Equitable Distribution Law Update: Appeals Court Applies Kaaa v. Kaaa
The divorce lawyers of Nugent & Zborowski practice all areas of family law in West Palm Beach, Florida. The firm also handles alimony, child support, custody and equitable distribution cases in West Palm Beach, Boynton Beach, Palm beach Gardens, Boca Raton, Jupiter and Stuart.
The Palm Beach and Martin County matrimonial and family law attorneys of Nugent & Zborowski recently observed the October 22, 2010 opinion of the 5th District Court of Appeal in Leider v. Leider, 35 Fla. L. Weekly D2332b (Fla. 5th DCA Oct. 22, 2010).
In Leider, the appeals court had issued an opinion before the Florida Supreme Court ruled in Kaaa v. Kaaa, 35 Fla. L. Weekly S521a (Fla. Sept. 30, 2010). In light of the Florida Supreme Court’s ruling, the Leider court issued a substitute opinion that sheds light on how Kaaa v. Kaaa may be interpreted going forward.
The Leider court held that “funds spent for repairs were not improvements that contributed to the value appreciation of the house…we reverse the part of the final judgment awarding the wife $27,481 as a marital asset and remand for further proceedings consistent with Kaaa.”
The Leider decision seems to be in line with many of the federal tax code provisions that delineate between repairs and improvements on real property, although it remains to be seen whether other district courts will agree with the Fifth District Court of Appeal’s conceptual notion that repairs made to property using marital funds do not create a marital asset subject to equitable distribution.
Click here to read the full text of the court’s opinion in Leider v. Leider.
It is important to consult with an experienced divorce lawyer about how Florida’s equitable distributionlaws apply to your case. For more information, call 561.844.1200 or click here and speak to an attorney with the Law Offices of Nugent & Zborowski about how Florida’s equitable distribution laws will apply to govern the distribution of your assets upon divorce.
The attorneys of Nugent & Zborowski exclusively handle Divorce & Family Law matters in and around West Palm Beach and Palm Beach County, Florida, and also handle divorce, paternity and modification of alimony and child support cases in the vicinity of Palm Beach, North Palm Beach, Palm Beach Gardens, Lake Worth, Stuart, Royal Palm Beach and Jupiter. For more information or to schedule a consultation call (561) 844-1200 or visit the firm’s website, www.nugentlawfirm.com.
Which Court Will Handle Your Divorce?: Part II of IV (Divorce in the West Palm Beach, Lake Worth, Royal Palm Beach, Wellington, and Palm Beach Areas)
The divorce lawyers of Nugent & Zborowski practice all areas of divorce and family law in the West Palm Beach, Florida area. The firm’s attorneys also handle paternity, juvenile dependancy, modification of alimony and child support, visitation(timesharing), and child custody, and fathers’ and grandparents’ rights cases.
If you live in West Palm Beach, Lake Worth, Royal Palm Beach, Wellington or Palm Beach, one of your questions about your divorce or family law matter may concern the actual location of where you need to go to have a Judge decide an aspect of your case. As an initial matter, divorce and family law related cases are handled in the circuit court level of Florida’s state court system. Florida separates circuit courts into multiple “judicial circuits.” The population of Palm Beach County is large enough to have its own judicial circuit, the 15th Judicial Circuit, which is headquartered at the main county courthouse in West Palm Beach.
Divorce and Family law cases in Boynton Beach, Delray Beach, Boca Raton and the surrounding areas are handled by Palm Beach County’s Unified Family Court. The Unified Family Court operates four primary branches, the North County Branch, South County Branch, West County Branch, and the Central (Main) Branch. All of the divorce and family law cases in Palm Beach County are initially split between the four branches based on the zip code of the residence of the person filing a case pursuant to Administrative Order NO. 5.101-4/10 (to view, click here and select the first link that appears on the top of the page).
The Main Courthouse (click here for location information and driving directions) has three divorce and family law judges and three magistrates, and handles cases for the following locations and zip codes:
Divorce and Family Law in Atlantis 33462
Divorce and Family Law in Bryant 33439
Divorce and Family Law in Cloud Lake 33416
Divorce and Family Law in Glen ridge 33406
Divorce and Family Law in Golfview 33416
Divorce and Family Law in Greenacres 33463
Divorce and Family Law in Greenacres 33467
Divorce and Family Law in Haverhill 33422
Divorce and Family Law in Hypoluxo 33462
Divorce and Family Law in Lantana 33462
Divorce and Family Law in Lake Clarke Shores 33406
Divorce and Family Law in Lake Worth 33459
Divorce and Family Law in Lake Worth 33454
Divorce and Family Law in Lake Worth 33460
Divorce and Family Law in Lake Worth 33461
Divorce and Family Law in Lake Worth 33462
Divorce and Family Law in Lake Worth 33463
Divorce and Family Law in Lake Worth 33464
Divorce and Family Law in Lake Worth 33465
Divorce and Family Law in Lake Worth 33466
Divorce and Family Law in Lake Worth 33467
Divorce and Family Law in Loxahatchee 33470
Divorce and Family Law in Manalapan 33462
Divorce and Family Law in Palm Beach 33480
Divorce and Family Law in Palm Springs 33461
Divorce and Family Law in Pelican Lake 33491
Divorce and Family Law in Royal Palm Beach 33421
Divorce and Family Law in South Palm Beach
Divorce and Family Law in Village of Golf 33406
Divorce and Family Law in Village of Wellington 33421
Divorce and Family Law in Wellington 33467
Divorce and Family Law in West Palm Beach 33401
Divorce and Family Law in West Palm Beach 33402
Divorce and Family Law in West Palm Beach 33405
Divorce and Family Law in West Palm Beach 33406
Divorce and Family Law in West Palm Beach 33416
Divorce and Family Law in West Palm Beach 33421
Divorce and Family Law in West Palm Beach 33422
Divorce and Family Law in West Palm Beach 33423
Currently, Judge Maass, Judge Brunson and Judge Lewis are the judges handling divorce and family law matters at Main Courthouse. However, Judge Maass is being transferred to another division and her role in family court will be assumed by the newly elected Lisa Small in January 2011.
For more information about your divorce and family law case, call 561.844.1200 and speak to an attorney with the Law Offices of Nugent & Zborowski. You can also click here to email an attorney with the firm to request more information, or visit the firm’s website, www.nugentlawfirm.com.