Recent Blog Posts

What is the Marchman Act?
The Marchman Act provides that relatives or friends can file a petition with the court to request involuntary commitment for someone suffering from drug or alcohol addiction. The law can be used to require a person to undergo mandatory treatment for addiction as well as to allow a person to be committed for mental… Read More »

How Can the Judicial System Better Serve Juveniles?
Everyone can agree that children are different and the way that the court systems treats kids should be tailored to those specific individualities. Kids can be involved in the court system for crimes that we would consider crimes regardless of who committed them – like theft or assault. However, kids can also enter the… Read More »

Deployed Military Service Members’ Custody Rights in Florida
Military life is a unique and difficult, filled with constant deployments, required moves, random shifts, and general uncertainty. Marriage is difficult in the best of circumstances, but military spouses face even more adversity. If a military family decides to divorce, they face circumstances involving deployments that a civilian family would not encounter, including very… Read More »

When Will a Court Choose a Relative over a Parent?
No parent wants to see their child taken away or find themselves otherwise blocked from seeing him/her. This separation is devastating, and if it becomes permanent will forever change the lives of both the parent and child. This possibility lies at the heart of dependency cases and is the primary reason parents facing this… Read More »

How Children’s Therapy Influences Custody Disputes
Children of divorced parents often suffer from difficulties adjusting to the transition of living between two homes and seeing their parents split apart. The security and trust a child is known to derive from living with both parents is gone, and the child may internalize or act out his/her reaction to this situation. Placing… Read More »

Challenging a Paternity Claim
When a child is born out of wedlock, many unique issues arise. Chief among them is the identity of the father, which is not always cut-and-dry. As a result of technological advances, the ability to ascertain paternity with a large degree of certainty is now available. However, as with most tests, even in today’s… Read More »

What to Do after a Domestic Violence Incident
Being arrested and charged with domestic violence can impact nearly every aspect of your life. Domestic violence is a serious charge. Not only does a person charged with this crime have to navigate the legal system, but they also must face the societal stigmas associated with this type of arrest. A period of incarceration… Read More »

Are You Ready to Adopt?
Adding a child to your family can be thrilling. While the goal of adding a bundle of joy to your life is ever present, the prospect of beginning the adoption process can be daunting. If you are ready to adopt, the experienced adoption attorneys at our office can help you navigate the sometimes complex… Read More »

Communicating as Co-Parents after Divorce
Once a person has children, the other parent is never entirely out of his/her life, divorce or not. While the children are still young and subject to the terms of a parenting plan, former spouses are even more intertwined and must find acceptable and effective ways to communicate about child-related issues. As more divorced… Read More »

Don’t Forget about the Family Pet in Your Divorce
With all the dramatic changes that divorce requires, it is easy to miss things until it turns into a bigger problem. Family pets are no longer seen as easily replaceable or expendable, and often play a vital role in the family dynamic. Spouses and children alike tend to be deeply attached to the pet,… Read More »