Family Law
Family law encompasses legal matters that pertain to familial relationships and domestic issues. It addresses a broad range of topics, including marriage, divorce, child custody, adoption, spousal support, and domestic violence.
Family Law issues can be complicated and often overwhelming to face alone, especially when children are involved. Kelley Kronenberg’s Florida family law attorneys bring the compassion these cases call for and the experience to handle real complexity, including high-conflict custody (known in Florida as time-sharing) disputes, high-net-worth divorce, military family law, and cases involving international or multicultural families.
Every family’s situation is different, and we take the time to understand what matters most in yours before building a strategy. We bring strong advocacy and negotiation skills to every aspect of family law. Our attorneys are experienced litigators, negotiators, and problem-solvers who represent your interests in and out of the courtroom.
Experienced Florida Family Law Attorneys
Family law decisions affect time-sharing and how assets are divided for years to come. Experience matters because it means recognizing early how a case is likely to unfold and knowing which strategies lead to resolution versus which ones add cost and delay. The Florida family law attorneys at Kelley Kronenberg bring more than 80 years of combined experience to every case we handle.
Family Law Support Across Florida
Our reach spans the entire state. Below are some of the issues our attorneys see often in cases across each region, and how they inform our approach.
Serving Miami-Dade, Broward, Palm Beach and Monroe counties, our South Florida family law attorneys have built decades of trust handling complex family law cases throughout the region. The area’s international and multicultural population brings distinct issues into many of our cases. For example, we handle Hague Convention child abduction cases, international custody disputes, and domestication of foreign judgments and divorce decrees. Prenuptial and postnuptial agreements often need to account for religious or cultural practices while still holding up in Florida courts.
The region’s concentrated wealth adds another layer, with multi-state and multi-country real estate, closely held business interests, and assets held in trusts or foreign entities common in our cases. Our attorneys have the experience to identify and value all of these accurately in a divorce.
Central Florida’s tourism and hospitality economy means many parents in our cases earn income through tips, seasonal work, or overtime, particularly during peak travel periods, and this requires careful documentation when calculating child support and alimony. The region’s theme park and hospitality employers also run on rotating shifts and non-traditional hours, which our Central Florida family law attorneys account for when building parenting plans and time-sharing schedules. We work closely with clients to document irregular income accurately and to craft time-sharing arrangements built around a parent’s actual schedule, including one that changes from week to week.
North Florida’s military presence, particularly around Jacksonville’s naval installations, shapes many of its family law cases. For example, deployment affects custody schedules and can require modifying a parenting plan on short notice, while military pensions require careful handling to divide correctly under federal law. The nearby Georgia border adds interstate jurisdiction questions when custody or support orders cross state lines. Our North Florida family law attorneys regularly guide clients through these issues, working to keep custody and support proceedings in the right court from the start.
West Florida’s large retiree and seasonal resident population means more high-net-worth divorces involving pensions, Social Security, and retirement accounts built over long marriages. Many clients also split time between Florida and another state, which raises residency and homestead questions that affect property division and alimony. As a result, our Gulf Coast family law attorneys have experience unwinding these shared retirement accounts, real estate holdings, and long-term assets accurately.
The Panhandle combines a strong military presence, including installations near Pensacola and Eglin Air Force Base, with a large state government workforce based in Tallahassee. Military pensions and state employee retirement benefits under the Florida Retirement System both require specific handling in a divorce. In addition, interstate jurisdiction issues with Alabama and Georgia also come up regularly. Because of this, our Panhandle family law attorneys are prepared to handle the complicated military and jurisdictional issues present in such cases.
Family Law Matters We Handle
At Kelley Kronenberg, our Florida family law attorneys provide high-quality representation across a wide range of matters, including:
Our Cross-Disciplinary Approach to Complex Family Law
Family law matters such as divorce and child custody are multi-faceted, and they often involve different areas of law. Many firms handle family law exclusively, and some may have one or two related practice areas. Kelley Kronenberg offers more than 40 practice areas under one roof.
As a cross-disciplinary firm, our Florida family law attorneys routinely collaborate with our business law, asset protection, real estate, criminal law, maritime, estate planning, and labor and employment teams whenever a case calls for it. This approach means every relevant area of law is part of your strategy from the start.
Our integrated methodology is often seen in the following types of cases:
High-net-worth divorces often involve business interests, stock options and restricted stock units, investment portfolios, real estate in multiple states or countries, and retirement accounts that require accurate valuation before they can be divided. Some cases also rely on forensic accountants to trace assets or identify income that isn’t reflected on a tax return.
Our family law attorneys handle both the financial complexity and the litigation demands these cases require, collaborating with our asset protection attorneys to provide exceptional protection to our clients.
Domestic Violence cases require immediate action and a compassionate approach. Our attorneys help clients pursue and defend against injunctions for protection. Because domestic violence often intersects with custody, time-sharing, and divorce, our family law and criminal defense attorneys work together whenever a case involves both civil and criminal proceedings.
Florida’s large military population faces family law issues civilians rarely encounter. For example, permanent change of station orders raise complex relocation issues, and deployment can further complicate custody and support arrangements already in place. Our family law attorneys understand the protections unique to military families and build custody and support plans that work around deployment and reassignment. When appropriate, this team works with our labor and employment law attorneys to provide an approach that addresses these intricate issues.
When a marriage involves a family-owned business, divorce becomes more complicated. Our Florida family law attorneys work directly with Kelley Kronenberg’s business law team on valuation, succession planning, and ownership disputes. As a result, our clients receive counsel on both the marital and business sides of their cases within a single firm.
Florida’s ports and maritime industry create family law issues that general practitioners don’t often encounter. Mariners, longshoremen, and other maritime and port employees face challenges that don’t fit a standard divorce or custody case.
Rotating schedules and time away from home or the docks call for parenting plans built around a maritime career. Similarly, income built from base pay, per diem, overtime, and hazard pay calls for careful documentation when calculating support. When a maritime injury is part of the picture, our family law and maritime attorneys work together to assess how it impacts your case and to develop a pointed strategy.
Why Choose Kelley Kronenberg
Family law cases often require more than one kind of legal expertise, whether that’s tracing hidden assets, structuring a military pension division, or coordinating with a criminal defense team during a domestic violence matter. At Kelley Kronenberg, that expertise sits within one firm, so your case doesn’t get handed off between separate lawyers as new issues come up. You get direct access to your attorney, backed by a team of paralegals and legal assistants who help keep communication fast when you have questions or your case needs to move quickly.
Family Law FAQs
Starting a divorce action in Florida begins with filing a petition for dissolution of marriage in the circuit court of the county where you reside. Florida is a no-fault state, so the only required allegation to dissolve a marriage is that the marriage is “irretrievably broken.” Consent or agreement of your spouse is not required. At least one spouse must have lived in Florida for the immediate six-month period preceding the date the action for dissolution is filed. Once filed, your spouse is served with the court documents, financial disclosures are exchanged within 45 days of service, and every disputed case must be mediated before any trial.
Before you file, talk to an experienced family law attorney. Being prepared matters more than filing first. Kelley Kronenberg offers confidential consultations at no cost.
Start by protecting yourself and arming yourself with as much information as you can gather. Do not agree to any terms in writing or sign any documents before speaking with an experienced family law attorney and receiving proper guidance. While you have access, gather copies of financial documents: tax returns, bank statements, retirement accounts, and records tied to any marital assets. Store them somewhere private. Make sure no one else has access to your emails or private communications; update your passwords if you have any concerns about improper access. The decisions made or actions taken in the first few weeks can carry long-term consequences. Kelley Kronenberg offers confidential consultations at no cost.
Florida bases every custody decision on the manifest best interests of the child, using the terms “time-sharing” and “parental responsibility” rather than “custody” or “visitation.” Florida statutes now utilize a legal presumption that equal 50/50 time-sharing is in the best interest of every child. If there is a dispute over time-sharing or decision-making authority, courts evaluate more than twenty statutory factors based upon the evidence presented. The outcome depends on the specific facts of your situation and how well those facts are presented in court. An experienced family law attorney helps you build and present your case the way the court needs to see it.
Florida is an equitable distribution state, meaning marital assets and debts are divided equally between the parties. Marital property generally includes all assets and liabilities acquired during the marriage (from the date of marriage to the date of filing). Separate property, such as assets owned by one spouse before the marriage that has not been co-mingled, or received as inheritance, is typically not subject to equitable division. That line can blur when accounts are commingled or when separate assets gained value during the marriage. Complex divorces often involve business interests, investment portfolios, deferred compensation, real estate, and retirement accounts. The more complex the marital estate, the more important it is to have competent counsel by your side who understands the legal, emotional, and financial dimensions of what is at stake.
Florida’s alimony law changed significantly in 2023. Permanent alimony was eliminated. Today, alimony is primarily awarded for a defined period tied to the length of the marriage, and it cannot exceed the receiving spouse’s demonstrated financial need. Courts consider the standard of living during the marriage, each spouse’s earning capacity, age and health, length of the marriage, and contributions made as a homemaker or caregiver. Whether you are the higher-earning spouse concerned about long-term exposure or the lower-earning spouse who needs time to reestablish financial stability, a family law attorney with experience applying the updated law can make a significant difference in your outcome.
A business started or grown during a marriage is typically treated as a marital asset subject to equitable distribution. The process often requires a formal business valuation performed by forensic accountants. Valuations are frequently contested and can be very costly, with spouses often arriving at very different numbers depending on the methodology used and what income sources are included. Common outcomes include one spouse buying out the other in the overall equitable distribution scheme, structured payment arrangements, or agreements tied to a future sale. Because business divorce intersects with business law, tax strategy, and financial analysis, Kelley Kronenberg’s family law attorneys collaborate directly with the firm’s business attorneys when these situations arise.
Florida requires both parties to exchange complete financial disclosure in any contested divorce. If you suspect your spouse is concealing income, undervaluing assets, or hiding accounts, an experienced family law attorney will use many different types of discovery procedures to uncover the truth. Tools include subpoenas, depositions, requests for business and financial records, and others. Forensic accountants are often retained in complex cases to trace funds and identify gaps between reported income and actual lifestyle. Courts take financial dishonesty seriously. A spouse caught hiding assets can face sanctions that affect property division and undermine their credibility throughout the case. If you have concerns, raise them with an experienced family law attorney.
Not without a court order or written agreement from the other parent. Florida law requires a parent seeking to move more than 50 miles from the current primary residence for more than 60 consecutive days to either obtain the other parent’s written consent or petition the court for approval. Courts evaluate relocation requests based on the reason for the move, the impact on the child’s relationship with the non-relocating parent, the child’s ties to school and community, and whether a modified time-sharing schedule is workable. Relocating without following the required legal process is a serious violation and can result in the child being ordered back. If relocation is something you are considering, talk to a family law attorney before making any plans. Kelley Kronenberg offers confidential consultations at no cost.
Yes. Our Florida family law attorneys represent clients statewide, including Central Florida, North Florida, the Gulf Coast, and the Panhandle. Whether your case involves military deployment, maritime work, or a family business, our attorneys bring the same experience and personal attention to every region we serve.
