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 The State of Florida is a "No Fault" divorce state. To obtain a divorce in the State of Florida it is necessary to
allege and prove only that there are differences between the parties that cannot
be reconciled and consequently the marriage is irretrievably broken. If one party
wishes to dissolve the marriage, it is generally recognized that the marriage
is irretrievably broken despite the wishes of the other party to the contrary.
Unlike other states, it is not necessary to allege or prove marital infidelity,
impotence, sexual abuse, domestic violence, adultery, alcoholism, or other misconduct
or fault on the part of your spouse. In addition to alleging an irretrievable
breakdown of the marriage, it is also necessary that you have maintained a residence
with the intent of remaining husband and wife in the county of filing for a period
of six months prior to the filing of the petition for the dissolution of marriage. The filing of a Petition for Dissolution of Marriage
initiates divorce proceedings in Florida. The petition (complaint) for divorce
states the basis for the divorce, which includes an allegation of the residency
of the filing parties, and that there has been an irretrievable breakdown of
the marriage. Also contained in the divorce petition is a statement of the issues
to be addressed by the Court. These issues may include the distribution of assets and liabilities acquired by the parties during the course of the marriage, child custody, alimony, visitation, and child support. After service of the petition for dissolution of marriage on your spouse, he/she
must then admit or deny the existence of the issues contained in the petition
within twenty days. Your spouse may also file a counter-petition for divorce,
which contains his/her statement of the issues which need to be addressed by
the court.
Agreement of the parties
In relatively straight-forward or uncontested divorces, the husband and wife
can resolve the issues surrounding their divorce. Once an agreement has been
reached by the parties, an attorney can prepare a Marital Settlement Agreement
(MSA), which formalizes the agreement. The MSA will then be approved by the Court
and incorporated into the Final Judgment of Dissolution of Marriage.
Mediation
If the husband and wife are unable to reach an agreement on their own, or with
the assistance of their attorney, the parties may be ordered to a mediation.
Many counties in Florida require that a divorce be mediated prior to a trial.
At a mediation, an independent mediator hired by both parties will attempt to
bring the parties together on the marital issues in dispute. Mediation will be
conducted in the presence of both parties and their attorneys and may take place
on more than one given day. At the conclusion of mediation, the parties may enter
into a rough agreement on the issues which may then be formulated into a more
formal Marital Settlement Agreement (MSA). The MSA can then be accepted by the Court and incorporated into the Final Judgment
of Dissolution of Marriage.
Trial
Should the parties be unable to reach an agreement after negotiation and/or mediation
on some or all of the marital issues in dispute, both the husband and wife are
entitled to have a judge hear the issues at a non-jury trial. At trial, the judge
will rule on matters of law, as well as acting as a fact finder. At the close
of the proceeding, the judge will then render a ruling consistent with his/her
opinion as to the proper resolution of the issues raised. As the Court's ruling can be rather arbitrary, it is generally in the best interest
of the parties to resolve the marital issues through agreement or mediation.
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