What Your Florida Divorce Lawyer May Not Be Telling You

The vast majority of divorce attorneys in Tampa Bay and around Florida are good, hardworking people with their clients’ best interests always at mind. However, there is one divorce option that more and more financial and mental health professionals agree is the best way to handle a family law matter, and yet many attorneys will not tell their clients about it: collaborative divorce.

Collaborative divorce is a private form of dispute resolution where each spouse hires their own attorney only for the purposes of helping to negotiate a marital settlement agreement. Collaborative attorneys are contractually prohibited from going to trial or bringing any contested issues to be decided by a judge.

Trial Divorce = Big $$ for Attorneys

This is one reason why there are a lot of divorce trial lawyers who are against collaborative divorce: attorneys make a lot of money billing time for trial-related activities such as depositions, interrogatories, witness preparation, exhibit analysis and selection, and trial itself. Trial attorneys bill this time even though they know that 95% of all divorce cases end in settlement, even sometimes after trial but right before a judge issues a ruling. Read more →

Sample Florida Child Custody Schedules

June 15, 2014/0 Comments/in Collaborative Divorce, Kids, See Kids //Tags: 12th Judicial Circuit, child custody, child custody case, co-parenting, collaborative family law, divorce, Florida child custody, Hillsborough County, Manatee County, parenting plan, Pasco County, paternity, Pinellas County, Sarasota County, Tampa, Tampa Bay Collaborative Family Law, temporary child custody, time-sharing, time-sharing scheduleby Adam B. Cordover, Attorney-at-Law

In each Florida family law case (such as divorce or paternity) that involves the custody of a child, Florida law requires that a parenting plan be established. One of the most important elements of a parenting plan is the child custody schedule, now known as a “time-sharing” schedule.

Family Law Tip: You should never let a judge decide your child’s time-sharing schedule. A judge does not know your family dynamics and bases such decisions on very limited information, and usually the judge is seeing parents, especially divorcing parents, at the worst time in their lives. Instead, you and your co-parent should use a private form of dispute resolution, such as collaborative family law.

As I tell clients who come to my Tampa office, there are many different types of time-sharing schedules. Below are some samples provided by the 12th Judicial Circuit (which includes Sarasota and Manatee Counties). The parent who is listed in a box is the one whom the child will be staying with overnight:

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Bay News 9 Video: Collaborative Divorce in Tampa Bay

April 12, 2014/0 Comments/in Collaborative Divorce, Family Law News //Tags: child custody, co-parenting, collaborative attorney, collaborative divorce, collaborative facilitator, collaborative family law, collaborative financial professional, Collaborative Law, collaborative mental health professional, collaborative practice, dissolution of marriage, divorce, Florida child custody, parenting plan, Tampa Bay Collaborative Divorce, Tampa Bay Collaborative Family Law, time-sharingby Adam B. Cordover, Attorney-at-Law

NGD-baynews9

I strongly believe that the traditional adversarial courtroom divorce is destructive to families, and so I am a strong proponent of the private, respectful collaborative divorce process. I am also president of a local collaborative practice group known as Next Generation Divorce which is comprised of over 90 collaboratively-trained attorneys, mental health professionals, and financial professionals dedicated to helping families in Hillsborough, Sarasota, Pinellas, Pasco, and Manatee Counties.

As a representative of collaborative professionals, I oftentimes get the opportunity to speak to mental health, religious, and other organizations about collaborative family law. Last year, I was also interviewed, along with my colleague, Joryn Jenkins, by Bay News 9 on the practice of collaborative divorce in Tampa Bay.

You can view the entire interview here.

If you have questions on how the collaborative process can save your family from the devastating effects of courtroom divorce, schedule a consultation with The Law Firm of Adam B. Cordover, P.A., at (813) 443-0615 or fill out our contact form.

What Is A Florida Parenting Plan?

January 22, 2014/0 Comments/in Collaborative Divorce, Custody, Kids //Tags: 6th Judicial Circuit, Best Divorce Tampa, child custody, child custody case, child custody determination, co-parenting, collaborative attorney, collaborative divorce, collaborative facilitator, collaborative family law, Collaborative Law, collaborative mental health professional, collaborative practice, divorce, Florida child custody, florida divorce, Next Generation Divorce, parental responsibility, parenting plan, Pasco County, pasco county florida, Pinellas County, shared parental responsibility, sole parental responsibility, Tampa Bay Collaborative Divorce, Tampa Bay Collaborative Family Law, temporary child custody, time-sharing, uncontested divorceby Adam B. Cordover, Attorney-at-Law

Any Florida parent who is going through a divorce with children or otherwise dealing with child custody issues will need to have a parenting plan. A parenting plan is document that is either agreed upon by the parents or created by a judge that sets out each parents’ rights and responsibilities. The Sixth Judicial Circuit (Pinellas and Pasco Counties) further describes a parenting plan as follows:

It is the public policy of this state to assure that each minor child has frequent and continuing contact with both parents after the parents separate or the marriage of the parties is dissolved and to encourage parents to share the rights and responsibilities, and joys, of childrearing. Florida Statutes, section 61.13(2)(c).

A parenting plan is a document developed and agreed to by the parents of a minor child, and approved by the court, or if the parents cannot agree, established by the court, which governs the relationship between the parents regarding the child (encompassing “custody”, “parental responsibility”, and “visitation”). A parenting plan may address issues such as the child’s education, health care, and physical, social, and emotional well-being, and must include a time-sharing schedule. The parenting plan must take into account the Uniform Child Custody Jurisdiction and Enforcement Act, the International Child Abduction Remedies Act, the Parental Kidnapping Prevention Act, and the Hague Convention on the Civil Aspects of International Child Abduction when addressing jurisdictional issues.

For purposes of establishing or modifying parental responsibility and creating, developing, approving, or modifying a parenting plan, including a time-sharing schedule, which governs each parent’s relationship with his or her minor child and the relationship between each parent with regard to his or her minor child, the best interest of the child shall be the primary consideration.

Any parenting plan approved by a court must address the following issues:

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HIV AIDS & Florida Child Custody

November 27, 2013/0 Comments/in Florida Statutes //Tags: child custody, child custody case, Florida child custody, parental responsibility, parental rights, parenting plan, sexual orientation and child custody, shared parental responsibility, sole parental responsibility, time-sharingby Adam B. Cordover, Attorney-at-Law

May a Florida Family Law Court deny a parent custody rights solely because he or she has HIV or AIDS?

According to section 61.13(6), Florida Statutes, the answer is no, but the court may take some actions.

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Private Child Custody Proceedings: Florida Collaborative Practice

November 14, 2013/1 Comment/in Collaborative Divorce //Tags: bisexual parental rights, child custody, child custody case, child custody determination, co-parenting, collaborative attorney, collaborative divorce, collaborative facilitator, collaborative family law, Collaborative Law, collaborative mental health professional, collaborative practice, Florida child custody, gay and lesbian parents, gay parental rights, grandparent rights, International Academy of Collaborative Professionals, lesbian parental rights, parent child relationship, parental responsibility, parental rights, parenting plan, same sex couples, sexual orientation and child custody, shared parental responsibility, Tampa Bay Collaborative Divorce, Tampa Bay Collaborative Family Law, temporary child custodyby Adam B. Cordover, Attorney-at-Law

When people are seeking to gain child custody rights in Florida – whether through divorce, paternity, establishment of parenting plan, grandparent custody, or other proceedings – the first step they usually take is file a petition with the Clerk of the Court.

Generally speaking, this is a mistake.

By filing a petition, they are entering into the public court system which pits mother against father. This is an adversarial system which oftentimes leads parties to engage in emotionally and financially draining court battles, and all dirty laundry gets examined and aired.

But there is another way, a private way of determining parental responsibility and child time-sharing schedules. It is called collaborative practice, also known as collaborative family law.

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Florida Divorce and Fathers’ Child Custody Rights

August 11, 2013/0 Comments/in Custody Law, Florida Statutes, Kids //Tags: best interests standard, child custody, co-parenting, collaborative divorce, divorce, father's rights, florida divorce, parent child relationship, parental rights, parenting plan, time-sharingby Adam B. Cordover, Attorney-at-Law

Many people believe that, in Florida divorces, there is a legal presumption that mothers should get majority time-sharing (formerly known as primary custody) with the parties’ children. This is simply not the case, as judges fashion Florida time-sharing schedules based solely on the best interests of the children, regardless of the gender of the parents.

Florida Statutes Section 61.13(2)(c)1 states specifically that “[t]here is no presumption for or against the father or mother of the child or for or against any specific time-sharing schedule when creating or modifying the parenting plan of the child.”

So what factors do judges look at to determine children’s best interests when shaping time-sharing schedules?

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Tampa Bay Collaborative Divorce In A Weekend

May 5, 2013/0 Comments/in Collaborative Divorce //Tags: alimony, child custody, child support, collaborative attorney, collaborative divorce, collaborative facilitator, collaborative family law, collaborative financial professional, Collaborative Law, collaborative mental health professional, collaborative practice, divorce, florida divorce, marital settlement agreement, parenting plan, Tampa Bay Collaborative Divorce, Tampa Bay Collaborative Family Law, uncontested divorceby Adam B. Cordover, Attorney-at-Law

I recently came across an article by Sandra Young and Brian Garvey, collaborative divorce lawyers in Illinois, who offer what they refer to as a “Divorce Weekend.” This is a fascinating model of collaborative divorce which offers the option of a quick settlement, and there is no reason why a weekend collaborative divorce cannot take place here in Tampa Bay.

This is how the model works:

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Florida Child Custody Reform 2013

April 21, 2013/2 Comments/in Florida Statutes, Legislative Update //Tags: alimony, alimony reform, bridge-the-gap alimony, child custody, child custody case, child custody determination, co-parenting, collaborative divorce, collaborative family law, durational alimony, Florida alimony, Florida alimony laws, Florida child custody, Florida Legislature, long term alimony, lump sum alimony, parental responsibility, parenting plan, permanent periodic alimony, rehabilitative alimony, shared parental responsibility, sole parental responsibility, spousal support, supervised time-sharing, temporary alimony, time-sharingby Adam B. Cordover, Attorney-at-Law

There has been a lot of press lately about efforts to reform Florida’s alimony laws. As discussed on this blog, Senate Bill 718 (which primarily deals with alimony reform) passed the Florida House by a wide margin (85 Yeas versus 31 Nays) and, since it had also passed the Florida Senate, will be going to Governor Rick Scott for his signature.

Update: Governor Scott Vetoes Senate Bill 718

One area that may be even more significant, but has not received as much coverage, is language in Senate Bill 718 that reforms Florida’s child custody laws. Currently, there is no presumption in favor of or against any child custody schedule, including a 50/50 split custody (known as equal time-sharing). Senate Bill 718, however, adds language to section 61.13 of the Florida Statutes that seems to make a strong presumption in favor of equal time-sharing.

The text of the child custody provisions of Senate Bill 718 is reproduced below (deleted language is ~~stricken~~ while new language is underlined):

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Pinellas County’s Standing Notice for Family Law Cases with Minor Children

November 24, 2012/1 Comment/in Administrative Orders //Tags: child custody, child custody case, child custody determination, Clearwater, co-parenting, concurrent custody, divorce, Florida child custody, parental responsibility, Parenting Course, parenting plan, paternity, Pinellas County, relocation, shared parental responsibility, St. Petersburg, temporary child custodyby Adam B. Cordover, Attorney-at-Law

When you file a family law case in a Tampa Bay court that involves children (such as divorce, paternity, or modification of a parenting plan), you will get a standing notice or order which prescribes how parents should treat one another and their children.

For the most part, parents that utilize common sense and common courtesy should have no problem sticking to these standing requirements. Below are excerpts of the requirements in Pinellas County:

1. CONTACT WITH BOTH PARENTS; SHARED PARENTING:

1.1. Contact with both parents is generally in the children’s best interests. Children are entitled to “frequent and continuing contact with both parents when the parents separate or divorce” as a matter of law.

1.2 The “primary residential parent” has an “affirmative obligation to encourage and nurture a relationship between the children and the alternate residential parent.” A parent who restricts access of the children to the other parent and who does not encourage a relationship between the children and the other parent, perhaps should not be designated the “primary residential parent, ” as this is not acting in the children’s best interests and is not following the law.

1.3. In nearly all cases, the court orders “shared parental responsibility” of the children, which means co-parenting. The parents must confer with each other and agree on parenting decisions. Both parents must participate in all parenting decisions and work out their time sharing schedules. If the parents cannot agree on any issue, then the court will decide.

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Tag Archive for: parenting plan

What Your Florida Divorce Lawyer May Not Be Telling You

Trial Divorce = Big $$ for Attorneys

Private Child Custody Proceedings: Florida Collaborative Practice

Tampa Bay Collaborative Divorce In A Weekend

Pinellas County’s Standing Notice for Family Law Cases with Minor Children

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