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Divorce in Florida Does Not Have to Be a War
Divorce in the state of Florida is easier than in most of the other states in the United States. First, the divorce laws in the State of Florida do not require a “Fault” requirement. Florida is a “No Fault” divorce state. Other states, such as New York, have a fault requirement which requires showing a legal basis for the divorce. This causes an individual to be required to prove a ground such as mental cruelty, adultery, or some form of abuse. The Divorce laws in the state of Florida have no such requirement and this makes getting a divorce in Florida easier and faster.
The Residency requirement for a Divorce in Florida is also relatively a short period of time. A person only needs to reside in the State of Florida for six months prior to the filing of a divorce in Florida.
Florida has an equitable distribution of all assets and liabilities. This means that there is a presumption that all marital assets and marital debts accumulated during the marriage, regardless of whose name they are titled in, are subject to a so/so distribution as part of a divorce in Florida.
The Child Support laws in Florida are done accordingly to the Florida Child Support guidelines. This requires the net incomes of the parents to be determined and then plugged into a formula which calculates the child support based upon the number of children the parties have, the number of overnights for timesharing, and whether or not there is health or Dental Insurance and Child Care for the children. In a divorce in Florida, if both parties are W-2 employees then the numbers are relatively straight forward.
The Florida legislature recently changed the Florida Statue regarding alimony in a divorce in Florida. The Alimony provisions have been simplified based upon the number of years that a husband and wife are married.
A marriage of six years or less is considered a short-term marriage and under these circumstances there is a presumption that no alimony would be paid in this type of divorce in Florida.
A marriage of seven to seventeen years would be defined as a durational alimony time period in the state of Florida and the maximum alimony would be the length of the marriage.
Any marriages over 17 years in the State of Florida would be considered a long-term marriage and there would be a presumption of permanent alimony in the state of Florida for a divorce in Florida of long duration.
The legislative of the State of Florida has removed the term custody from the laws regulating a divorce in Florida. Both parents are entitled to time-sharing with their children without either being named the primary custodian.
This change was made to avoid litigation in divorces in Florida and prevent parents from fighting for custody.
There are issues that may require litigation for divorces in Florida, such as one parent’s request to relocate to another state with the parties’ minor children. Relocation is typically an issue that cannot be amicably resolved under the present laws of the State of Florida.
However, most issues in a typical divorce in Florida can be resolved without a fight and based upon the existing laws on Divorce in Florida this process should not deteriorate into a war.
It is necessary to find an attorney who can help you to understand that Divorce in Florida could and should be amicable. Not every case can be resolved with a settlement and an Uncontested Divorce, in Florida are resolved this way. It is important to find an attorney who is interested in resolving a case amicably, because this will save your time, aggravation, and money.
If you are interested in my services call Kenneth M. Kaplan, Esquire, at
1-954-260-5479
Or
305-666-9797