Family Law Matters
DIVORCE
Divorce can be an emotional and difficult time. The attorneys at Johnson Ritchey Family Law focus on a practical objective approach that assists clients in making rational decisions during this important time in their lives. While the attorneys believe it is usually best for families to try to resolve their issues amicably, that is not always possible. Johnson Ritchey Family Law handles all types of divorce cases, from uncontested dissolution matters to the most litigious. Johnson Ritchey Family Law has a large network of professionals that it can refer clients to, when necessary, ranging from financial experts to mental health professionals. The attorneys at Johnson Ritchey Family Law make sure they always have a manageable case load so that they can focus their attention on every client and file, with a focus on quality representation, not quantity. The attorneys make themselves available to listen and consult during the case regarding any issue. During a divorce, no issue or detail should be too small for your attorney’s ear.
PATERNITY
Paternity actions involve child issues including time-sharing, parental responsibility (decision making for the parties’ minor child or children) and child support issues. Johnson Ritchey Family Law assists its clients in all of these areas, with a focus on keeping the parties’ minor children the priority throughout the process. Johnson Ritchey Family Law focuses on the parent’s concerns and guides them throughout the litigation process. While our attorneys make suggestions to their clients throughout the case, the client always remains in control. With the best interest of the client’s child in mind, Johnson Ritchey Family Law fights hard for its clients with a goal of having child support established in accordance with Florida’s guidelines and a Parenting Plan established that is best for each particular case. No two cases are the same, as no two families are exactly the same. WE give each file the individual attention it needs to tailor it to that particular family’s needs.
POST-MODIFICATION/ENFORCEMENT
Johnson Ritchey Family Law can handle any post dissolution or post final judgment modifications or enforcement actions that might be necessary. These matters will arise after the parties have been divorced or paternity has been established. They can range from modification of time-sharing, child support or alimony, relocation with a minor child or enforcement and contempt matters for a party’s failure to comply with prior court orders. Johnson Ritchey Family Law can take on these matters whether we represented you in your initial action or a different attorney handled it. The attorneys at Johnson Ritchey Family Law take the same approach to these matters as they do in divorce matters. They remain focused on the files and are responsive to all of their client’s concerns.
All family law mattes present complex and highly emotional situations that include critically important issues such as children and finances. The collaborative process to handling a family law matter offers an alternative, non-litigated, non-adversarial manner of handling these issues. The process begins when each party retains an attorney who has been collaboratively trained. They then select a neutral financial expert and a neutral mental health professional who is not there to provide therapy, but to facilitate the process and identify any issues that may need to be addressed. This process keeps financial information and other private family issues confidential. The process is likely to provide a cost benefit as opposed to litigation because the parties utilize joint experts. The parties must voluntarily decide to forgo litigation and use a cooperative, honest, and transparent approach to their issues. This promotes integrity, respect and dignity and assists a family in resolving the issues at hand and to minimize the amount of conflict that could arise in the future.
Sometimes parties are able to agree on some or all of the many issues presented in a dissolution matter. Whether the parties can agree on everything from equitable distribution, alimony, child support, time-sharing and parental responsibility, or are only able to resolve some of these matters, it reduces the cost of the dissolution process if the issues that can be agreed to are resolved as early as possible in a divorce matter. Mediation is a meeting between the parties, their attorneys, if they are represented by counsel, and a neutral, third party facilitator – the mediator. The mediation is voluntary and the parties are not obligated to reach any agreement during the meeting. However, the parties are free to try to resolve as much of the divorce matter as they can and if an agreement is reached, it can be reduced to writing and signed the same day as the mediation. The process is confidential and often gives the parties an opportunity to flush out the issues, identifying what can be resolved without further litigation expenses, and what requires court ruling for final determination. Caroline Johnson is a Florida Supreme Court certified family mediator. Our attorneys are available for mediations for both pro se and represented parties. Call today for mediation rates and dates of availability for mediation.
