Fifth District Rejects Final Judgment Commemorating Unwritten, Unrecorded Settlement

The Fifth District Court of Appeal last week issued its opinion in Saunders v. Saunders, holding that the lower tribunal's Final Judgment had to be reversed in that it commemorated a settlement agreement which was neither written nor recited on the record, and which instead was only reflected in the Court's minutes. As such, the Court found that the Final Judgment was based on facts neither stipulated nor supported by evidence, and therefore could not stand. The Fifth District largely relied on the very similar facts of Olson v. Olson, 704 So. 2d 208 (Fla. 5^th DCA 1998), which had the same result.

Fourth District Court Affirms, But Explains, in Cohen v. Cohen

The Fourth District released an opinion today in Cohen v. Cohen in which they affirmed the lower court's ruling but offered detailed explanations as to several issues. First, they found no abuse of discretion in the lower tribunal's denial of motions seeking to amend and for continuance based on claims of concealed assets where over 16,000 pages had previously been produced in response to 14 requests for production and no evidence suggested concealment during four days of trial. The Fourth District also found no error in the trial court's belief that the Husband's accountant was the more credible, evidently largely because of the Husband's testimony, found credible, that no interspousal gift was intended when a business account was titled jointly, and the Wife's apparent unwillingness to accept certain assets at the values put forward by her own expert accountant. And, finally, the Court approved of the trial court's denial of bridge-the-gap alimony based on the long period of separation prior to trial, the lack of evidence that the Wife could meet short-term needs without bridge-the-gap alimony, and the lack of evidence found as to the Wife's efforts or intention to seek employment in the future.

Fourth District Court Approves Rental Credits After Exclusive Possession Ends

The Fourth District Court today reversed in Weiner v. Weiner, holding that despite the long standing rule that a party receives no credit or setoff for half of the rental value in a property the other party has been granted exclusive possession of, nothing precludes the receipt of such a credit for that party's use of the property after the period of exclusive possession has ended.

4th DCA Reverses Again in Posner v. Posner

The Fourth District Court of Appeal ruled today in Posner v. Posner, again reversing the lower court in this dissolution of marriage action. Specifically, the Court found error in the lower court's attribution of a non-marital credit card debt of the Wife to the Husband, and reversed a payment schedule that permitted the Wife to pay off equitable distribution over a 71 year period. The Court specifically found abuse of discretion in requiring the Husband to do without the majority of marital assets for the rest of his life. At the same time, however, the Fourth District affirmed the imputation of $1,400.00 in monthly income pursuant to F.S. §61.30, as a result of his living rent-free in a home provided by his parents. The Court found that although such payments are usually from an employer, nothing in the statute precludes the inclusion in income of any in-kind payment or reimbursement that reduces living expenses.

Fourth District Court Excludes Income from Residence

The Fourth District Court ruled today in Levine v. Levine that it would be improper to charge a party with income representing the rental value of the marital home in which they live with their children…

4th DCA Approves Contempt Order

The Fourth District Court completed its review in Ginnell v. Pacetti, 4D09-1942 on March 3^rd, releasing an opinion which can be found here. The Court was reviewing the order resulting from a four day contempt hearing regarding timesharing, and contains several interesting findings. Among other rulings, the Court distinguished that case from the Perlow decision despite the lower tribunal's use of a portion of counsel's proposed Order, and approved a modification of a parenting plan as a result of a contempt finding and the discretion granted by Florida Statute §61.13(4)(c)(6).

Florida Supreme Court Approves New Forms

The Florida Supreme Court, in an opinion released March 4^th, has now approved a new Income Deduction Order for immediate use state-wide, along with a Notice to Payor and Notice of Filing Return Receipt that accompany that form. The full opinion text can be found here.