We may automatically associate Valentine’s Day celebrations with romantic love, but celebrating love needs no pairing.
Whether you’re single again (newly divorced), or just happy
being single for the moment, Love needs no special day to be expressed to those
around us: family, friends and co-workers or simply strangers for whom you do
small acts of kindness—for example, consider making a donation to any cause you
feel strongly about, here are some ideas:
Charity Water – brings clean water to people in need
Make-A-Wish America – giving children renewed strength to fight their illnesses, bringing families closer together and uniting entire communities.
Thorn – cutting edge programs that protect children from sexual abuse.
St Jude Children’s Research Hospital – advance cures, and means of prevention, for pediatric catastrophic diseases through research and treatment.
Couples may go through temporary separations as they work things out. When a separation lasts long, you begin to ask yourself, “Should I get a divorce?” It is understandable to try to delay dissolving the marriage; it feels less messy emotionally. But putting off a divorce may have unintended legal consequences as you try to move on with your life.
When the separation runs into years and you lose track of
your spouse, the process of getting a divorce may complicate your ability to go
on with your life as if you were single.
Unintended consequences of not getting divorced
Regardless of whether you know where your spouse is, here
are some surprising results about a lengthy separation when neither of you
intend to continue being married:
Buying a Home: In Florida, if you want to buy a home and are married, your spouse will have to sign the mortgage. This isn’t a problem as to buying a home if you are paying for the home cash. But if you have to finance your home, your closing may be delayed since you have to either find your spouse or get the divorce done.
Getting Remarried: Remarrying while still being married to someone else is called bigamy, which is a crime; and your new marriage is void from the beginning. Beyond the fact that it is a crime, do you really want to start your new marriage while still married to someone else? New spouses are rarely understanding of this fact.
Setting a Wedding Date: Related to the second point, above, is setting a marriage date for your new marriage while still being married to someone you can’t find. there is no way to shorten the time required to do a search to find your spouse, or the time set by the Court for your spouse to answer when the divorce is done by publication.
Inheriting Your Estate: People who are married have a right in the estate of a spouse who passes away, regardless of whether they are still living together. At a minimum, your heirs will have to fight your spouse; and in the worst case scenario, your spouse may walk away with property you accumulated between the date of separation and the date of you passed away.
Having Your Spouse Claim Property: In many instances, your spouse can claim a share in property you have accumulated since the separation. In Florida, there is no legal separation that automatically happens simply because you and your spouse have decided to separation. There is either marriage with a pre-nuptial or post-nuptial agreement, or a dissolution. But it is a myth to think that just because you are no longer living as spouses, that you are “legally” separated. Without a pre-nuptial or a post-nuptial agreement, all property you accumulate–think retirement plans, investments, small business, savings ccount, etc– after you separated but before a divorce is property that is subject to being divided by the Court.
Explore your options to better answer the dreaded Should I get a Divorce Question
Only you can decide whether dissolving your marriage is right for you.
You have many options to choose from. A good starting point is marriage counseling if you’re not sure that you are ready to get a divorce.
If marriage counseling doesn’t seem to work, you have other options to conclude this phase of your life. You can speak to your spouse about an uncontested divorce. If that doesn’t work, get a case assessment session that answers all your questions, including options for getting a divorced when your spouse will not cooperate with you. Lastly, if you’ve lost touch with your spouse and don’t know where they are, you can do a divorce by publication.
Don’t put off your divorce any longer simply because you think it will be a hassle to get it done.
If you have questions about your divorce, or if you’re ready to begin the process, call me today at 305-710-9419. You can also, complete this request form and let me know the best time to call you.
We all have a love/hate relationship with April 15th: we hate preparing for it, we LOVE the refund if we are due one. Make sure you get your refund by keeping yourself safe from scams to get your social security number.
The latest scam involves calls from the Social Security Administration and relate to your social security number, which will unlock your tax information and put your refund and identity at risk. Here are resources for you to stay informed and make sure no one get your money.
Thieves are ingenious at coming up with ways to use old and new technology to rob you of your money and any information that may lead them to it. A couple of years or so ago, it was calls from the IRS, calls from the FBI, etc., threatening you with “the cops” picking you up if you didn’t call them back.
It’s just another variation on the same theme: getting your information. But scammers do it because enough people fall for it that its worth their time.
According to the Social Security Administration, the way to protect yourself is:
Visit their site, where you can watch a short video summarizing the scams, see the most recent press release regarding the social security phone scams, and get tips on protecting your information.
It’s unfortunate that besides working hard for your money, you need to work hard to keep it and the information that leads to it safe. Fortunately, there are plenty of resources to keep yourself informed and do just that.
Browse other pages on the MiamiDivorceBlog or visit the site’s Free Downloads page.
At first glance, the major benefit of a flat fee divorce appear obvious: you save money. As a Miami family law attorney, I know that many people sometimes don’t see the other benefits beyond that savings in fees.
Don’t confuse what a flat fee divorce means
Many people looking for a flat fee divorce think of people who prepare forms so that you can then file your own divorce. That’s not what a flat fee divorce is.
A flat fee divorce is a divorce you do with the help of an attorney who charges you a flat fee. The most common flat fee divorce is the one where the divorce is uncontested.
When you pay $150 or $200 to a non-lawyer to do the paperwork, that is not a flat fee divorce. It is only a divorce which you are doing yourself—you file it and make sure it goes through the divorce court process– and you paid a non-lawyer to complete your divorce forms. Because they are not lawyers, they cannot tell you the legal consequences of each document in the legal landscape, especially if you have children of the marriage.
If the result of using the documents is not what you expected, you may be able to fix it later; but it will cost you a lot more, and you may not be able to get a lawyer to fix whatever it is for a flat fee then. This is where the “flat fee” divorce will cost you more in the end.
Doing your a flat fee divorce with a divorce lawyer lets you reap benefits while avoiding hourly fees:
No Court Hearings: Since 2020 uncontested divorces in Miami, Florida. You don’t go to a hearing. Even I, a divorce lawyer, no longer have to go to court either when I do a flat fee divorce. Everything is done electronically. As a result, none of my clients have to spend their time trying to find out how to do this and risking getting stuck.
You get the benefit of years of experience if your chosen divorce lawyer has a practice dedicate mostly to family law. This means that they can make you aware of issues you had not thought about but which need to be addressed, or provide solutions to questions you may be stuck on—all for the same flat fee.
You don’t get stuck in the Miami divorce court system. Our Family Division is one of the best divisions in the State. Our Judges are always looking for ways to improve the process for the families that come into it, and their support court staff is equally diligent. But, regardless of how easy they want to make the process, they still have laws and rules to follow; and, if you don’t know how to navigate them, your divorce can take longer.
Your lawyer, on the other hand, can take appropriate steps to fast-track your divorce, according to the individual circumstances of your case. And, if anything new comes up, they can help you deal with it in a way that works best for you.
You avoid needless stress from not knowing what can happen or what needs to be done to avoid having to come back to court for any reason.
Consider all of the above as you look for information to get your divorce done. Depending on your individual circumstances, you may be able to get your divorce done for a flat fee, and avoid divorce litigation.
If you want to know whether you can benefit from a flat fee divorce using my services, whether you have children of the marriage or not; and whether you have property or debt, click below to watch the 44-second video for my flat fee divorce in Miami, visit MiamiDivorceOnline.com or contact me.
The Child Support Program is in charge of establishing child support when the State has provided public assistance to a family.
If this public assistance was provided to you while you are married or as a single mother, that is all it can do. It cannot divorce you if you are married. It also does not establish the parental responsibility or time sharing in a divorce or paternity unless the parents agree establish it. If the parents do not agree, then parental responsibility and time-sharing is not established.
When a divorce with children or a paternity case has gone through the family division of the Courts (as opposed to just the State’s child support system), the Child Support Program will also enforce the support awarded in those cases.
What the Child Support Program Cannot Do
In a divorce with childrenor a paternity case, the Child Support Program and Enforcement Division will not deal with the following questions if the Program is used solely to establish support :
custody: parental responsibility and time-sharing (applies to divorce with children and paternity cases)
alimony (for divorce)
division of property or debt (for divorces)
So what does this mean? In a divorce, it means that all the other problems related to custody, alimony and division of property will be dealt in the Family Division. In a paternity case, the Family Division is the court to go to for problems related to custody.
What this may mean for you
It also means that you may end up going to two different divisions to resolve all the problems in a particular case.
If you have received public assistance, have children from the marriage and now are a getting divorce, the State Attorney’s Child Support Enforcement Program will represent you in all questions of support. For everything else, you either represent yourself or get a lawyer to help you.
The process is the same with a paternity case; that is, if there was public assistance then the State Attorney will be involved for the child support issue; but for questions of custody, a Family Division case will be needed.
What is Your Role with the Child Support Program?
The State Attorney’s Office, acting on behalf of the State of Florida, will provide legal representation to establish child support, or enforce child support, in cases where the State has provided benefits related to children. So the parent with the children who is receiving benefits for those children will have representation.
If you are the parent on the other end, you are responsible for your own legal representation. You either have to represent yourself or hire an attorney to represent you.
If you need representation in a case before the Child Support Program as the parent who is being sued by the Child Support Program, find out if I can help you by filling out this form.
Note: The Miami Child Support Enforcement Division is located at 601 NW 1st Court, 2nd Floor, Miami, FL, 33136, phone: (786) 469-3960.
Before you attempt a DIY divorce, it is a good idea to know what are some of the pitfalls you may face.
At the outset let me say that there are divorces in which you can represent yourself. As a lawyer, I think the “ideal” case where this may work is when the other side is also not representing themselves. That is, both parties are “pro se.” And, frankly, the reason I think that is because where both parties don’t have a lawyer. You will both be at an equal disadvantage over the other; so everyone is on the same plane, so to speak.
Image by Clker-Free-Vector-Images from Pixabay
For some reason, people think that the court system will somehow be looking out for them. It’s almost as if people think that “justice” and “fairness” will be their private jury, deciding things as they want them to be, as they see things.
So here are some things to keep in mind when going into a courtroom legally naked—without a lawyer—to DIY your divorce:
#1. In a DIY Divorce, the Judge is Not YOUR Lawyer
This is probably the number one mistake that pro se litigants make.
Judges are prohibited from providing legal advice to you or to anyone. They are there to make decisions based on the evidence you present to them. At most, the only advice they may be able to give you at some point is “get a lawyer” or “maybe you should get a lawyer.”
The judge will make decisions based on evidence you and your spouse present to them. When your case is completed, you will either think that the outcome was fair or not. This will depend on what you got in relation to what you wanted. But I can almost guarantee that you will realize that the judge was not your attorney.
By the way, Judges are usually very courteous with parties representing themselves. But you should also show the same courtesy to them AND to your soon-to-be-ex spouse.
#2 Divorce Court is a System, Not Just a Physical Building
A lot goes on in divorce court. Most people do not realize that a lot goes on in a divorce before you walk into court for a hearing. Prepare before walking into that hearing. Whatever preparation you needed to do to present evidence to the judge, should have already completed it. Sometimes, your preparation will be about what you will say, and how you will say it. is preparation to be done You should be prepared before walking into a hearing.
Besides the petition asking for the divorce, there are often other documents that should have been filed. Where children are involved, this includes additional documents beyond just the petition.
This point is important to keep in mind as you read the next point.
#3 If Your Spouse Has an Attorney, You WILL Be at a Disadvantage
If the above two points don’t give you food for thought, this one might.
If your spouse has a lawyer, particularly a divorce lawyer, then chances are they will be well prepared for the case. (I say chances are because who knows, you may get lucky and get a lawyer on the other side who may not be).
A prepared lawyer on the other side may do any or all of the following at a hearing:
Provide a framework of the case to the judge using a brief opening statement. This framework will present their client (not you) in a most favorable light;
Present evidence in an orderly manner;
Present evidence that helps their client or discredits you;
Have case or statutory law ready for the judge. Or, at least, be able to name the cases and/or statutes that are applicable; and
Provide a brief closing statement. The closing statement will neatly summarize their case into an argument as to why the judge should rule for their client, given the evidence presented.
You should be ready to do the same thing if you are representing yourself. As I heard a magistrate tell one pro se party in a case, “You have to be as competent as a reasonably competent lawyer”. They cannot give you a break just because you don’t have a lawyer. This is important to know. Read a little more about that at The 1Thing to Know to Represent Yourself
