Tag: Orlando Alimony Attorney

Alimony Pendente Lite Florida

Name: Jacobs Law Firm, PLLC
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Posted by JONATHAN JACOBS on January 14, 2018

Alimony Pendente Lite sounds like an auto insurance company, or a caricature from some foreign language film nominated for an Oscar Award. In fact, alimony pendente lite Florida is a form of short term alimony awarded while the divorce is pending/going on. This type of limited spousal support is intended to help the recipient during the length of the case itself (hence the word pendente or pending). Florida divorce courts do not automatically award this type of alimony. Your divorce lawyer must specifically ask the court alimony pendente lite it to be awarded. It is rather obvious to lawyers, but generally not to nonlawyers, that if you want the court to do/award something in a divorce or family law case, you generally must ask the court for relief. Jonathan Jacobs is an alimony attorney in Clermont, Minneola, Orlando, Leesburg, Tavares, Osceola, and the surrounding areas of Central Florida. Call 407-335-8113 to speak with a divorce and family attorney today.

Suit Money in a Divorce

Alimony pendente lite Florida is otherwise known (this sounds like a pejorative term but it really isn’t) as “suit money.” Essentially, the party that has demonstrated a need for alimony from the party with a demonstrable ability to pay for alimony may be entitled to this short-term suit money. Vickers v. Vickers, 413 So.2d 788 (1982). Moreover, it is a central tenet of dissolution of marital law that both spouses (husband and wife) have an equal right to petition for alimony, petition for child support, and have (unless competent and substantial evidence indicate(s) otherwise), an equal right to custody of children. Yohem v. Yohem, 295 So.2d 656 (1974).

The concept behind alimony pendente lite Florida, is that divorce lawsuits may take a number of months (or even years) to be resolved. In the meantime, the payee (recipient) may not have any money to support their children, pay for their basic expenses such as rent or groceries, or even to pay their attorney to represent them in the divorce proceeding. Therefore, being mindful of this, and understanding that alimony may be awarded at the outcome stage of the case, Florida courts often award alimony pendente lite to benefit the party in need. Alimony pendente lite in Florida may be awarded based on motion, the petition, or the counterpetition upon request.

Alimony Attorney in Clermont

The Florida Alimony Pendente Lite Statute is 61.071. Florida Statute 61.071 is one of the many Florida Statutes governing alimony. Case law regarding the Florida Alimony Pendente Lite Statute is mostly older and foundational (as indicated above). The original case law on alimony pendente lite provides that the court awards this so-called suit money to prevent one party from being a burden to the coffers (pocket-book) of the state/government.

If you are considering getting a divorce in Florida, or if you have been served with a petition for dissolution, please call Jonathan Jacobs, your Alimony Attorney in Clermont Florida, Orlando Florida, and in all of Central Florida.

Other forms of alimony include:

Keep in mind that alimony is merely one of many issues that may need to be litigated in the Florida family courts. Other vital issues may include child support, health insurance for the kids, domestic violence, and the equitable distribution of assets. Call us today to learn more.

Florida Rehabilitative Alimony

Posted by JONATHAN JACOBS on December 28, 2017

In deciding whether to award Florida rehabilitative alimony, family law and divorce courts make factual findings that follow the alimony Statute in Florida. Courts often require the moving party (party asking to receive alimony) to produce a Florida rehabilitative alimony plan. This proposed plan should lay out the steps for the rehabilitation of the party that needs training and education, and financial support from the payor (person paying). The purpose of rehabilitative alimony is for the payee to get back on their feet after being in a marital relationship in which their contributions to the marriage (homemaking, children) may have prevented them from developing career training and contemporary job skills in our currently competitive marketplace of/for jobs. If you are seeking a divorce or family law attorney to litigate your Florida rehabilitative alimony case, call the Jacobs Law Firm today about your divorce or family law case, 407-335-8113.

The legal phrasing that the State of Florida utilizes for rehabilitative alimony Clermont or rehabilitative alimony Orlando is the ability to be “self-supportive.” Most people prefer to be self-supportive. They recognize the need to be able to provide for themselves, particularly when the financial security they once enjoyed is no longer available, such as in the case of a marital dissolution after a period of years of support. This brings us to the Florida rehabilitative alimony plan, and at least a general idea of how that operates, knowing that all cases are different and fact-specific.

Florida Rehabilitative Alimony Plan

The court will not order rehabilitative alimony unless there is a particularized Florida rehabilitative alimony plan. To establish the needing party’s ability to be self-supportive, a plan allows for the renewal and redevelopment of job and career skills that the party once possessed. If the party did not work at any time, other arrangements will be made to accommodate even entry-level skills development.

The plan also includes, as you might have just wondered after reading the first part, the opportunity to obtain an education to refresh, refurbish, or acquire the skills necessary to participate in the workforce in a meaningful manner. Modifying alimony is a challenging thing to do from a legal perspective.

Unlike bridge the gap alimony, Florida rehabilitative alimony may be changed or ended if there is either the noncompliance (refusal to participate or choice to ignore the plan) of the needing party, or a substantial change in circumstances. A substantial change in circumstances is legal terminology, which in this case can mean the party has found a good job already. Or, perhaps, they only needed a few credits to graduate and have done so quickly, or any other significant change that may have been unanticipated at the time of the award of rehabilitative alimony.

Read on about other types of Florida alimony: Women pay alimony too! Alimony pendente lite, Short term alimony, Bridge-the-gap alimony, Durational alimony, Florida alimony factors, and Permanent alimony. Jonathan Jacobs is a divorce attorney in Orlando and a divorce attorney in Clermont Florida ready to take your call.

Short Term Alimony in Florida

Posted by JONATHAN JACOBS on December 28, 2017

Short Term Alimony in Florida: What’s Available After a Shorter Marriage

If your marriage lasted only a few years, can you receive alimony in Florida? If you are the higher income earner, how exposed are you? Florida’s current alimony Statute 61.08 draws sharp lines based on the length of the marriage. Under today’s laws regarding spousal support, a short-term marriage is defined as a marriage lasting less than 10 years. The length of marriage is measured from the date of marriage to the date the divorce petition is filed. Call Jacobs Law Firm, your Orlando and Clermont alimony attorneys, at 407-335-8113 to find out where your marriage falls and what it means for support.

Alimony Options After a Short-Term Marriage

A shorter marriage limits, but does not eliminate the opportunity to seek and received alimony. The forms of support most relevant after a short-term marriage are:

Temporary alimony (also referred to as pendente lite). Support during the divorce itself (called suit money), is available in marriages of any length. This is available to ensure the financially dependent spouse can maintain stability while the case is pending. It ends at final judgment and likely with a more substantial award.

Bridge-the-gap alimony. Bridge-the-gap alimony is short-term financial help for spouses transitioning from married to single life. In real-life practical terms, it covers identifiable, short-term needs like a security deposit for a rental apartment, a vehicle, or living expenses while securing employment. It is capped at two years and cannot be modified.

Rehabilitative alimony. Support tied to a concrete written plan to redevelop earning capacity by finishing a degree, obtaining a license or certification, or retraining for a lateral job move. It is capped at five years and requires a specific, defined plan that should be included with the marital settlement.

Durational alimony. This is where marriage length hits the hardest. Durational alimony is not available for marriages under 3 years. For short-term marriages of 3 to under 10 years, a durational award generally may not exceed 50% of the length of the marriage. For example, a 6-year marriage caps durational alimony at roughly 3 years. The amount is further limited to the recipient’s reasonable need or 35% of the difference in the parties’ net incomes, whichever is less. Sometimes shrewd litigators will ask for the maximum without justification.

Need and Ability to Pay Still Come First

No form of alimony is automatically awarded. The spouse requesting support must prove an actual need, and that the other spouse has the ability to pay, before the court even reaches the question of type, amount, and duration. In shorter marriages, courts also look hard at the standard of living, what each spouse contributed, whether one spouse sacrificed career opportunities, and each spouse’s realistic earning capacity going forward. A two-income marriage of five years with no children looks very different from a seven-year marriage where one spouse left the workforce to raise a child.

Strategy for Payors and Recipients

For potential recipients, the key is specificity: courts respond to documented transition costs and concrete rehabilitative plans, not generalized requests which can be viewed as overreaching. For potential payors, the statutory caps provide real protection. This is why it is important to cause the other side to meet its burden of proof and ensures any award is properly structured and supported by written findings. In many short-term marriage divorces, alimony is resolved by negotiation, sometimes as a modest lump sum in exchange for finality, which can be cheaper than litigating. A bird in the hand philosophy here.

Talk to a Florida Alimony Attorney

Whether you are seeking support after a shorter marriage or defending against a claim you believe is excessive, the current statute gives both sides clearer rules than ever before. Call Jacobs Law Firm at 407-335-8113 or e-mail admin@jjlawfl.com. We represent clients in Orlando, Winter Park, Clermont, and throughout Central Florida, and we offer flat fee and payment plan options in qualifying cases.