Often, potential clients enter an attorney’s office with high hopes and lofty goals. Many want their “day in court” and do not wish to settle for less than 100% of their original goal. The reality is that the Court is not in business to make you happy. The Family Court is a court of equity. […]
Category: Child Support
Castillo vs. Castillo
In Castillo vs. Castillo, the trial court improperly applied the unclean hands doctrine to summarily deny a petition for modification. Where a spouse has the ability to pay an arrearage and does not do so, he is not in court with clean hands and in such case his petition should not be considered on the […]
Addie vs. Coale
Addie vs. Coale has a history in the 4th district. When it was first appealed, it was remanded for reconsideration of the alimony and child support aspects of the final judgment. On remand, the successor trial judge entered an alimony and child support award, but it was deficient in that findings were not made on […]
I just received a letter from the Department of Revenue (DOR) regarding a Proposed Administrative Support Order, what do I do?
If you have recently received a letter from DOR stating that the department is seeking to establish child support pursuant to a Proposed Administrative Support Order, do not hesitate: bring that letter to your lawyer immediately. There are very specific guidelines for what you can do when you receive such a letter, and all of […]
Tluzek v. Tluzek
Tluzek vs. Tluzek is a case of first impression in Florida. In involves the allocation of an adoption subsidy received by the parents of adopted children with special needs. The court ruled that the parents’ child support obligation should be determined first pursuant to the guidelines. Then, the adoption subsidy should be apportioned between the […]
SB 250 Passed Judiciary Committee!
SB 250 (2016) Family Law http://www.flsenate.gov/Session/Bill/2016/0250 SENATE – CS by Judiciary; YEAS 7 NAYS 3
Paternity and Timesharing
It often comes as a surprise to unmarried fathers that when they break up with the mother of their child, they do not have timesharing and decision-making rights automatically. In order to establish a timesharing schedule and to require the child’s mother to include them in major decisions, the father must file a Petition to […]
Rosenblum v. Rosenblum
Rosenblum v Rosenblum Rosenblum v. Rosenblum involves pro se litigants feeling their way through a typical set of circumstances. The former husband first filed a Motion to Modify Child Support (there is no discussion as to why it was appropriate to consider that as a motion rather than as a supplemental petition), and before that […]
Stat Dept. of Revenue v. Pare
Stat Dept of Revenue v Pare In DOR v. Pare, the trial court denied a UIFSA petition for child support because there was no legal order determining paternity and because he did not have legal custody of the child, despite the fact that the child was living with the father with the mother’s consent and […]
Wells v. Whitfield
Wells v Whitfield In Wells vs. Whitfield, the 1st DCA reversed a child support award for lack of statutory findings regarding income. The amended final judgment did not include any findings specifying what portion of the retained earnings of the Husband’s solely-owned corporation were included by the court in determining the father’s gross income. Absent […]