How Adultery Can Impact A Florida Family Law Court’s Decision On Alimony Payments

Florida divorce law follows the no fault approach. Under this principle a divorce may be approved even if no party is at fault for the marriage dissolution. For example, Florida family law does not require adultery to be suspected when applying for a divorce. Florida divorce law only requires the petitioning spouse to testify that the marriage is irretrievably broken. However, under certain conditions the Florida family law court will contemplate adultery when determining the amount of alimony payments. If you or your spouse committed adultery you should contact a seasoned Tampa divorce attorney for legal advice. The adultery may have a substantial impact on the amount of alimony payments awarded. On the other hand, depending on the conditions of the adultery it could be entirely immaterial from the Florida family law court’s decision. The evidence supplied by the Tampa divorce lawyer will normally mean the difference between an adultery having a significant effect and none at all on the size of alimony awarded.

The Florida Alimony law says, "The court may consider the adultery of either spouse and the circumstances thereof in determining the amount of alimony, if any, to be awarded." However, the vast majority of court determinations distinctly state that the chief aspect considered by the court will be the spouse’s necessity for alimony and the other spouse’s ability to pay the alimony. In order for the Florida family law court to give alimony based on the adultery, the adultery must have caused a financial damage to the innocent spouse. A qualified Tampa divorce lawyer will most often argue that the adultery resulted in a depletion of family resources, and thus a larger amount of alimony should be given to the innocent spouse. For example, a Tampa divorce attorney may try to persuade the judge that the cheating spouse spent money which came from the marital assets to further advance his adultery.

Adultery will normally not be a large aspect in the court’s determination of alimony. In order for the adultery to be dispositive the Tampa divorce attorney must demonstrate that the adultery created a financial damage to the innocent spouse’s interest in the marital assets. For legal advice on whether an adultery could have an effect on the courts determination of alimony payments contact the Tampa divorce attorneys at Florida Law Group. One of our qualified Tampa divorce lawyers will be glad to answer all of your questions during a free, private consultation.