Category: News

When it comes to owning a home, co-ownership is certainly not uncommon.  Even if one were to ignore co-ownership between a husband and wife, there are times when multiple siblings inherit a home from a deceased parent, or scenarios under which friends and family split the cost of a mortgage by jointly owning a home.

As a family law attorney, I hear the above question in some form or fashion quite often, and the short answer is no. If you are not married, and you have a child as an unwed father, simply having your name on the child’s birth certificate as the biological father will not help you if your relationship with the mother goes south, and she plans on  leaving you and taking the child.

1. WHAT ARE MORTGAGES AND PROMISSORY NOTES a.  Mortgage - a document that places a lien on real property to secure the payment of a loan reflected in a promissory note; b.  Promissory note - document reflecting the amount a borrower pays and the terms under which it is to be repaid.

The Economic Power Hour was held at the Ormond Chamber Boardroom on Wednesday, April 10th at 8am.  The guest speaker was Attorney Matthew Shapiro with the Rice & Rose Law Firm.

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.

If you ask most individuals to describe the function of a will, chances are the majority will be able to at least state that it is a document used to transfer property upon one’s passing. Ask those same individuals to describe “probate” and you will you most likely be met with an inquisitive stare.

One of the cornerstones of our legal protections in our society, the right to be free from search and seizure by the government unless and until the issuance of a search warrant by the court upon a finding of probable cause, may soon have application and become the law in the state of Florida in relation to our portable electronic devices.

You may have heard change is in the air for 2013, and apparently the Florida Supreme Court got the message. Recently our Florida Supreme Court made a major change in what type of claims may be made in contract dispute cases by ruling that the economic loss rule now only applies in product liability cases.

Paul Rice, his spouse Kristi, Jim Rose and his spouse Janice attended the Daytona Regional Chamber annual dinner on February 11 at the Hilton in Daytona Beach.  Jim Rose is the chairman-elect of the Chamber for 2014.

Paul Rice, senior partner with the Rice & Rose Law Firm, attended the annual Marital and Family Law Review Course on January 25 and 26, 2013, which was presented by the Family Law Section of the Florida Bar and the Florida Chapter of the American Acadamy of Matrimonial Lawyers.