Family Law
At the Law Office of Ada M. Barreto, P.A., we can represent you in the following types of family law issues:
Dissolution of Marriage:
Florida is a no-fault divorce state. This means that it is not required that you prove that the other party is at fault in order to have a final judgment of dissolution of marriage. It is only required that you state that your marriage is completely broken.
Divorce cases usually require the resolution of issues such as: equitable distribution of property, time sharing, custody and parenting issues, child support, alimony and entitlement to attorney’s fees and costs. At the Law Office of Ada M. Barreto, P.A., we can evaluate your case and advise you regarding alternative courses of action.
Distribution of property:
Distribution of property may partially occur during the pendency of a dissolution of marriage case, may be resolved by agreement of the parties, at a mediation, or at trial. In distributing assets or property to each spouse, the court will consider, among other factors, each party’s contribution to the marriage, the economic circumstances of each party, the duration of the marriage and the contribution of each spouse to the acquisition, enhancement and improvement of both, marital and non-marital.
Custody:
The term “custody” has been abolished by Florida law. However, an extended family member may still obtain temporary custody of a minor child if the child’s parents consent or the best interests of the child so requires. In the context of dissolution of marriage and paternity cases, custody has been replaced by the concepts of parental time-sharing and parental responsibility.
As part of a parent’s right to exercise parental responsibility, that parent is entitled to participate in the major decisions that impact the welfare of the child(ren), such as decisions regarding choice of education, health care, religion, etc.
Alimony:
A spouse may have a right to receive support from the other spouse so long as the receiving spouse has the need, the other spouse has the financial ability to pay alimony and other factors that justify an award of alimony are present.
Child support:
Parents have an obligation to support their children according to their means. A parent’s child support obligation arises primarily in the context of dissolution of marriage and paternity actions. Child support is based on the combined net income of the parties, and is based on the Florida Child Support Guidelines.
Paternity:
Unmarried parents of minor children establish their rights and obligations with respect to their minor children by filing a lawsuit to establish paternity. A paternity case is typically initiated by a father that wishes to establish his rights to share time with his children and participate in decisions that affect the welfare of the children, or by a mother who seeks to establish the father’s child support obligation. Florida law also provides for the disestablishment of paternity of fathers, provided that certain statutory requirements are met.
Parental Relocation:
A parent may be prohibited from relocating a child’s residence more than 50 miles from their current residence if certain conditions apply. Parents who wish to relocate outside of the permissible radius (50 miles) and who do not have the written consent of the other parent, must file a petition for relocation and comply with the statutory requirements prior to obtaining a court order allowing said relocation.
Modification and Enforcement of prior orders:
Orders may be enforced or modified by subsequent court order. Once an order has been entered and a party failed to comply with said court order, the available remedy may be to seek enforcement of that order. In the case where a change in circumstances has occurred since the entry of a prior order, a party may seek a modification of the prior order by filing a supplemental petition for modification.
Name change:
Minors and adults may apply to the court for a name change. Generally, a petition for name change may be granted if the person seeking a name change has not filed for bankruptcy, has never had his or her civil rights revoked, and does not want to obtain a name change for an inappropriate purpose such as defeating the right of a creditor.
Annulment
Certain marriages can be annulled, depending on the circumstances that existed at the time that the parties entered into the marriage.