hearing without any early retirement penalty.’ Id. ‘The court then multiplies this dollar amount by the percentage to which the other spouse is entitled.’ Id. This results in a fixed dollar amount that is to be deducted and paid to the other spouse each time the pension holder receives a pension benefit.” Pension valuation and distribution was discussed in the case Cancel v. Cancel, 2D2023-0471 (Fla. 2d DCA December 18, 2024).
Posted by Nydia Streets of Streets Law in Florida Prenuptial Agreements
When a spouse files a motion to set aside a prenuptial agreement, this may mean a divorce case is paused on certain issues until the court makes a decision as to the validity of the agreement. This was an issue in the case Smith-Fullerton v. Fullerton, 5D2024-0855 (Fla. 5th DCA December 6, 2024).
Posted by Nydia Streets of Streets Law in Florida Divorce
Loans from family members to one spouse or both may be a common occurrence. How are these loans treated in equitable distribution during a Florida divorce? This was an issue in the case McHugh v. McHugh, 5D2023-3130 (Fla. 5th DCA December 6, 2024).
Posted by Nydia Streets of Streets Law in Florida Family Law Procedure
Sometimes an automatic assumption in a Florida family law case is that if one party earns significantly more income than the other party or otherwise has a surplus of funds after monthly expenses, that party should be ordered to pay the attorney’s fees of the other party. But this is just one part of the analysis, as illustrated in the case Thomas-Jones v. Jones, 5D2023-1080 (Fla. 5th DCA December 6, 2024).
Posted by Nydia Streets of Streets Law in Florida Child Support
Is a Florida family law court required to assign the tax dependency exemption between the parents? If the parents present enough evidence for the court to make this determination, the court can assign the exemption. However in the absence of assignment, the default rule is that the exemption is awarded to the parent who has majority time-sharing. This was an issue in the case Leonard v. Gordon, 4D2024-1309 (Fla. 4th DCA December 11, 2024).
Posted by Nydia Streets of Streets Law in Florida Child Support
Petitioning for modification of child support requires that a parent show a substantial change in circumstances has occurred since the entry of the order establishing support. This change is usually an increase or decrease in income. This was an issue in the case Gonzalez v. Calles, 3D24-0304 (Fla. 3d DCA December 11, 2024).
Posted by Nydia Streets of Streets Law in Florida Domestic Violence
Florida stalking injunctions are designed to address situations in which a person repeatedly follows, contacts, or harasses another person without any reason to do so, and in doing so causes the victim substantial emotional distress. In a recent appellate case, a mother was accused of stalking her son, daughter-in-law and granddaughter. The case is Savage v. Bustillo, 1D2023-2687 (Fla. 1st DCA December 11, 2024).
Posted by Nydia Streets of Streets Law in Florida Family Law Procedure
Filing your petition for appeal in the correct court is one of the first steps to protecting your appellate rights. Since there are strict deadlines to follow in appellate matters, the failure to timely file in the correct court can be fatal to an appeal. This was an issue in the case McGann v. Walker, 1D2023-1294 (Fla. 1st DCA December 11, 2024).
Posted by Nydia Streets of Streets Law in Florida Child Custody
The Hague Convention on the Civil Aspects of International Child Abduction (“Hague Convention”), and the International Child Abduction Remedies Act (“ICARA”) provide remedies for parents whose children have been wrongfully removed from their custody and taken to another country. There is presumption in favor of returning a child wrongfully removed, but those presumptions can be overcome by certain defenses and evidence. This was an issue in the case De La Cruz v. Garcia, 4D2024-0823 (Fla. 4th DCA December 4, 2024).
Posted by Nydia Streets of Streets Law in Florida Child Custody
Issue about which court has the authority to rule in a child custody case when the parties have ties to more than one state are governed by the Uniform Child Custody Jurisdiction and Enforcement Act (UCCJEA). The aim of this Act is to reduce jurisdictional conflicts and promote the best interest of a child. Enforcement of this act was an issue in the case Dorvil v. Atwell, 3D24-0029 (Fla. 3d DCA December 4, 2024).
