When families fall apart and divorce knocks on the door, emotions, at times, get in the way of a husband or wife allowing their in-laws to spend time or even see their grandchildren. While this is heartbreaking and only harms the children, there is (unfortunately) very little a grandparent can do in Florida to see his or her grandchild(ren) if the parents object.

Florida Statute 752.011 addresses petitions for grandparent visitation. Per this statute a “grandparent of a minor child whose parents are deceased, missing, or in a persistent vegetative state, or whose one parent is deceased, missing, or in a persistent vegetative state and whose other parent has been convicted of a felony or an offense of violence evincing behavior that poses a substantial threat of harm to the minor child’s health or welfare, may petition the court for court-ordered visitation with the grandchild…”

While we have a large elderly population in our Sunshine State (lots of wonderful grandparents), historically the legislature’s hands have been tied trying to pass laws providing for grandparent visitation as this type of law would violate the constitutional rights of the parents.

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The following are considered income for child support calculation purposes per subsection (2) of the statute:

(2) Income shall be determined on a monthly basis for each parent as follows:

(a) Gross income shall include, but is not limited to, the following:

1. Salary or wages.

2. Bonuses, commissions, allowances, overtime, tips, and other similar payments.

3. Business income from sources such as self-employment, partnership, close corporations, and independent contracts. “Business income” means gross receipts minus ordinary and necessary expenses required to produce income.

4. Disability benefits.

5. All workers’ compensation benefits and settlements.

6. Reemployment assistance or unemployment compensation.

7. Pension, retirement, or annuity payments.

8. Social security benefits.

9. Spousal support received from a previous marriage or court ordered in the marriage before the court.

10. Interest and dividends.

11. Rental income, which is gross receipts minus ordinary and necessary expenses required to produce the income.

12. Income from royalties, trusts, or estates.

13. Reimbursed expenses or in kind payments to the extent that they reduce living expenses

The court considers the parents’ net income to calculate the proper child support amount.  As outlined in subsection (3) of the statute, the allowable statutory deductions are as follows:

(a)    Federal, state, and local income tax deductions, adjusted for actual filing status and allowable dependents and income tax liabilities.

(b) Federal insurance contributions or self-employment tax.

(c) Mandatory union dues.

(d) Mandatory retirement payments.

(e) Health insurance payments, excluding payments for coverage of the minor child.

(f) Court-ordered support for other children which is actually paid.

(g) Spousal support paid pursuant to a court order from a previous marriage or the marriage before the court.

Child support calculations also take into consideration payments for health and dental costs, as well as daycare costs. It is imperative to preserve records evidencing these expenses and payments so that child support can be calculated properly.

Finally, often parents fight over time sharing, because the amount of time a parent spends with his/her children directly affects the child support amount.  Generally when a parent spends more overnights with his/her child(ren) each year, he/she pays less child support than a parent who spends significantly less time.  It’s important to note, however, that the difference in the amount is not always significant. Ultimately, in determining a time sharing schedule, the court always considers the best interest of the child. If the court determines that one parent has withheld the children from the other parent only to receive more child support, it can have negative implications for the withholding parent.

It’s advisable to seek the advice of an experienced attorney to run your child support guidelines to make sure that you receive the proper child support amount or that you are not overpaying.

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To help you manage your stress and emotions so that you can be a better role model for your child, here are 10 tips to help you co-parent more successfully.

1. Keep your child’s needs in the forefront of your mind. Most divorcing parents will say that this is the hardest thing to remember and sometimes, the hardest thing to do. Letting go of your anger, resentment, or hurt will take time, but until then, your feelings will need to be secondary to your child’s. If your ex-spouse was not abusive, then they will likely still be a good parent. People can still be good parents even if they didn’t make a good spouse.
2. Find a way for your to effectively communicate with your ex-spouse. Because you share a child with this person, you will be still be seeing them for many more years to come. Birthday parties, school events, graduation, marriage, and grandchildren. You are tied to this person for life so you will need to find a way to discuss important factors regarding your children. Communication does not have to be face to face conversations; it can be through text messages, emails, or other online messages. It is perfectly ok to keep your communication formal, brief, and to the point – just be sure to remember to be cordial. As time passes, you can reevaluate your avenue of communication to see if changes need to be made.
3. See the divorce through your child’s eyes. If you think divorce is difficult for you, imagine how your child must be feeling as everything they know is changing drastically. Before you say or do anything, think about how your child will perceive it. If the other parent was late again for pick up and you are thinking about calling your spouse about the issue (and know a likely argument will occur), stop and think about if your child were to overhear the conversation.
4. If you have nothing nice to say, then say nothing at all. Keep your feelings about your ex-spouse to yourself. Do not speak ill of them to a friend or family member where your child could overhear the conversation. If you need to discuss your feelings about your spouse seek the counsel of a therapist or wait until your children are gone and invite a friend or family member over to talk. Your child has the right to love their other parent and hearing bad things about them can be detrimental to their mental health. As your child grows and nears adulthood, they will gain a realistic impression of both you and their other parent. So, if you are truly stuck coparenting with a bad person, one day your child will see it for themselves.
5. Don’t cringe when your child mentions their other parent. When your child is with you, they may bring up something they did at their other parent’s house or something their other parent has done for them. Do not shy away from the conversation, allow your child to express their feelings about their other parent. This will make them feel secure and comfortable about talking to you about things in their life, even the difficult things.
6. Agree on the “big stuff”. Coparenting will mean that you both agree on how to raise your child so that the treatment is consistent between homes. Rules about behavior, discipline, grades, homework, chores, hygiene, playtime, screen/tv time, and bedtimes should be the same for each household. Children do need structure and guidelines and these should be the same across each household. Matching rules will help reduce behavioral issues of acting out at one house but not the other. If a child is grounded at one home, they should be grounded in the other. Being the “cool parent” will only undermine your spouse’s authority on child rearing and can cause issues later in your child’s life.
7. The time sharing schedule is not flexible. Do not try to swap days or make changes that are unnecessary. The time sharing schedule will help to keep you and your children organized. It will also help the child feel secure in that they will see their other parent again. Only when a modification is truly necessary, should a change be made. Guidelines should be in effect on how to deal with these emergency situations.
8. Remember to take care of yourself, too. Going through a divorce can present a challenging time in your life. Do something that will help you stay positive throughout the day or to help give yourself a little pick me up during rougher times. It can be anything from getting some fresh air or change of scenery, having a positive self-talk with yourself, getting a massage, or trying a new hobby. If it helps to relieve some of your stress, what do you have to lose?
9. Plan for the day when your family becomes blended. One day, once the divorce has long passed you or your ex-spouse may find someone who you would like to have join the family. Initially a new partner should be limited in their involvement in child rearing decisions and should not be the ones to communicate on your behalf to your ex-spouse. When a new partner’s position in your family is more secure, then you and your ex-spouse should discuss how much the new partner should contribute to decision making involving your children.
10. Forgive. It may not be today, it may not be tomorrow, or even three years from now; but one day you should find it in yourself to forgive. Forgive yourself, forgive your ex-spouse. Whatever that it was that contributed to the end of your marriage should not hold you back from letting go of the past.

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In order to prepare for college expenses, you will have to included them in your custody settlement during the divorce proceedings. Without taking these measures, you won’t have any other form of recourse in the future to attempt to secure financial assitance for your child’s education from your ex-spouse.

There is no set way to establish guidelines for continued educational support. You and your former spouse can create agreeable terms how you see fit. For most cases, spouses are easily able to come to an agreement because the promised funds are solely for the child’s needs and not paid directly to the other spouse. Keep in mind when determining the types of funds to be covered and how much each parent should contribute, that college expenses include more than just tuition, like books, meal plans, housing, and lab fees.

One way that the college educational expenses can be handled is to create an educational savings plan, like a 529 plan or Coverdell ESA, or a dedicated trust for college tuition and expenses. Each parent contributes up to an agreed amount or percentage to the education plan or trust while the child ages so that the funds are available after high school graduation. Another option to address the child’s future educational costs is to agree that each parent will contribute funds at a predetermined rate after the completion of high school and the child has chosen a school to attend. The rates each parent is responsible for can be determined based on each parent’s financial capabilities. Meaning, if one parent makes a significantly more amount of money, they contribute at a higher rate than the other parent.

During the negotiations, parents can opt to share the full costs of college expenses or only a partial cost, leaving the child to fulfill part of the financial responsibility through student loans or scholarships.

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