Domestic Violence and Child Abuse

"No person has a right to physically hit, push, shove, shake, or abuse another person, even if that person is his or her spouse or child. Domestic violence and child abuse are crimes and will be prosecuted as such.

Florida Statutes provide an expedited process for obtaining an "injunction for protection against domestic violence."  Forms have been established for seeking immediate injunctions when a person reasonably believes that he or she is in imminent danger of harm from a domestic partner. Available relief includes immediate exclusive use of the home, immediate temporary custody of the children (with or without temporary visitation) and where appropriate, financial relief. The petition must be submitted under oath and must factually lay out a basis for a reasonable fear that without this special order the person applying for the order will be hurt. Generally, an evidentiary hearing will take place within 15 days to allow the other party a chance to dispute the charges and to allow a judge to determine how the case will then progress. A person against whom a domestic violence injunction is issued, may not own or possess a firearm or ammunition. Domestic violence injunctions
are enforceable nationwide.

Florida law provides that evidence of domestic abuse, or a false allegation of domestic abuse, may be considered as a factor in determining a child's primary residence and parental responsibility. Similarly, false statements under oath in domestic violence cases may result in criminal prosecution for perjury."

Reprinted from the Family Law Handbook by the FL Bar Assoc.

The Process Of Ending A Marriage (Divorce)

"In order to end a marriage, a person must obtain a final judgment from a circuit court dissolving the marriage. In that judgment, all property, support and child-related issues ordinarily will be determined. To obtain that judgment a person must file a petition to start a lawsuit, legally serve (notice) his or her spouse, provide and obtain financial information to and from his or her spouse, if children are involved, take a class, and either have an agreement prepared and brought to the court at an appropriately noticed final hearing or have a trial before a judicial officer at which evidence will be taken to allow the judicial officer to make decisions. A person is not required to have a lawyer to obtain a divorce. However, because this is a legal process with rules and procedures to be followed, it is advisable to obtain legal counsel.

To obtain a divorce, there must be a legally acceptable reason. There are two legally acceptable reasons in Florida. One is that one party has been declared legally incompetent for a period in excess of three years. The other is the more common basis – that the marriage is "irretrievably broken." That means that there is nothing that the court can do (such as sending the couple to counseling) to induce the couple to reconcile. If there are children, and a person answers a petition for dissolution of marriage by denying that the marriage is irretrievably broken, then the court may order the parties to counseling and may delay the proceedings for up to three months to encourage and/or permit the parties an opportunity to reconcile.

Once a petition for dissolution of marriage is filed, it must be legally served upon the other party. That party must then file a written answer with the court. Forms for dissolution of marriage proceedings are available, and many courts have self-help units to assist people without lawyers in finding those forms. 

There are specialized rules of procedure dealing with family courts, which are available at public libraries and law schools. Those rules require each party to provide the other with financial information within a certain number of days of the beginning of a case. Except in cases involving domestic violence, most courts will also require all couples to attend mediation sessions – which are
settlement conferences with the assistance of a trained person who tries to help couples achieve a settlement between themselves. If children are involved, all parties will be required to attend parenting classes, details of which are provided when the divorce action is filed. Some courts require the children to attend special classes as well.

Divorce proceedings are public proceedings, and the files are available at the courthouse for public review. Under certain limited circumstances, portions of the file may be sealed by order of the court. While a divorce action is pending, a trial judge may enter orders dealing with support, possession or maintenance of any individual asset, where the child or children will live, the time the
child or children will spend with each parent, and attorney's fees and costs."

 Reprinted from the Family Law Handbook by the FL Bar Assoc.