Family Law

Family law is the area where legal work and personal life overlap most completely. The people we represent are almost always going through the hardest conversation of their adult lives. Our job is to protect their interests without feeding the conflict, to be honest about what the law can and cannot do, and to get them to the other side of the case intact.

More than two decades of Florida family law

Family law at DHW Law is led by Gwen Walkowiak, who has practiced in this area since her admission to The Florida Bar in 2002. She is supported by David Walkowiak’s Supreme Court of Florida certification in Family Law Mediation when a matter is better resolved at the mediation table than in the courtroom. Between them, they bring the steadiness and personal attention that a small firm makes possible.

Divorce

Florida is a no-fault divorce state. You only need to show that the marriage is “irretrievably broken.” Beyond that, divorce cases involve:

• Equitable distribution of marital assets and debts
• Alimony (Florida recognizes several types: temporary, bridge-the-gap, rehabilitative, durational, and permanent, each with different rules)
• Time-sharing and parental responsibility for any minor children
• Child support calculated under Florida’s statutory formula

Most divorces resolve without a trial. When they can, the settlement is almost always better than what either side would have gotten from a judge, because the parties know their lives and the judge does not.

Custody and time-sharing

Florida’s best-interest standard controls every custody decision. The court considers parental capacity, the child’s needs, the stability of each home, the history of involvement, each parent’s willingness to foster the child’s relationship with the other, and many other factors. In most cases, we can build a parenting plan through mediation rather than trial. The plan the parties negotiate together is almost always one they are more willing to follow.

Other family matters

• Paternity. Establishing or disputing paternity, with corresponding custody and support.
• Step-parent and relative adoption. Adding a child to the family through adoption.
• Modification of existing support or time-sharing orders when circumstances change.
• Prenuptial and postnuptial agreements. Drafted to protect both parties and survive judicial scrutiny.
• Domestic violence injunctions. Pursuing or defending restraining orders.

Do not take chances on your legal representation in a family matter. The difference experienced counsel makes is measured in years of your life.