Lakeland Family Lawyer

Documenting our lives on social media has become second nature.  When an event occurs, we immediately take a picture and post it to some sort of social media account.  Most people do not consider the legal consequences of what they put on their social media accounts. I recently put a meme on Instagram that read,  “Dance like no one is watching; email like it may one day be read aloud in a deposition.”   I would apply this quote to all social media outlets.  If you would not want what you are about to post to be read aloud in a deposition or shown to a jury one day in open court, it is probably best not to post it. The courts have had to rule on privacy issues when it comes to Facebook and other social media outlets.  The trend has been, in federal courts and in Florida, that if you choose to post something on social media, you are  waiving your privacy , even if you have your privacy settings set to the most private.  The courts have rati...

Sometimes people just sign documents without even reading them.  This practice is a dangerous one, especially when it comes to a power of attorney. Be wary of general power of attorney documents that give broad power and have no expiration date.  I have seen two situations with horrific outcomes: 1), where a person did not even realize he or she was signing a power of attorney document, as it was done by trickery, and 2), where a person just did not thoughtfully choose the proper person to which to give the power of attorney.  In both situations, the people were stripped of their assets by others they thought they could trust. Both situations could have been prevented. First and foremost, read everything you sign.  Do not trust anyone, even loved ones and family members when they put something in front of you and tell you they just need your signature. When money is involved, unfortunately people can become selfish.  People can become quite nasty and unrecog...

I have recently been asked a lot about premarital agreements .  I personally have mixed feelings about them.  My optimistic side, that wants to believe in the happy ending, sees them as setting your marriage up for failure.  But then my lawyer side kicks that version of myself right back to reality. Depending on how you look at the statistics , approximately half of all marriages will end in divorce.  No matter what your hopes and dreams are, you cannot control the marriage or your partner.  It is important to protect yourself and your rights.  I can't help but think of the song by Kanye West, "Gold Digger" as I type.  The lyrics say, "If you ain't no punk holla we want prenup, we want prenup!"  This song happens to be about women, but it is equally applicable to men as well. As a general rule, premarital agreements are enforceable in Florida.  A well drafted agreement can protect your assets, reduce the potential for litigation, and clea...

Let me preface by saying I am not a child psychologist--I am just a lawyer. I came across this article in the Huffington Post yesterday and I paused.  In my job, I work with parents who underneath it all, want what is best for their children. But sometimes, because of their own hurt and anger, they get sidetracked and lose sight of that.  This article demonstrates what happens to children when parents lose sight of putting their children first and start nitpicking about material things, such as items of clothing.  Children end up living out of suitcases.     In Florida, the best interest of the child is always the primary standard used when it comes to determining time-sharing .  Judges will also look to other factors such as: 1. The moral fitness of the parents. 2. The mental and physical health of the parents. 3. The demonstrated capacity and disposition of each parent to facilitate and encourage a close and continuing parent-child relationship...

You may have heard the term "shared parental responsibility" when it comes to child custody. This doctrine means that each parent keeps full parental rights and responsibilities with respect to the child and both parents must communicate with each other so that major decisions affecting the welfare of the child will be determined jointly. Examples of decisions that are typically subject to shared parental responsibility include decisions concerning the child's daycare, healthcare, school, education, summer camps, and activities.  A Florida family law attorney would explain that many courts take the view that day-to-day decisions, such as bedtimes, diet, exercise, clothing, and choice of friends, are not subject to shared parental responsibility in normal cases.  Extreme circumstances regarding certain day-to-day decisions may justify a court getting involved.  Courts frequently take differing views regarding religion, allowing each parent to expose a child to the pa...