The Sun Sentinel Editorial Board penned an opinion the other day regarding potential changes to Florida alimony laws. The changes, including one regarding custody, are summarized as follows:
"The two major basic assumptions that would change are: 1) That
alimony is forever, and 2) That one parent should be favored over
another in custody decisions.
House Bill 455, which has passed
major House committee tests, provides formulas the courts would use for
deciding how much alimony is due from which spouse and how long it
should last. In general, spouses with higher incomes would pay more and a
longer marriage would result in longer payments. However, it would be
rare for payments to continue longer than 75 percent of the marriage's
length.
Meanwhile Senate Bill 250, which also has had committee
success, requires judges to presume that a 50-50 custody arrangement for
minor children 'is in the best interest of the child.'"
Read the entire editorial here.