Title VI, Civil Practice and Procedure

As used in this chapter, the term:(1) “Business day” means any day other than a Saturday, Sunday, or legal holiday.(2) “Clerk of Court Child Support Collection System” or “CLERC System” means the automated system established pursuant to s. 61.181(2)(b)1., integrating all clerks o…

(1) No judgment of dissolution of marriage shall be granted unless one of the following facts appears, which shall be pleaded generally:(a) The marriage is irretrievably broken.(b) Mental incapacity of one of the parties. However, no dissolution shall be allowed unless the party …

Proceedings may be brought against persons residing out of the state.History.—s. 1, Feb. 4, 1833; RS 1482; GS 1930; RGS 3193; CGL 4985; s. 2, ch. 29737, 1955; s. 16, ch. 67-254; s. 8, ch. 71-241.Note.—Former s. 65.06.

In every proceeding for dissolution of the marriage, a party may claim alimony and suit money in the petition or by motion, and if the petition is well founded, the court shall allow a reasonable sum therefor. If a party in any proceeding for dissolution of marriage claims alimon…

(1) In a proceeding for dissolution of marriage, in addition to all other remedies available to a court to do equity between the parties, or in a proceeding for disposition of assets following a dissolution of marriage by a court which lacked jurisdiction over the absent spouse o…

(1) All vested and nonvested benefits, rights, and funds accrued during the marriage in retirement, pension, profit-sharing, annuity, deferred compensation, and insurance plans and programs are marital assets subject to equitable distribution.(2) If the parties were married for a…

A party is not entitled to any credits or setoffs upon the sale of the marital home unless the parties’ settlement agreement, final judgment of dissolution of marriage, or final judgment equitably distributing assets or debts specifically provides that certain credits or setoffs …

(1) SHORT TITLE.—This section may be cited as the “Uniform Premarital Agreement Act” and this section applies only to proceedings under the Florida Family Law Rules of Procedure.(2) DEFINITIONS.—As used in this section, the term:(a) “Premarital agreement” means an agreement betwe…

(1)(a) In a proceeding for dissolution of marriage, the court may grant alimony to either party in the form or forms of temporary, bridge-the-gap, rehabilitative, or durational alimony, as is equitable. In an award of alimony, the court may order periodic or lump sum payments. Th…

If a person having the ability to contribute to the maintenance of his or her spouse and support of his or her minor child fails to do so, the spouse who is not receiving support may apply to the court for alimony and for support for the child without seeking dissolution of marri…

Except when relief is afforded by some other pending civil action or proceeding, a spouse residing in this state apart from his or her spouse and minor child, whether or not such separation is through his or her fault, may obtain an adjudication of obligation to maintain the spou…

(1) When either party is about to remove himself or herself or his or her property out of the state, or fraudulently convey or conceal it, the court may award a ne exeat or injunction against the party or the property and make such orders as will secure alimony or support to the …

(1) So much as the court orders of the money or other things due to any person or public officer, state or county, whether the head of a family residing in this state or not, when the money or other thing is due for the personal labor or service of the person or otherwise, is sub…

(1) A psychologist who has been appointed by the court to develop a parenting plan recommendation in a dissolution of marriage, a case of domestic violence, or a paternity matter involving the relationship of a child and a parent, including time-sharing of children, is presumed t…

(1) DEFINITIONS.—As used in this section, the term:(a) “Communication” means an oral or written statement, or nonverbal conduct intended to make an assertion, by or to a parenting coordinator, a participant, or a party made during parenting coordination, or before parenting coord…

(1) LEGISLATIVE INTENT.—It is the intent of the Legislature to:(a) Codify and clarify existing common law and Florida case law recognizing that the parents of a dependent adult child have an obligation to support that child.(b) Provide procedures for establishing support for a de…

(1)(a) In a proceeding under this chapter, the court may at any time order either or both parents who owe a duty of support to a child to pay support to the other parent or to a third party who has custody in accordance with the child support guidelines schedule in s. 61.30.1. Al…

(1) DEFINITIONS.—As used in this section, the term:(a) “Child” means any person who is under the jurisdiction of a state court pursuant to the Uniform Child Custody Jurisdiction and Enforcement Act or is the subject of any order granting to a parent or other person any right to t…

(1)(a) In connection with proceedings under this chapter, a court may order electronic communication between a parent and a child. Before ordering electronic communication, a court must consider:1. Whether electronic communication is in a child’s best interests;2. Whether communi…

(1) ISSUANCE IN CONJUNCTION WITH AN ORDER ESTABLISHING, ENFORCING, OR MODIFYING AN OBLIGATION FOR ALIMONY OR CHILD SUPPORT.—(a) Upon the entry of an order establishing, enforcing, or modifying an obligation for alimony, for child support, or for alimony and child support, other t…

(1) An obligee may petition the court which entered the support order or the court which is enforcing the support order for an order to suspend or deny the license or certificate issued pursuant to chapters 409, 455, 456, 559, and 1012 of any obligor with a delinquent support obl…

(1) The driver license and motor vehicle registration of a support obligor who is delinquent in payment or who has failed to comply with subpoenas or a similar order to appear or show cause relating to paternity or support proceedings may be suspended. When an obligor is 15 days …

(1) Upon receipt of a request from a consumer reporting agency as defined in s. 603(f) of the Fair Credit Reporting Act, the IV-D agency or the depository in non-Title IV-D cases shall make available information relating to the amount of current and overdue support owed by an obl…

(1)(a) When the parties enter into an agreement for payments for, or instead of, support, maintenance, or alimony, whether in connection with a proceeding for dissolution or separate maintenance or with any voluntary property settlement, or when a party is required by court order…

(1) The court may from time to time, after considering the financial resources of both parties, order a party to pay a reasonable amount for attorney’s fees, suit money, and the cost to the other party of maintaining or defending any proceeding under this chapter, including enfor…

(1) An order or judgment for the payment of alimony or child support or either entered by any court of this state may be enforced by another chancery court in this state in the following manner:(a) The person to whom such alimony or child support is payable or for whose benefit i…

(1) When there is a breach of the condition of any bond posted to ensure the payment of alimony or child support, either temporary or permanent, for a party or minor children of the parties, the court in which the order was issued may order payment to the party entitled thereto o…

(1)(a) The office of the clerk of the court in each county shall operate a depository. The department shall extend participation in the federal child support cost reimbursement program to the depository in each county, to the extent allowable under existing federal law. Each depo…

There is hereby created the Clerk of the Court Child Support Enforcement Collection System Trust Fund to be used to deposit the department’s share of the fees generated in s. 61.181(2)(b)1.History.—s. 8, ch. 92-138; s. 8, ch. 2023-152.

(1) The Child Support Incentive Trust Fund is hereby created, to be administered by the Department of Revenue. All child support enforcement incentive earnings and that portion of the state share of Title IV-A public assistance collections recovered in fiscal year 1996-1997 by th…

(1) The Child Support Enforcement Application and Program Revenue Trust Fund is hereby created, to be administered by the Department of Revenue. The purpose of the trust fund is to account for Title IV-D program income and to support the activities of the child support enforcemen…

(1) The Child Support Clearing Trust Fund is hereby created, to be administered by the Department of Revenue. Funds shall be credited to the trust fund from child support payments. The purpose of the trust fund is to account for child support collections pending distribution to c…

(1) The State Disbursement Unit is hereby created and shall be operated by the Department of Revenue or by a contractor responsible directly to the department. The State Disbursement Unit shall be responsible for the collection and disbursement of payments for:(a) All support cas…

(1) The Department of Revenue or its agent shall operate and maintain a State Case Registry as provided by 42 U.S.C. s. 654A. The State Case Registry must contain records for:(a) Each case in which services are being provided by the department as the state’s Title IV-D agency; an…

(1) LEGISLATIVE FINDINGS.—The Legislature finds that the clerks of court play a vital role, as essential participants in the establishment, modification, collection, and enforcement of child support, in securing the health, safety, and welfare of the children of this state. The L…

(1) Any information that reveals the identity of applicants for or recipients of child support services, including the name, address, and telephone number of such persons, held by a non-Title IV-D county child support enforcement agency is confidential and exempt from s. 119.07(1…

(1) In any proceeding in which the issues of parental responsibility, primary residence, access to, visitation with, or support of a child are contested, the court may refer the parties to mediation in accordance with rules promulgated by the Supreme Court. In Title IV-D cases, a…

No final judgment of dissolution of marriage may be entered until at least 20 days have elapsed from the date of filing the original petition for dissolution of marriage; but the court, on a showing that injustice would result from this delay, may enter a final judgment of dissol…

(1) This act applies to all proceedings commenced on or after July 1, 1971. However, pending actions for divorce are deemed to have been commenced on the bases provided in s. 61.052, and evidence as to such bases for dissolution of marriage after July 1, 1971, shall be in complia…

(1) In any action where the parenting plan is at issue because the parents are unable to agree, the court may order a social investigation and study concerning all pertinent details relating to the child and each parent when such an investigation has not been done and the study t…

(1) LEGISLATIVE FINDINGS; PURPOSE.—It is the finding of the Legislature that:(a) A large number of children experience the separation or divorce of their parents each year. Parental conflict related to divorce is a societal concern because children suffer potential short-term and…

(1) The following principles establish the public policy of the State of Florida in the creation of the child support guidelines:(a) Each parent has a fundamental obligation to support his or her minor or legally dependent child.(b) The guidelines schedule is based on the parent’…

(1)(a) The child support guideline amount as determined by this section presumptively establishes the amount the trier of fact must order as child support for a minor child, or a child who is dependent in fact and between the ages of 18 and 19 and who is still in high school and …

(1) In determining the amount of support to be paid after a dependent adult child as defined in s. 61.1255(2)(a) reaches the age of 18, the specific terms and conditions of such support, and the rights and duties of both parents with respect to the support, the court shall determ…

In an action for dissolution of marriage or for the creation, approval, or modification of a parenting plan, if the court finds it is in the best interest of the child, the court may appoint a guardian ad litem to act as next friend of the child, investigator or evaluator, not as…

(1) A person appointed as a guardian ad litem pursuant to s. 61.401 must be:(a) Certified by the Statewide Guardian ad Litem Office pursuant to s. 39.821;(b) Certified by a not-for-profit legal aid organization as defined in s. 68.096; or(c) An attorney who is a member in good st…