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REVISING CHILD SUPPORT
If you have had an Order entered regarding child support for some time, you may want to consider revising your child support amount. Florida Statute provides that in the event the income of the parties reveals the child support should be increased by 15% or $50.00, whichever is greater, then the child support shall be increased. However, in the event there are after born children or some other factor which the statute allows the Court to consider, child support may vary from the guidelines.

In Hillsborough County, you can contact Family Diversion Services and request that you and your ex-spouse meet and disclose the financial data so that the Court mediator can recalculate the child support. The number for Family Diversion is 813-272-5642. The fee that the Court charges for this service is nominal.

Effective June 5, 2001, Florida Statute allows adjustment of child support whenever a particular shared parental arrangement provides that the child spend at least 40% of overnights with the non-custodial parent. The statute provides a formula which may substantially reduce your support if you meet the 40% criteria.

ELDER LAW
Everyone should have a Last Will and Testament. A Revocable Living Trust is beneficial in the event that there are tax consequences upon your death. Currently you can bequeath two million dollars to your beneficiaries tax free. 

There are many other considerations that need to be taken into account in preparing a Will. As a result, the Will programs which are sold over the counter can be very dangerous. Only a qualified lawyer can evaluate the situation at hand and recommend various documents and tools to insure that your wishes are upheld in an appropriate manner.

Some tools which people should consider are Health Care Surrogate, Living Will, Enhanced Life Estate Deeds, and Power of Attorney. These documents work hand-in-hand with the Will. Not all documents are appropriate for all people but when properly utilized, the estate can save thousands of dollars.

Some people have old Wills. If a Will is not appropriately notarized, it should be updated. This is due to the fact that it is very expensive to prove up a Will if it is not notarized.

BANKRUPTCY
On October 17, 2005, the Bankruptcy Law was significantly modified. Now, if an individual or family is above the state median income, they will not be able to file a Chapter 7 Bankruptcy except under certain circumstances. This change along with many others has significantly changed how bankruptcies are filed. A Chapter 7 Bankruptcy is one in which the debt is discharged and the non-exempt assets of the Debtor are liquidated and distributed to the creditors. In the past, most bankruptcies were Chapter 7 Bankruptcies. If you have questions about Chapter 7 Bankruptcy, please read the Questions and Answers under the following link.

A chapter 13 Bankruptcy is one wherein an individual makes payments over a five (5) year period to either reinstate a mortgage, pay taxes or pay in lieu of surrendering property. If you are interested in a Chapter 13 please review the Questions and Answers under the following link.

COLLABORATIVE LAW
This is a new method of obtaining a dissolution of marriage that can save the parties time, money and sanity. In this method, each person retains his or her own trained collaborative lawyer to advise and assist in negotiating an arrangement on all issues. All negotiations take place in "four-way" settlement meetings that both clients and both lawyers attend. The lawyers cannot go to court or threaten to go to court. Settlement is the only agenda

If either client goes to court, both collaboratvie lawyers are disqualified from further participation. Each client has built-in legal advice and advocacy during negotiations, and each lawyer's job includes guiding the client toward reasonable resolutions. The legal advice is an integral part of the process, but all the decisions are made by the clients. The lawyers generally prepare and process all papers required for the divorce.

Paul offers his services as a collaborative lawyer, and invites you to discuss this type of divorce if you are interested.