Document Actions
|
|
John A. Smitten, Esq., Specializing in Family Law
1173 N.E. Cleveland Street
Clearwater,
Florida
33755
Phone: 727-446-7659
Fax: 727-446-0905
|
John A. Smitten, Esq.
John Smitten received his Bachelor of Arts Degree in Political Science from the State University of New York at Buffalo in 1991. He earned his Juris Doctorate from the Thomas Cooley School of Law in 1995. Mr. Smitten is a licensed attorney and member of the Bar Associations in both Florida and New York. In October of 1996, Mr. Smitten joined McGuire Law Offices and developed the family law division of the firm.
Mr. Smitten is a family law practitioner with extensive experience in every area of family law including divorce, custody, paternity, visitation, alimony, dependency, domestic violence, and child support. In addition to this specialization, Mr. Smitten serves as co-counsel for personal injury matters.
Mr. Smitten is an active member of the American Bar Association, the Clearwater Bar Association, the St. Petersburg Bar Association, and the Clearwater Chamber of Commerce.
Divorce/Child Custody
The official term for divorce in Florida is "dissolution of marriage." Florida is one of the many states that has abolished fault as a ground for divorce. This law lessens the potential harm to the husband and wife and their children caused by the process of divorce. All that is required is that the marriage be "irretrievably broken." Either spouse can file for the dissolution of marriage. All that has to be proved is that a marriage exists, one party has been a Florida resident for six months, and the marriage is broken. (There is another, little-used ground: incompetency of one's spouse). Fault, however, may be considered under certain circumstances in the award of alimony and determination of custody issues.
Each divorce case is unique and therefore settlements vary. Even though fault is not an issue, the division of property and possessions and responsibility for support may become contested matters. The divorce process is highly emotional and traumatic for everyone it touches. Marriage partners often do not know their legal rights and obligations. Court clerks and judges can answer some of your basic questions but are prohibited from giving legal advice. Only your lawyer is allowed to do that. Court procedures must be strictly followed or you may lose certain rights forever. It is recommended that you obtain the services of an attorney concerning legal questions, your rights in a divorce, your children's rights, your property rights, your responsibilities resulting from the marriage or tax consequences. A knowledgeable lawyer can analyze your unique situation, and can help you to make decisions in the best interest of you and your family.
To obtain a dissolution of marriage in Florida, at least one spouse must have been a Florida resident for six months or more before the case is filed. There are two ways of getting a divorce, or dissolution, in Florida. The usual way is called a "Regular Dissolution of Marriage." The second method is the "Simplified Dissolution of Marriage."
Child Support
You and your spouse each have a responsibility to support your children in accordance with their needs and your financial abilities. Support may be by direct payment or by indirect benefits, such as mortgage payments, insurance, or medical and dental expenses.
Ordinarily, the obligation to support your child ends when that child reaches 18, marries, or becomes financially independent. Some of the issues concerning child support which must be considered include: the amount of support; the method of payment; ways to assure payments are made; when child support may be increased or decreased; and who claims the dependency deduction for tax purposes. Other questions may need to be answered, depending on the circumstances of your case. Guidelines for support which apply to all cases have been adopted by the state generally is based on the income of the parents and the number of children. If you have a problem getting support payments from your spouse or former spouse, or visitation and access to your child is denied, you should bring this matter to the attention of the court. It is not proper to withhold visitation or child support payments because of any alleged wrongdoing by your spouse or former spouse.
Paternity/Visitation
It is the public policy of Florida to assure each minor child frequent and continuing contact with both parents after the parents have separated or divorced, and to encourage parents to share the rights and responsibilities of child rearing. The father is given the same consideration as the mother in determining custody regardless of their child's age, sex, or other factors. In most cases, parental responsibility for a minor child will be shared by both parents so that each retains full parental rights and responsibilities with respect to their child. This requires both parents to confer so that major decisions affecting the welfare of the child will be determined jointly.
You and your spouse may agree, or the court may order, that one parent have the ultimate responsibility over specific aspects of the child's welfare, such as education, religion, removal from the area, and medical and dental needs. If the parents have a substantial conflict over any of these areas the court will decide for them. The court will also designate one parent's home as the primary residence of the child. The other parent is usually entitled to frequent and continuing contact with the child. In rare cases, the court can order total parental responsibility and custody to one parent. To do so, the court must determine that shared parental responsibility would be detrimental to the child.
The court may award to the child's grandparents certain visitation rights if it is deemed by the court to be in the child's best interest. Thereafter, the grandparents have the right to seek judicial enforcement of the visitation rights. The court may award grandparents visitation rights after the parents divorce, when it is in the best interest of the grandchild or when one or both parents of the child are deceased; or, when a parent of the child has deserted the child.
In considering issues between parents and their children, the best interest of the child is the primary consideration by the courts. The Florida Bar has developed a consumer pamphlet entitled "Shared Parenting After Divorce," which discusses the subject and includes a model shared parenting agreement. For instructions on ordering, see the back cover of this pamphlet.
Modification/Alimony
The court may grant alimony to either the husband or the wife. Rehabilitative alimony may be for a limited period of time to assist in redeveloping skills and financial independence. Permanent alimony continues until the receiving spouse's remarriage or the death of either party. The court may grant some combination of the two. Also the court may order through lump-sum alimony one party to pay the other party a lump-sum payment of money or property. Although adultery does not bar an award of alimony, the court may consider the adultery of either spouse and the circumstances of that adultery in determining the amount of alimony to be awarded.
In awarding alimony, the court considers all relevant economic factors, such as: the parties' prior standard of living; length of the marriage; age and physical and emotional condition of both spouses; each spouse s financial resources and income-producing capacity of the assets they receive; the time necessary to acquire sufficient education or training to find appropriate employment; and the services rendered in homemaking, child rearing, and education and career building of the other spouse. The court may consider any other factor necessary to do equity and justice between the husband and wife.
You have the right to find out about all your spouse's income and assets through the use of discovery procedures which your attorney will explain to you.
Domestic Violence
You may go to court yourself for an injunction to protect yourself against assault, battery or sexual battery by your spouse (whether you are separated or not) or your former spouse. If you feel you are the victim of such domestic violence, you should contact the office of the clerk of the circuit court in your county for information and assistance.
Please email us or visit our website for additional information.
