Author: Paul E Rice, Jr. - Board Certified Divorce Attorney

While the divorce rate of the entire U.S. population has remained fairly steady, the rate for the “over 50" set has risen dramatically. In 1990, one in 10 people who got divorced was over the age of 50. In 2010, it was one in four. A half century ago, less than 3% of Americans older than 50 were divorced.

In dissolution of marriage (commonly referred to as divorce) cases in Florida, the concept of equitable distribution is utilized as opposed to community property when distributing assets and liabilities.  Equitable means fair not equal.  The first step in the equitable distribution process is to identify all assets and liabilities of the spouses. Then those assets and liabilities are characterized as either marital, non-marital or a hybrid of both. 

The Florida Supreme Court ruled in 1991 that if a husband's law practice had monetary value over and above the value of its tangible assets, separate and distinct from the reputation of the husband, then the practice had "good will," and the good will that accumulated during the marriage was a marital asset subject to equitable distribution. 

Four hours before it  was to  automatically became law, Governor Rick Scott on May 1, 2013 vetoed a measure that would have ended permanent alimony in Florida.  In light of the overwhelming majorities in the House (85-31) and Senate (29-11) that approved the bill, Floridians should anticipate a similar debate in the next legislative session. 

The Florida Legislature probably didn’t have Led Zepplin’s 1969 song “Living Loving Maid (She’s Just a Woman)” in mind when similar bills recently advanced in both the House and Senate which would eliminate permanent alimony in Florida.  Opponents of the bills say that, like “Living Loving Maid,” the proposed law is misogynistic ( ie. characterized by a hatred of women.)  On the other hand, a group known as Florida Alimony Reform has compiled an impressive list of real life “horror stories” about spouses, more often than not men, who have been buried by alimony awards.