Just three short months after Miami Heat guard Dwyane Wade’s divorce became final, a Florida appeals court was again called upon to enter a decision in the half-decade long legal contest. The 3d District Court of Appeal overturned a trial court’s order requiring the NBA star’s ex-wife to undergo a…
One of the central underlying concepts of divorce and marital property settlement is something called equitable distribution. Equitable distribution, which is required by the Florida Statutes, means that each spouse should receive a fair portion of the marital estate, and each should share in both the marital assets and the…
With marital settlement agreements, much like any other form of contract, even the smallest of details can become extremely important. A case recently decided by Florida’s First District Court of Appeal highlights this point. In a recent case, the court concluded that an ex-wife could receive a portion of the…
On September 5th, the public got even more insight into the now very public life of George Zimmerman (acquitted of the murder of Trayvon Martin) when his soon-to-be ex-wife filed divorce papers in Seminole County. In August, Shellie Zimmerman was found guilty of perjury and ended up with probation, plus…
A recent case, involving a Pennsylvania man and his biological child living in Florida, demonstrated the significant differences that sometimes exist between science and the law. A Florida appeals court both denied the biological father’s effort to litigate his custody dispute in his home state, and foreclosed his efforts to…
A Florida appeals court recently ruled that the interests of “justice and … equity” necessitated requiring an ex-husband to pay his ex-wife’s attorney’s fees in the child support action the wife initiated. The court’s ruling highlighted that, because the husband had a substantially greater ability to pay, and prolonged the…
Just five months after the death of Broward Circuit judge Susan Aramony, the South Florida community suffered another loss, as Amy Karan, a former Miami-Dade judge, passed away on Sept. 8. Karan, known as a judiciary leader in the area of domestic violence, was 54. Karan, a Long Island native,…
Florida is one of only a minority states with laws that allow rape victims to avoid potentially complicated and difficult child custody battles with their attackers in cases where the rape results in the birth of a child. However, that number could rise substantially if Congresswoman Debbie Wasserman Schultz has…
Under Florida law, an ex-spouse can request a legal modification of alimony. In a recent case, a couple had divorced after 28 years of marriage. On an appeal of the divorce judgment, the court reduced the husband’s alimony payments. In 2010, about a decade after the divorce, the former husband…
Father’s rights and paternity issues are hotly contested in Florida as in other jurisdictions. More weight is placed, in some cases, on Florida’s statutory definitions of family than on DNA tests, making it critical to get the help of an experienced Florida attorney. In a recent case, a mother had…