Florida Executive and Professional Divorce Lawyer

Florida's statute does not name stock options or RSUs, so the general rule applies: assets acquired during the marriage are presumed marital (section 61.075(8)), and the grant documents supply the details. Awards granted and vested during the marriage are generally marital. Unvested awards are harder, because some reward past work and others aim to keep the employee in the future. The court may divide them based on the part earned during the marriage. Many plans bar transfers, so the split is often handled by an offset or by paying the other spouse as awards vest or options are exercised. We can review your grant agreements with you.

Deferred compensation accrued during the marriage, vested or not, is marital (sections 61.075(6)(a)1.e and 61.076). Bonuses raise two questions. For property, what period of work does the bonus reward? A bonus paid after filing may have been earned largely during the marriage. For support, bonuses count as income (section 61.30(2)(a)2), and because they vary, several years of history are often reviewed. We also watch that the same dollars are not counted once as property and again as income. We can sort through your compensation history with you.

The part earned during the marriage is. Contributions and benefits accrued during the marriage, and their growth, are marital whether or not they are vested (sections 61.075(6)(a)1.e and 61.076). Balances from before the marriage are generally nonmarital, but tracing them through years of contributions and withdrawals takes careful records. A 401(k) or private pension is usually divided with a qualified domestic relations order, or QDRO. Some plans, including many government plans, use their own type of order. We can review your plan statements with you.

A qualified domestic relations order, or QDRO, is a court order directing a retirement plan covered by federal law, such as a 401(k) or private pension, to pay part of a participant's benefit to a former spouse. Without an acceptable order, the plan generally cannot pay the other spouse directly. The order must match both the judgment and the plan's own requirements, so it is prepared with the plan's rules in hand and submitted for approval. An IRA is not divided with a QDRO; it is usually divided by a transfer the judgment directs. Ask your tax adviser about the tax treatment. We prepare these orders and follow them through.

Supplemental executive retirement plans and elective deferral plans are generally not divided with a QDRO and often cannot be assigned to anyone but the employee. The value accrued during the marriage is still marital (sections 61.075(6)(a)1.e and 61.076). The judgment therefore handles the other spouse's share another way, such as an offset with other assets or an obligation to pay a defined portion when payments are received. Those terms should cover timing, taxes, forfeiture and what happens if the employee spouse dies first. We can review your plan documents with you.

The court determines the need for alimony and the ability to pay, and the amount is tied to the spouses' incomes (section 61.08). When pay includes salary, an annual bonus and equity vesting on different schedules, one year may not reflect the real picture. The court may look at several years of history, the plan terms and employer records to decide what income is fair to use. Equity already divided as property raises the question of whether it should also count as income. Each side presents its evidence on what is recurring. We can look at your compensation history in a free consultation.

Except for bridge-the-gap alimony, the amount of alimony can generally be modified on a substantial change in circumstances (sections 61.08 and 61.14). The 2023 amendments added rules for retirement: a paying spouse's reasonable retirement can support a modification, and the court considers age, health, motivation, the type of work and the customary retirement age in that field. A request can be filed up to six months before retiring. A voluntary move to a lower-paying job is a different question, and the court may look at whether it was reasonable. We can talk through how this applies to you.

An ownership interest acquired during the marriage is marital, and a closely held business interest is valued at fair market value (section 61.075(6)(a)1.f). Enterprise goodwill, such as the practice's name, location, staff and systems, must be valued. Personal goodwill that follows the physician or dentist is not a marital asset under Thompson v. Thompson, 576 So. 2d 267 (Fla. 1991). Practice agreements and rules on who may own a practice also matter. A common structure is for the practice to stay with the professional and for the other spouse's share to be paid with other assets or over time. We can review your practice's structure with you.

Your interest, including your capital account and share of partnership property, can be marital to the extent it was acquired or grew during the marriage. The partnership agreement usually controls how and when an interest is paid out, so its withdrawal terms and its treatment of unpaid compensation for work during the marriage need review. Personal goodwill tied to your own reputation and client relationships is not marital under Thompson v. Thompson. Because these interests usually cannot be transferred to a spouse outside the profession, the division is generally handled through an offset or a payment. We can review your firm's agreement with you.

Moving out does not by itself end the marital period for property purposes. The cut-off date is generally the earliest of the date of a valid separation agreement or the date the petition was filed (section 61.075(7)). A grant received after you moved out but before filing may therefore be marital, at least in part, depending on what it rewards. Grants made after the cut-off can still raise questions if they compensate work done during the marriage. The grant agreement and the reasons for the award are reviewed closely. We can look at the timing in your case.

The judge sets valuation dates as is just and equitable, and different assets can be valued as of different dates (section 61.075(7)). Publicly traded stock and investment accounts can move a great deal between filing and trial. One common approach is to divide a number of shares or a percentage of an account rather than a fixed dollar amount, so both spouses share later gains and losses. Where one spouse's own efforts after filing changed an asset's value, that can weigh in choosing the date. We can discuss which approach suits the assets in your case.

Florida divorce files are generally public records. Some information is confidential by rule, and under Florida Rule of General Practice and Judicial Administration 2.420, a court can, in limited circumstances and on a proper showing, order specific information kept confidential. Mediation communications are confidential (sections 44.401 to 44.406), and many financial issues can be resolved there. A settlement agreement can sometimes limit the detail that appears in the court file. No method makes an entire case private, so we plan for confidentiality from the start. Ask us how this applies to you.

It can. Florida starts from an equal division of marital assets. Among the factors the court considers in deciding whether an unequal division is justified are the interruption of a spouse's career or educational opportunities and one spouse's contribution to the other's career or education (section 61.075(1)(d) and (e)). For alimony, section 61.08 also directs the court to consider each spouse's contributions to the marriage, including homemaking, child care, education and building the other spouse's career. These factors apply whichever spouse you are. We can talk through how they fit your marriage.

Mandatory disclosure requires your spouse to produce a financial affidavit, tax returns and pay records (Florida Family Law Rule of Procedure 12.285). Executive pay is often spread across equity statements, brokerage accounts, plan statements and employment agreements, and some of it does not appear on a W-2 until it vests or is paid. Through discovery, we can request those records, subpoena the employer and plan administrators, and take depositions. The court can also order temporary support and a contribution to your attorney's fees from the spouse with greater resources while the case is pending (sections 61.071 and 61.16). We can explain the process in a free consultation.