Can You Still Have Sex With Spouse While Divorcing???

by Robin Roshkind, Esquire, West Palm Beach, Florida

I am not a moralist…I am a Florida Bar divorce lawyer.  Legally speaking, you can have sex with whomever you want to.  Florida is a no fault state.

If you are in divorce proceedings, and are still having sex with your husband or wife, this just might make settlement EASIER.  Yes, EASIER.  You still have a commonality which obviously matters to both of you.  I am a lawyer, not a therapist.  And I am not suggesting you do this, but, as a lawyer, I don’t find it entirely bad.

Sex is communication.  Divorce settlements require communication.  You can connect the dots for yourself.  For more information about this or other divorce topics, call one of the divorce lawyers at ROBIN ROSHKIND, P.A. at 561 835 9091 or click on the Firm’s web site at www.familylawwpb.com.

What You Come Into The Marriage With You Leave With

by Robin Roshkind, Esquire, West Palm Beach, Florida

Generally speaking, what you come into the marriage with you leave the marriage with even if it is years later…UNLESS you have “commingled” your assets to make them marital.

What this means is if you had a home prior to the marriage and sold that house and used the net proceeds to purchase a new home during the marriage, you would get your initial downpayment back in divorce court, before any remaining net assets are divided between the parties.  Or another example,  if you owned a BMW prior to the marriage, and then during the marriage traded it in for a newer model, and a divorce is imminent, you would be able to leave the marriage with your newer car.

In thinking about divorce, it is best to try to pay off all the marital debt with marital assets prior to filing for divorce.  It is also a good idea prior to the wedding to take stock of what you are bringing into the marriage and how you can keep your pre marital assets outside of the marital estate.   One really great vehicle to accomplish this is the prenuptial agreement which requires financial disclosure.

For more information about this or other divorce topics, call one of the divorce lawyers at ROBIN ROSHKIND, P.A. at 561 835 9091 or click on the Firm’s web site at www.familylawwpb.com.

Whose Name It’s In Doesn’t Matter In Divorce

by Robin Roshkind, Esquire, West Palm Beach, Florida

Many of my clients have a misconceptions about whose property is whose when it comes to divorce in Palm Beach County.    For example, a Mercedes Benz was purchased during the marriage with funds from a joint bank account.  The car is titled in the husband’s name only.  Whose car is it in the division of marital assets?  Barring any prenuptial or post nuptial agreement that says otherwise, it is viewed by the court as marital property.  Just because the title is in the husband’s name only, does not mean it belongs solely to the husband.  Ultimately it might go to him in the equitable distribution scheme of the divorce, but it is not necessarily his just because of the title designation.

Another example is the marital home.   Suppose one of the spouses owned the home prior to the marriage, let’s say it’s the wife.  Once the marriage takes place, she refuses to put the home into joint names.    When they get divorced years later, the husband still has an equitable interest in the home from the day of the wedding until the date of the divorce filing even though his name is not on the deed.    For other examples of title interests in divorce law in the state of Florida, call one of the divorce lawyers at ROBIN ROSHKIND, P.A. at 561 835 9091 or click on the Firm’s web site at http://www.familylawwpb.com.

Can A Cheating Spouse Be Punished By Florida Divorce Courts?

by Robin Roshkind, Esquire, West Palm Beach, Florida

Sitting in my office, listening to potential divorce clients, it seems like no one is having sex within their marriage.  They are either sex deprived, or they or their spouse are cheating on the side.

To some extent, the Florida law protects cheaters, directing the “cheated upon” spouse to simply divorce the cheater.   That’s what is meant when we divorce lawyers say Florida is a “no fault” state.    However, the law does protect an innocent spouse from dissipation of marital assets.   What that means is if a cheater is spending significant sums of marital monies on the affair, that so called dissipation of marital assets can be considered in the financial scheme of the divorce.  There may be an unequal equitable distribution given in favor of the innocent spouse by the divorce court judge.

Case law defines significant sums as: buying a girl friend an expensive car, paying her rent, buying a condo for the paramour, taking numerous expensive vacations or shopping trips, all the usual but expensive trappings of keeping a lover.   A casual dinner out does not qualify.

If you suspect your spouse is the cheating kind, call one of the divorce lawyers at ROBIN ROSHKIND, P.A. at 561 835 9091 or click on the Firm’s web site at http://www.familylawwpb for more information.  We may want to put a private eye on your spouse and use that testimony and evidence in court to get you the better part of the marital estate.

What Happens If I Move Out?

By Robin Roshkind, Esquire, West Palm Beach, Florida I get this question all the time from clients who are doing divorce planning.  Divorce planning is another subject that is very important and I will address that in another article.  However, moving out of the marital home raises lots of questions from clients, the most common addressed below: First question:  DO I LOSE MY RIGHTS?  If your name is on the deed to the marital home, the answer is no. Second question:  WILL I LOSE MY KIDS?  It is your children’s rights that are protected by law here, that being the right to have two loving parents.  You will not lose your parental rights unless you are unfit to parent. Third question:   CAN HE/SHE KEEP ME OUT?  Only if there is a restraining order or some other court order giving your spouse exclusive use and possession. Fourth question:  WHAT DO I DO IF MY SPOUSE CHANGES THE LOCKS?  Change them back. Fifth question:  CAN I TAKE MY STUFF?  Only your personal effects ie clothing, cosmetics, shoes, hats, hand bags,  papers.  The rest is considered marital and subject to equitable distribution. Lastly:  HOW DO I PROTECT MY RIGHTS:  Photocopy everything and photograph everything else. For more information about this subject, divorce planning or other divorce topics, call one of the divorce lawyers at ROBIN ROSHKIND, P.A. at 561 835 9091 or click on the Firm’s web site at http://www.familylawwpb.com.

If Your Marriage Is On The Rocks, PROTECT YOURSELF!

By Robin Roshkind, Esquire, West Palm Beach, Florida

Clients come in for a consultation for information.  They either are thinking about getting out of a bad marriage or relationship, or their spouse has mentioned something about a split.  I often get the question, how do I protect myself?

The first easy piece of advice is PHOTOGRAPH EVERYTHING.  That includes the cars, the boat, the grand piano, grandmother’s sterling silver, jewelry, antiques, paintings, and collections such as wine, coins, stamps, even the big screen.

The second easy piece of advice is PHOTOCOPY EVERYTHING.  The wine lists, coin and stamp logs, mortgages, car titles, deeds, corporate documents, bank statements, credit card bills,  income statements, tax returns, pay stubs, investment accounts, whatever you can get your hands on.

Drop the cartons of pics and copies off to your lawyer.  Don’t leave them in the trunk of you car!

Lastly, don’t leave car keys, wedding rings and other small valuables lying around the house.  They have a tendency to be “stolen”.  For more information about this or other divorce topics, call one of the divorce lawyers at ROBIN ROSHKIND, P.A. at 561 835 9091 or click on the Firm’s web site at http://www.familylawwpb.com for more information.

What Is The Role Of Appraisers In A Palm Beach Divorce?

By Robin Roshkind, Esquire, West Palm Beach, Florida

In my practice, I have had the ocassion to recommend that my clients use appraisers for various purposes.  Most of these divorce cases are high asset divorces, marriages of substantial wealth, whereby the husband and wife are disputing who gets what out of the collection of homes, boats, watches, stamps, antiques, serious artwork, wines, and just about anything else of value.

In distributing the spoils of a high asset marriage, either the husband and wife have to agree as to what something is worth, and then divide the assets according to equalizing value,  or they can agree to ignore value in favor of preference.   If the husband must have his gun collection, and the wife must have her four sets of bone china, the parties can simply agree to that.  Where appraisers come into play is when there is fighting over the assets and they are asking the judge to equitably distribute the marital property.

Country club memberships, frequent flyer miles, unimproved land, coins are also up for grabs, as is sterling silver, antique silver, jewelry, cars, and anything of value that must be distributed as a result of the divorce.

Generally, appraisers fall into the following categories:  real estate, jewelry, furniture, antiques, cars, boats and other vehicles, stamps and coins, and artwork.  For more information about this or other divorce topics, call one of the divorce lawyers at ROBIN ROSHKIND, P.A. at 561 835 9091 or click on the Firm’s web site at www.familylawwpb.com for more information.

What To Do If You Catch Your Spouse CHEATING???

By Robin Roshkind, Esquire, West Palm Beach, Florida

I get this question all the time in my practice.  You really only have two options: you look the other way and enjoy life, or if you are not enjoying life, you file for divorce.  Florida is a no fault state.  Spouses can and do cheat.  It’s how you react and what you do or how your spouse reacts and what he/she does that determines the future.

If the cheating takes on a serious turn, the cheater may file for divorce.  Or the innocent spouse may file first, depending upon emotions.  But what I see more and more, it is not the cheater filing for divorce, but rather the innocent spouse.  The cheater generally likes things just the way they are.

The innocent spouse should gather photographs, documents, copies of everything financial, store small valuables like jewelry off premises, and spend time preparing for the other spouse to know you are angry…angry enough to file for divorce.  Sweetness helps to garner information, and often the cheater will brag to the spouse how amazing life is.  Let them talk, all the while finding out who the other person is, where he/she lives, and other forthcoming information.   Information turns into amunition.  Especially when you have all the information to give to your private investigator to determine if your spouse is dissipating marital assets on the paramour.  For more information about this or other divorce topics, call one of the divorce lawyers at ROBIN ROSHKIND, P.A. at 561 835 9091 or click on the Firm’s web site at www.familylawwpb.com for more information.