Are alimony and child-support laws changing in Florida?
A controversial alimony and child-support law has been sent to the governor of Florida for approval; this proposed law set is an attempt to overhaul the alimony system. The same kinds of changes were attempted in 2013, but they were denied.
The new measure has passed in the House and state Senate, and it provides a formula that a judge would be able to use to decide alimony in a case. In the previously vetoed proposal, there was a clause about retroactivity of payments, but in this version, it does not exist.
The measure also includes information about a change in how children are treated in custody situations. It is controversial, but the law suggests how much time children should spend with their parents. This decision would also affect how much a parent could receive in child support.
This alimony and support law has been in the making for several years, and it’s taken time to get opponents to agree with it at least in part. The current alimony formula, if the law is approved, would base any alimony payments on the length of time a marriage lasted along with the income of both spouses in the relationship.
The law also addresses time-sharing changes with children, which has been opposed by many. In the past, a clause about children spending equal time with their parents was eliminated, and now it would be presumed that judges would assume both parents would receive equal time and work toward an agreeable solution from that point.
Source: Orlando Weekly, “Florida Legislature sends controversial alimony and child-support law to governor for approval,” Dara Kam, accessed March 25, 2016
