OUR BLOG
Dealing with Student Loans in Divorce
As many people know from personal experience, the cost of a four-year education has risen over time. This has resulted in an increase in student loan debt. Florida Law requires that the parties identify, value, and then divide all of their marital assets and...
Questions to Ask a Prospective Lawyer
Hiring a lawyer to handle your divorce is an important decision. For many people, the choices they make in their divorce are some of the most important choices they will make in their lifetimes. Decisions concerning timesharing with children, child support, alimony,...
Harry Lee Coe: A Cautionary Tale
Recently, Chief Justice of the Florida Supreme Court, Jorge Labarga, authored a piece about the effect of stress upon lawyers.1 According to the Chief Justice, “Stress without proper care contributes to the higher-than-usual rates of addiction, suicide, and mental...
When Lawyers Need Help
Recently, The Chief Justice of the Florida Supreme Court wrote an essay in the Florida Bar News. In it, he addresses a problem that is not widely discussed. I reprint it here: "Most lawyers work in stressful jobs. Mine often is. So are the jobs of most of my friends...
Protecting Your Retirement Before a Second Marriage
If you are entering your second or third marriage, you may need to make significant changes to your estate plan, beneficiary designations and even your emergency contacts.
The Consequences of Filing a Joint Tax Return for Divorcing Spouses
In order to file a joint tax return, parties must be married on the last day of the year. Many times it makes sense to file a joint return, as it generally gives the most favorable tax treatment. However, this result follows only when parties trust each other. When...
The Admissibility of Social Media Postings
As of the third quarter of 2017, 2.07 billion people actively used the social networking site Facebook on a monthly basis. Instagram, the mainly mobile photo-sharing network, serves 800 million active monthly users. Digital evidence is often critical in proving or...
Emergency Hearings and Due Process
In the practice of Family Law, it is a common experience for a client to ask a lawyer to seek an emergency hearing. Section 61.518(1), Florida Statutes (2015), provides that [b]efore a child custody determination is made under this part, notice and an opportunity to...
Quitclaim Deeds in Divorce
Quitclaim deeds are a vehicle used to convey an interest in real property. They are very common in divorce proceedings. There are a few things to be mindful of with regard to these documents. A deed affects only how the property is titled. It has no effect on the...