What to Do When a Spouse Badmouths During a Divorce

Emotions understandably run high during divorce, and things can be said in the moment that are hurtful, but not helpful or accurate. While negative comments said to a spouse in private will not directly result in legal consequences, making disparaging remarks to children or others could lead to unintended and unwanted legal repercussions. Children often bear the brunt of divorce, and have a hard time adjusting to a world where they seem to have less stability. Rare is the parent who deliberately makes negative remarks about a soon-to-be ex-spouse with the intent of causing the child emotional pain. However, hearing parents bad mouth each other in the presence of or to the child directly is confusing and hurtful for the child, and often leaves them unsure about which parent deserves loyalty and respect. Obviously, this situation is not optimal for the child, and can have lasting effects on him/her if the negative talk is continual. In some instances, courts will take action to curb and/or eliminate this propensity. In addition to bad mouthing a spouse to a child, making damaging comments publicly to friends, family and mutual acquaintances also brings the potential for serious legal consequences. A discussion of how courts can react to parents subjecting their child to negative talk about the other parent, and the legal options a spouse has when negative comments are made public, will follow below.

Comments to Children

Judges generally do not take a kind view to displays of high emotion during a divorce hearing/trial, and this stance extends to exposing children to similar scenes of negative behavior. Courts must always keep the best interests of the child in mind when making decisions about custody, and if a judge discovers a parent is bad mouthing the other to the child, that fact will factor into his/her final decision on how parenting responsibility will be divided. Further, this behavior could be used as a basis for requesting a modification of custody post-divorce if a parent can show it substantially damaged the parent/child relationship. When courts examine what is in the best interests of the child, Florida law has a number of factors they are directed to use, and two relate to fostering healthy communication with the child. These are:

• the demonstrated ability of each parent to promote close parent/child relationships, which would be compromised if one or both parents bad mouths the other; and
• the capacity for each parent to put the needs of the child before his/her own needs and desires.

While these are just two factors among a much longer list, potentially interfering with the other parent’s relationship with the child goes against the State’s policy of encouraging and supporting the parent/child connection. Consequently, a court could decide to take a harsh position on this issue and give one parent more time with and control over the child. Thus, restraining from making these remarks, despite what a parent may personally believe, is the best way to guard against any challenges to custody brought by the other parent.

Comments to Others

In addition to repercussions for child custody, publicizing disparaging remarks about an ex-spouse could result in a reduction of the marital property award and/or a lawsuit for defamation if the negative comments damaged the other party’s reputation. A New York divorcee learned this lesson the hard way when an appeals court further reduced her divorce award for making public remarks about her ex-husband that allegedly cost him clients and income. While Florida courts are not supposed to take a party’s bad behavior into consideration when deciding how to divide assets, deliberate actions by a spouse that diminish the financial resources of the other could motivate a judge to give a greater share to that party in the interests of fairness.

Consult a Divorce Attorney

Divorce is a difficult process, but you do not have to go through it alone. Support for an experienced divorce attorney can make a substantial difference in obtaining a favorable outcome and keeping stress levels as low as possible. The Tampa Bay law firm All Family Law Group, P.A. is ready to walk you through the legal ramifications of this decision, and to craft a customized solution to meet the needs of your family.  Contact the Tampa divorce attorneys and family lawyers at All Family Law Group, P.A. in Tampa Bay at 813-816-2232 for a consultation at no charge or email us.

by Lynette Silon-Laguna Google+

What Happens to Health Insurance When Couples Divorce?

Medical care is known to be one of the more expensive, but necessary, items to hit a person’s budget. Most people seek medical insurance through an employer, if available, to defray the costs of obtaining coverage, and most families are covered under one spouse’s insurance – usually the one that offers the best coverage at an affordable price. Medical insurance is a valuable asset in today’s world, and when couples decide to divorce, one party will be left with the dilemma of how to replace it. If a person is lucky, his/her employer could offer health insurance, but it may not be a good policy, and even if it is, the cost could be too high to contemplate joining the plan. However, the worst situation a divorcing spouse could find him/herself facing is having no option to purchase employer-sponsored health insurance and trying to manage a number of pre-existing medical conditions that are expensive to treat. Does a person, who is reliant on the other spouse for health insurance, have any ability to maintain that coverage post-divorce? Additionally, there is the issue of who will provide health insurance for the children, and how that expense will be divided between each parent. A discussion of an individual’s options for health insurance after divorce, and how health insurance for children is handled in this situation, will be explored below.

Insurance Options for a Divorcing Spouse

Anyone facing a serious and/or chronic health condition is understandably anxious when it comes to securing sufficient health insurance coverage so they may receive necessary treatment. Serious health concerns can force a person to reduce time at work, change careers into a less demanding and lower-paying field, or stop working entirely. This presents a real problem in the context of divorce. Federal law requires health insurance providers that contract with companies that employ 20 or more employees to provide the same level of temporary coverage, known as COBRA, to an ex-spouse for 36 months after a divorce is finalized. Divorce is one of several qualifying events that obligate an insurance company to offer enrollment in a plan or the continuation of coverage – marriage, birth of a child, and loss of employment are examples of other qualifying events. Thus, divorce waives enrollment restrictions, and allows the spouse losing coverage to obtain previously-declined insurance with an employer or buy coverage in the marketplace. Note that ex-spouses have 60 days after the divorce decree is issued to contact the insurance company and elect to enroll in the COBRA program. However, the big issue with COBRA is the high cost. Most group health plans are subsidized (or partially subsidized) by the employer, which is lost when the legal relationship with the employee is severed by divorce. Further, health insurance companies are permitted to add an additional premium above what the employer is paying that only adds to the high cost. This situation often results in monthly premiums of over $1,000 for one person.

The law does not require an ex-spouse to cover the cost of health insurance, but this issue may be negotiated as part of a divorce settlement. In addition, courts will scrutinize divorces that could leave one party indigent due to serious health issues, and lead a judge to give the spouse with lesser means a greater share of the marital property, or order the other spouse to pay alimony.

Health Insurance for Children

Typically, health insurance for children will remain the responsibility of the primary provider, as it is the easiest way to resolve this matter. But, in any event, Florida law requires one parent, typically the one ordered to pay child support, provide health insurance for a child following divorce, as long as the cost is reasonable and the coverage is accessible. The cost is considered reasonable if the additional amount does not exceed five percent of the obligated parent’s gross monthly income. Coverage is considered accessible if the policy includes the county where the child primarily lives, or another county if agreed to by the parent with the greater share of parenting time. If the parent receiving support provides health insurance for the child, the other parent may be required to reimburse this cost.

Talk to a Florida Divorce Attorney

Maintaining health insurance coverage after divorce is a serious concern for many people, and if you have questions about the effect divorce has your rights and benefits, talk to a divorce attorney about what you should expect. The Tampa Bay law firm All Family Law Group, P.A. has a team of dedicated attorneys ready to help you with your case.  Contact the Tampa divorce attorneys and family lawyers at All Family Law Group, P.A. in Tampa Bay at 813-816-2232 for a consultation at no charge or email us.

by Lynette Silon-Laguna Google+

Navigating Summer Vacations and Shared Custody of Your Child

Children impatiently wait for summer vacation most the year, as they dream about being free from the strictures of school and schedules. For parents, however, this time of year can bring a lot of stress, especially if they share custody of a child. Planning summer getaways and figuring out child care when school is out of session can create tension with the parenting schedule, sparking disputes that can quickly escalate. Before disagreements about parenting time and activities get out of hand, and potentially require the intervention of a court to resolve, there are steps parents can take to minimize the possibility of contentious issues. When parents argue over child-related issues, the child is usually the one most affected, which is rarely a parent’s desire or intent. An overview of several methods that could reduce the chance of a dispute with the other parent over summer vacation plans will be discussed below.

Check the Parenting Plan

Parenting plans often include provisions regarding any changes to the parenting time schedule during school vacations, but parents sometimes forget to refer to this document and inadvertently violate the terms when planning family events. Thus, this document should be the first place parents look to when planning summer events. If the parenting plan is silent on school vacations, or the provisions no longer work for the parent and child, it may be time to attempt to work privately with the other parent on a reasonable plan for the summer season. Any negotiations or agreements between the parents should be in writing in case court involvement is needed in the future to formally change or enforce parenting time.

Early Planning

One of the easiest and best strategies a parent can use to reduce conflict is to plan as early as possible, and keep the other parent informed about the plans and any potential disruptions to the parenting time schedule. If the other parent is kept in the dark about when and where the child will be, the likelihood of legal action is much higher. Any deviations from the established parenting schedule should also be written in the event a petition must be filed to enforce custody rights and to defend against allegations of violations of the parenting plan by the other parent.

Notifications

To further encourage cooperation by the other parent, send reminders in the days and weeks leading up to the trip. This effort will ward off accusations by the other parent that he/she was not kept informed, and hopefully prevent the parent from making conflicting plans with the child over the same period of time.

Modify the Parenting Plan if Necessary

If it appears that the other parent is unwilling to consider accommodating summer plans or actively seeks to interfere with custody rights, the only option left may be to ask a court to modify the parenting plan. Court-ordered modifications to a parenting plan will be granted if there is a “substantial, material and unanticipated change in circumstances,” and the modification is in the best interests of the child. In addition, depending on the circumstances, a parent can also ask for additional parenting time and/or the payment of costs related to the other parent’s interfering actions.

Contact a Family Law Attorney

Child custody disputes can quickly turn into nasty affairs that call for legal action. The Tampa Bay law firm All Family Law Group, P.A. focuses on all areas of family law, including child custody, and will fight to protect your rights as a parent. Contact the Tampa divorce attorneys and family lawyers at All Family Law Group, P.A. in Tampa Bay at 813-816-2232 for a consultation at no charge or email us.

by Lynette Silon-Laguna Google+

How Courts Treat Spousal Gifts in Divorce

Exchanging gifts with friends and family is a traditional way to show how much one cares, and even before marriage, exchanging gifts between spouses is common, even expected to some extent. When the relationship is good, the effort and expense of obtaining and sharing gifts between spouses are not given a second thought. However, when the marriage is no longer viable, and one or both spouses seek to divorce, items given as gifts take on new significance in the division of property. One could reasonably assume that gifts would not be considered a marital asset since they are freely given and nothing is typically expected in return. However, the law does not view gifts between spouses in this manner, and considers all gifts exchanged during the marriage as marital assets. The difficulty comes when some assets are not easily labeled as marital or non-marital. The Florida Supreme Court recently weighed in on how courts should assess whether particular properties are spousal gifts for purposes of property distribution, and found that two properties owned by the husband, but used only as the family’s residence, count as gifts to the wife.

Marital vs. Non-Marital Property

Assuming the spouses cannot mutually decide how to divide property, Florida law calls for the court to determine an equitable/equal division of all marital assets and liabilities. Judges are permitted to deviate from the equal division standard if such a result would be unfair, but divorcing couples should generally expect to split everything with the other spouse down the middle. In order to distribute the assets and liabilities between the parties, it is first necessary to identify what qualifies as marital and non-marital property. Marital property includes:

• any asset or liability obtained during the marriage by either spouse individually or jointly;
• non-marital assets that increased in value due to the efforts of the spouses or from the expenditure of marital funds/assets;
• gifts between spouses; and
• any interest in vested and non-vested pension funds, retirement accounts, insurance policies, annuities or other deferred compensation program.

In addition, any real or personal property jointly owned by the spouses, regardless of when it was acquired, is automatically considered marital property. This assumption may be rebutted with strong evidence to convince a court to classify it as non-marital.

By comparison, non-marital property includes any of the following:

• assets or liabilities acquired before the marriage by either spouse;
• assets acquired by a spouse individually through inheritance or via gift from a non-spouse;
• income earned from non-marital assets unless the income was treated as a marital asset; and
• assets and liabilities excluded from the marital estate under the terms of a prenuptial or nuptial agreement.

Spousal Gifts

When considering what items could count as a spousal, it is necessary to look at everything from jewelry given on an anniversary to the car bought to mark a milestone birthday. The key issue with spousal gifts is figuring out if the item actually qualifies as a gift. It is does not, it could potentially be classified as non-marital property, and thus, not subject to division in divorce. Legally speaking, for an item to meet the criteria for a gift, the transfer by a spouse must:

• be intentional;
• be immediate;
• relinquish all control over the property to the receiver; and
• be accepted by the other spouse.

If any of these elements are missing, an argument could be made the property was not a gift, and instead, should be considered a non-marital asset.

Get Legal Advice

Your financial future is tied to the property distribution settlement in your divorce, so you want to make sure it is fair and that your rights are properly represented. The Tampa Bay law firm, All Family Law Group, P.A., understands how complicated property division can be, and are ready to answer your questions and concerns.  Contact the Tampa divorce attorneys and family lawyers at All Family Law Group, P.A. in Tampa Bay at 813-816-2232 for a consultation at no charge or email us.

by Lynette Silon-Laguna Google+

How Will the New Rules in Family Court Cases Affect You?

Entering the legal process to resolve disputes is a stressful and overwhelming situation for most people. Many of the procedures and terms used by court officials and attorneys sound foreign and intimidating to the participants. Divorce is one of the most common ways people interact with the legal system, and any matter concerning family issues (domestic violence, divorce, or guardianship), or children is handled through the family court system. Because of the sensitive nature and amount of people needing resolution of domestic issues, the family court system is designed to work faster, more efficiently, and with less complexity. This structure does not eliminate the need for an attorney, but ideally facilitates easier access to the court and resolution of pressing issues. Most courts, from civil to criminal, have their own set of rules that govern how cases proceed. While these rules function behind the scenes for most parties, they can profoundly affect the process and ultimate result. Florida’s family court recently created its own set of rules and procedures that are supposed to further streamline the process. Previously, family court cases were handled under the general rules that apply to all civil suits, which are more complex and cumbersome. An overview of the new family court rules, and how they may affect family law cases going forward, will follow below.

New Rules Generally

The purpose behind the issuance of a separate set of rules specifically for family law cases was to simplify and condense how these cases are conducted for the sake of litigants who decide to represent themselves. This was accomplished by standardizing the title of various petitions and motions (requests for a court to act on a specific issue) so that only one format is now acceptable. Further, the necessary content of the documents filed with the court is now much simpler and the description of the required information is plainly laid out for the average person to understand. For example, when a spouse files a petition for divorce, the other spouse is obligated to file a response, called an answer. An answer allows a party to deny or admit the allegations made in the original petition. Under the new rules, the content of an answer must be “short and in plain terms,” and the new rule explicitly explains when an allegation must be denied or admitted. Now that the structures of family court rules are crafted with the self-represented party in mind, it may be very tempting to forego hiring an attorney. However, it is important to consider that doing so could result in the unknowing loss of rights to property, child custody, or remedies that would better address their circumstances.

One Big Omission

One big difference between the previous rules used in family court cases and the revised set is the absence of any provision for alternative dispute resolution. Before the rule change, parties in a divorce could be ordered to attend arbitration to work out disputes. Arbitration is a less formal process to resolve legal disputes that is faster and cheaper compared to traditional litigation. Further, this alternative could be particularly beneficial for couples that do not have child-related issues to work out. State law permits mediation for certain child-related disputes since it is not binding, unlike arbitration. Excluding arbitration from the new rules, limits a valuable option for parties to resolve family law cases, which hopefully will be added at later date.

Get Legal Advice

Engaging with the court system on any matter, family-related or otherwise, is always a complex endeavor. If you are contemplating divorce, or have child custody issues, working with an experienced family law attorneys can have a huge impact on the final outcome. Trained attorneys understand the law behind the rules, and can best adapt his/her approach to obtain your desired outcome. The lawyers at All Family Law Group, P.A. in Tampa Bay understand how important family law cases are, and will take the time educate you on every step of the process.  Contact the Tampa divorce attorneys and family lawyers at All Family Law Group, P.A. in Tampa Bay at 813-816-2232 for a consultation at no charge or email us.

by Lynette Silon-Laguna Google+