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Peter Loftin, owner of the former Gianni Versace mansion on South Beach, Casa Casuarina, has been served with a paternity lawsuit by a former Miami Dolphins cheerleader. The lawsuit was filed on June 5, 2009 in the Miami-Dade county marital and family law court. The case is assigned to Miami-Dade Circuit Court Chief Judge Joel H. Brown, who presides over child support, divorce, alimony and paternity cases south of Fort Lauderdale.

Any woman who is pregnant or who has a child, any man who has reason to believe that he is the father of a child or any child may file a paternity action in circuit court to determine the paternity of a child when paternity has not previously been established. The court can require the child, mother and alleged fathers to submit to DNA testing that are generally acceptable within the scientific community to show a probability of paternity. The DNA test is conducted by a qualified technical laboratory.

A Final Judgment of Paternity generally will address child support, including but not limited to, a monthly amount, uncovered and out-of-pocket medical and dental expenses, hospital and medical expenses, costs of confinement, bills for pregnancy and child birth and any other expenses incident to birth. In addition, a Final Judgment of Paternity may also address shared parental responsibility, time-sharing schedules and a parenting plan so that both parents can have a meaningful relationship with the minor child.

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Getting divorced in Broward County can be a daunting experience. You are not just breaking up with your spouse, but you are dividing your assets and liabilities and creating a parenting plan and time-sharing schedule with your children. Whether you live in Cooper City, Coral Springs, Plantation or Southwest Ranches, a divorce can be a long and expensive process. By hiring a divorce lawyer in Fort Lauderdale, you can avoid some of the most common and costly mistakes.

Here are the top five mistakes:

Being Unprepared

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In Vigo v. Vigo, the Florida marital and family law court awarded the wife permanent periodic alimony in the amount of $5,500 per month. The Third District Court of Appeals, located south of Broward County, reversed the Florida Divorce Judge Maxine Cohen Lando’s decision to award the wife permanent periodic alimony because under Florida law, the wife is not a candidate for permanent periodic alimony.

Permanent periodic alimony is generally reserved for long term marriages, or for marriages where a major inequity is created by the dissolution. This type of alimony is used to maintain the lifestyle that the parties were accustomed to during the duration of the marriage. When determining whether permanent periodic alimony is appropriate, the court also considers the need of the party requesting alimony and the ability of the party who is obligated to pay.

In this case, need turned on whether the Wife would be able to work after the divorce. During the seven and one half year marriage, the Wife worked for three and a half years as a housekeeper and for one year operating her own used car business. In 2005, when she stopped working, the Husband supported her. The evidence on record reflected that the Wife had “serious chronic health problems;” however, the appellate court found that she lived a rather active lifestyle, attending church for three hours at a time, shopping, taking her dog to the park for two hours a day, and visiting the beauty salon. The appellate court found that her ailments would not prevent her from obtaining a sedentary job.

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If you are currently in the process of a divorce in the Broward County, your spouse’s Fort Lauderdale lawyer will most likely request to take your deposition. Under Florida Law, once a petition for divorce is filed with the court, both parties are mandated to disclose to the other side their current financial information. Fort Lauderdale divorce attorneys use depositions to learn greater detail about the other party’s finances and lifestyle.

A deposition is witness testimony given under oath and recorded for use at a later date in court. Here is a helpful list of what to do and what not to do during your deposition.

1) Request time prior to the deposition for your attorney to prepare you.

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During your divorce or paternity case in Broward County, minor children are often placed in the middle of their parents custody, time-sharing and parenting plan disputes. Your Fort Lauderdale divorce lawyer will explain to you that your child is entitled to have a relationship with both parents. The marital and family law court located north of Hallandale Beach in downtown Fort Lauderdale will do its best to protect your children during your case.

You should always remember to think about what is in the best interest of your children. The following will help your children prosper and maintain the best behavior during and after your divorce or paternity case:

1. Children should have the right not to be asked to choose sides between their parents.

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It is very common for feuding spouses to stay together for the sake of their children. Instead of seeking a divorce in the Seventeenth Judicial Circuit Court in Broward County, spouses stay married despite their growing disdain for one another. Psychologists from Miami-Dade, Broward and Palm Beach counties have all studied the disconcerting effects divorce has on the kids. However, new research has led many Fort Lauderdale couples to file for divorce despite their children because staying together may have more damning effects than breaking apart.

Studies from the past have concluded that children of divorced parents are more likely to have lower grades, have high risk of health issues, and are more likely to become the victim of child molestation. On top of these risks, there are emotional damages as well, feelings of guild and abandonment.

Today Show psychologist correspondent Robi Ludwig, reached the conclusion that divorce is sometimes a good thing for the kids. When parents who are involved in a high-conflict marriage, where there is a lot of yelling and arguing, stay together, the children are deeply affected. The constant arguing causes the children to feel stressed out. Moreover, it leads them to feel ignored because their parents are continuously absorbed in their own contentious battle. The children start to feel that their needs are not being met at home. All of these emotions and feelings led the children to engage in dysfunctional behaviors.

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What happens if the Fort Lauderdale divorce judge has ordered you to make alimony or child support payments and you no longer can pay the amount? Do not neglect your payment obligation. Go back to the Broward County divorce court and file a petition for a downward modification of your child support and/or alimony. Whether you are paying child support or temporary, rehabilitative or permanent alimony, if you stop making payments, the marital and family law judge in Fort Lauderdale may hold you in contempt of court which means you could end up behind bars at the Broward County jail.

With the economy the way it is today, a number of spouses are finding it exceedingly difficult to make their payments. If you are the payor spouse and you are making less money than you were at the time of your support determination, you may have legal grounds to petition the court for a downward modification. If you are the receiving spouse it is wise to draft a new agreement with your ex detailing the percentage of downward modification and the length of time this modification will be in effect. Both parties should consult their attorneys and come up with a modification agreement so that the children and the parents are financially stable.

The statutory grounds for modification of alimony are found in section 61.14(1) of the Florida Statutes. When the parties enter into an agreement or the court orders alimony payments, and sometime later the financial ability or the circumstances change then either spouse may request the court for modification of alimony or child support payments. The party who petitions for a change in alimony must show that a substantial change has occurred. Showing a reduction in the payor’s income alone will not justify modification. The change must be involuntary and there must be no other funds in the payor spouse’s possession that could be used to keep current with the alimony obligation

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In Fiore v. Atheneos, the Fourth District Court of Appeals in West Palm Beach reversed a divorce judge who presides north of Broward County who held a mother in direct criminal contempt of court for her failure to execute her children’s passport applications. Judge Moses Baker, Jr. ordered the mother to complete the passport applications which the father had previously provided to her to execute and return. When the mother failed to comply, the Florida divorce judge treated her conduct as direct criminal contempt of court. However, on appeal, the Fourth District explains that the trial court was in error.

The court can hold a person in indirect criminal contempt, when the contemptuous conduct occurs outside of the judge’s presence. To hold a person in indirect criminal contempt first, the judge, based on his own motion or the affidavit of a person with knowledge of the contempt, issues and signs an order directed to the defendant stating the essential facts constituting the criminal contempt and directing the defendant to appear before the court. The order shall specify the time and place for the hearing on the charge of contempt and shall allow the defendant reasonable time to prepare for his or her defense

To hold a person in direct criminal contempt, the contemptuous conduct must occur in the presence of the court, in front of the judge. A judge must recite to the defendant the essential, or specific, facts upon which the court is holding the person in contempt. Second, the judge must allow the person an opportunity to explain to the court why he should not be adjudged guilty for his actions.

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In Vigo v. Vigo, the appellate court affirmed Florida divorce court Judge Maxine Cohen Lando’s decision to award the wife $250,000 in lump sum alimony. The wife presented sufficient evidence to the divorce court located south of Fort Lauderdale that the husband intended to gift a condominium to her. Therefore, the Florida marital and family law court appropriately awarded her a $250,000.00 lump sum alimony award that represented a one-half interest in the couple’s condominium located south of Broward County.

The husband purchased the condominium during the marriage with non-marital funds. He also paid the monthly expenses related to the condominium including mortgage payments, condominium association fees and insurance with non-marital funds. Because the wife claimed that he intended to gift to her a one-half interest in the condo, she had to prove (1) the Husband’s donative intent, (2) his delivery of or her possession of the gift, and (3) the Husband’s surrender of dominion and control of the gift.

The wife met this burden. The evidence presented at trial was that the husband purchased the condominium at the wife’s request so that she could be closer to her grandchild; the wife attended the closing and signed the mortgage; the husband told the wife he purchased the condo for both of them to use; both are named on the homeowner’s insurance policy; both of their names are on sales receipts for furniture and accessories used to furnish the condo; and finally, the condo became their marital residence which the wife assisted in maintaining for the parties.

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A couple on the verge of marriage in Broward County may decide to sign a prenuptial agreement. The Fort Lauderdale divorce court treats a prenuptial agreement as a contract between two parties. If a couple signs a prenuptial agreement and then seeks a divorce in the Fort Lauderdale marital and family law court, there are circumstances in which the Broward County divorce judge will not uphold the prenuptial agreement.

If, for any reason, the prenuptial agreement was signed under pressure, it can be vacated and set aside. Clear proof of coercion, duress, fraud, or undue influence, will void the document. The most common reason for the court to set aside a prenuptial agreement is for nondisclosure of assets, liabilities and income. If one of the parties is not truthful regarding his or her financial situation the agreement may not be valid. Also, if a party has failed to disclose an asset the agreement is likely to not be upheld. Additionally, if the parties were not adequately represented by counsel the prenuptial agreement could be broken.

A prenuptial agreement is a contract, so you have to be very careful when drafting the document to make sure it spells out exactly which property and asset belong to which party. Moreover, it is of utmost importance to be open, honest and to disclose all financial information up front, or else you run the risk that the court will set aside your prenuptial agreement.