Florida Simple Divorce - FAQ's
Philip B. Darnell - Philipdarnell@yahoo.com

Email Questions Here

How does it all work???

Click Here where you will select which divorce option fits your situation. The first situation is if you have no children, debts or property. The second involves property and/or debts but no children and the third involves a marriage with minor children.

Click on your choice and it will take you to an information page for you to answer the questions I will need to know in order to draft your documents. Then you submit your information to me, make your payment. I take it from there. It is literally that easy.

What happens next???

I draft your documents and email them back to you for you to review, print and sign. You will then have your spouse review and sign. (note: the Florida Bar ethically prohibits me from representing both sides of a dissolution. I will be representing the petitioner in this action and as such will be only in communication with them during the process) since this is an uncontested divorce that seldom presents any problem it is just that if there are any questions for me, they will have to come from my client only.

After the documents are signed you will return them to me and I will see that they are filed and finalized. Please note that I do not file the action until I have received all the documents back and signed by both parties. I do that because people sometimes change their mind and decide to stay together or they change their mind and decide there are issues they want to contest. In either case I save you the filing fee of $408 by making sure everyone is in agreement before we proceed.

When the Final Judgment is signed you will receive your copy in the mail. THAT'S IT!

NO HEARINGS AND NO NEED TO TRAVEL!!!!!!

How long does it take???

From the time I receive your information I can usually have your documents drafted and back to you within 48 hours. When my office receives your “signed" documents back we can usually count on about 30 days from filing to Final Judgment. (Please note that this is an “average" much depends on when the judge signs it. We are required to wait 20 days from the filing date to submit the Final Judgment to the Court for signing. After that it is up to the judge} 95% are done in that time frame.

Here is what I don't do.

It's only fair to tell you what my service does not do for you. I don't draft your documents until the drafting fee is paid. I use to do that but on too many cases people have just taken the documents I draft and use them without paying me. My service is for "uncontested" or “simple" divorces only. If you and your spouse are not in full agreement you should not waste your money on my service. My service only works for parties who have discussed their issues and are in full agreement. If your divorce becomes contested I will not represent you and you will need to hire local counsel to advise you. It becomes contested when of of the parties no longer agrees to something and will not sign the documents I draft.

Of course if you change your mind and want to make some amendments or changes but both parties are still willing to sign off on everything, that is no problem at all. I charge $75 for a re-draft of the Marital settlement agreement. Naturally any mistakes I make when drafting will be corrected at no charge.

I have set my rate based on drafting your documents for you. Should you decide not to proceed I will not be able to refund your drafting fee. Of course if you have paid your filing fee and we have not yet filed it, that will be refunded.

I don't get involved with negotiating with your spouse or other attorneys. If there are negotiations to be done you basically are not all in agreement and my service is not for you. If that is your situation you should be seeking advice from local counsel.

I don't practice real property law or give tax advice.

I don't go through the process of determining how much you should pay in Child Support or Alimony. Remember this site helps couples who have discussed all those issues and have reached an agreement regarding them. The Florida Department of Revenue has a great web-site for Child Support Calculations if you need a guideline in determining the correct amount.

I don't do post- judgment actions…….an example would be if one of the parties stops paying child support and a contempt action is necessary. That action would need to be handled in Collier County or you will need to get your file transferred to another jurisdiction.