The Future of Alimony in Florida

On September 10, 2015, Florida Senator Tom Lee filed an alimony reform bill with the legislature for its consideration during the 2016 legislative session, which begins in January 2016. The bill, as filed, is largely identical to the alimony reform bill that Senator Lee filed before the 2015 legislative session. The 2015 bill never made […]

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Hooker v. Hooker

An interspousal gift is established by showing “ ‘(1) donative intent, (2) delivery or possession of the gift, and (3) surrender of dominion and control of the gift.’ “ Vigo v. Vigo, 15 So.3d 619, 622 (Fla. 3d DCA 2009) (quoting Mills v. Mills, 845 So.2d 230, 233 (Fla. 3d DCA 2003)). The burden is […]

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Full Custody

The above statement is something that is heard often by many Florida family law professionals, and each time it comes up, the following needs to be explained. The word “custody” in Florida law is an archaic term, and although it is obsolete, it seems like it simply won’t go away. This is likely because the […]

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What About The Mortgage?

The marriage is over. Husband and Wife own a home, with a mortgage that has an outstanding balance. The Wife also has a 401(k) with a balance that’s roughly equal to the value of the home minus the debt. A solution may be to award the house to the Husband and the 401(k) to the […]

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Ellisen v. Ellisen

The trial court in the attached case misconstrued the pleadings, and denied a petition for modification of alimony based upon the wrong legal standard. When modification of an existing order of support is sought, the proof required to modify a settlement agreement and the proof required to modify an award established by court order shall […]

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Gerber v. Gerber

In the following case, the Former Husband was held in contempt of an order regarding the repayment of medical expenses. However, the contempt finding was premature in that the finding of contempt occurred in the same hearing as a clarification of the order at issue. An order that is indefinite or ambiguous may not be […]

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