Family Law
Less painful divorce
February 14, 2007 By: Jordana Mishory


It’s Valentine’s Day, and love is in the air for many Floridians. But for those whohave fallen out of love, Florida lawyers and courts are busy thinking up ways tomake parting less sorrowful.

Almost 50 percent of Florida marriages end in divorce, a rate that has remained fairlyconstant in recent years. With so many divorcing couples, including people who can’tafford thousands of dollars in legal costs, attorneys and courts in South Florida have
developed various methods to help them untie the knot smoothly and affordably.

Some attorneys say an amicable divorce doesn’t have to be an oxymoron. Over the past few years, a movement promoting cooperation and discussion has gained traction among divorcees and some divorce lawyers in South Florida, to avoid situations like those portrayed in the movie “The War of the Roses.”

The Florida Supreme Court in 2003 began allowing lawyers to provide specialized family
law services and gave them more flexibility in the types of services they offer.

That made it possible for Jeffrey A. Miller to start www.DivorceYes.com.

Last summer, the Boca Raton attorney launched the company to serve clients interested in obtaining a divorce through a settlement and mediation process. He charges a flat fee of $399 for uncontested divorces without children, and $499 for uncontested divorces with children, plus the filing fee of $364. In many cases, clients don’t even have to come in to see him.

In contrast, some South Florida divorce lawyers charge $400 an hour. A couple with an annual income of $50,000 typically would pay about $10,000 in legal fees and costs for an uncontested divorce.

“My clients understand this is not a babysitting service,” Miller said. “If they want their hand to be held or someone to tell their life story to, they need a personal lawyer for $400 an hour that they can talk to all day long.”

Other divorce lawyers are getting involved in their clients’ cases before they absolutely decide they want to end the marriage. They help clients fashion “post-nuptial” agreements. These agreements, which can be filed any time after a marriage, detail how a couple will split their assets. With the exception of custody challenges, these post-nups are binding in divorce cases.

Hollywood divorce attorney Terry Fixel said post-nup agreements give couples “breathing room” during the trial separation period. If and when the couple goes to court, they already have worked out many of the issues.

Pro se problems

From 2000 to 2005, more than 500,000 dissolution of marriage petitions were filed in Florida — nearly one-third of them in Miami-Dade, Broward and Palm Beach counties, according to the state Department of Health, which tracks divorce statistics.

But not all these divorces create business for attorneys. According to statistics cited by the Supreme Court in 2003, divorce litigants file nearly 65 percent of divorces without a lawyer, on a pro se basis. At some point during the litigation and postlitigation process, almost 80 percent of cases involve at least one party without an attorney.

Broward Circuit Judge Linda Vitale, who oversees the family law division, said some parties choose to go it alone because nothing is contested and nothing needs to be litigated. “There are no issues, no assets to divide, no debts, no children,” Vitale said.

But in many other cases, one or both parties don’t feel they can afford to pay the going rate of divorce attorneys. Divorce attorneys in South Florida typically charge anywhere from $175 to $450 an hour.

Legal experts warn that filing a divorce without legal help can create a number of problems, particularly for couples with children. Legal mistakes often are made, and post-judgment hearings have to be held. Some mistakes are irrevocable, and people have to live with the consequences.

The Broward Circuit Court and other courts around the state found that so many problems arose during pro se family court cases that they were seriously slowing the docket. In March 2005, Broward created a division under Judge Vitale solely serving family court litigants without lawyers. Neither Miami-Dade nor Palm Beach County circuits have taken the step of centralizing pro se divorce cases under one judge.

Vitale said about 550 pro se family cases are filed each month, though this figure includes more than just divorces.

Vitale said she and her judicial colleagues go over the litigants’ paperwork and make sure they understand what they have filed and signed. To make sure pro se litigants stay current with their cases, Vitale brought in a case manager who sends out memos reminding parties what still needs to be filed. Her voice mail informs litigants who to contact with questions. She is also helped by magistrates.

Broward, Miami-Dade and Palm Beach counties also offer self-help centers for pro se family court litigants. At the centers, litigants can buy packets full of forms and information approved by the Supreme Court.

But Jane Duff, manager of the Broward clerk of courts pro se division, said the packets don’t answer all the legal questions people have. Employees at the Broward clerk of courts office, which runs the center, are not allowed to provide legal advice. The office organizes free pro se divorce classes taught by local attorneys.

Judges also are not allowed to provide legal advice. “There’s a tightrope you’re walking all the time,” Judge Vitale said.

But Jeffrey Miller said the self-help information packets are confusing, and that people need a lawyer to understand the materials. “I’ve been a lawyer for 24 years and I’m having a devil of a time understanding them,” he said.

Unbundled help

Miller set up his Internet-based service to provide advice and information, and guide clients through an online process that enables him to craft their divorce agreement.

Miller said his site receives about 10,000 hits a month. It features a custodial alimony calculator based on the required obligations of the parents under state statutes. It also suggests different visitation rights parents can set up.

With several assistants, Miller handles only uncontested divorces. Most of his 500 clients so far already knew how they wanted to divide the assets. The majority have no children. If his clients go to mediation and want extra legal advice, he charges them more.

Clients who sign up receive access to a database that keeps them updated on what is happening with their cases in court. It also helps clients work through the financial affidavits that must be filed as part of a divorce action.

The Florida Supreme Court defined the unbundling of family legal services in a rule released in November 2003. Under the rule, attorneys can offer services on an a la carte basis, and file a limited notice of appearance with the court. Previously, lawyers hired in divorce cases were responsible for all court pleadings, depositions, notices and appearances.

Fort Lauderdale family attorney Todd Feldman, of Greenspoon Marder, said clients need at least some limited help from a lawyer to guide them through the divorce. They are often too emotionally distraught to handle the legal aspects on their own.

“When people decide they want a divorce, it’s extremely touchy and sensitive,” Feldman said. “They need an attorney to explain to them what rights and obligations are under the law.”

But Terry Fixel cautioned that unbundled legal services aren’t appropriate for some clients. “That’s like a client stuck in an ocean without a boat or a paddle,” she said. It can work, however, in cases where the parties have previously worked everything out.

‘Collaborative’ divorce

Another recent development in the divorce field is the “collaborative” divorce movement. It works like mediation but without the mediator.

The Collaborative Family Lawyers of South Florida consists of about 40 attorneys from north Miami-Dade through Boca Raton. The organization enables attorneys doing collaborative divorce work to interact with one another and receive further training. The group also brings together financial services and mental health professionals to provide assistance to clients.

Attorneys who represent clients in collaborative divorces generally have received special training, and must agree to withdraw if the collaborative process breaks down.

During collaborative divorce meetings, the two parties and their attorneys discuss issues and compromise to divide assets.

“The purpose of it is to accomplish a divorce without litigation,” said Steven Berzner, a Fort Lauderdale family attorney who serves as director of the Collaborative Family Lawyers group.

If an agreement cannot be reached through peaceful discussion, the parties must find new lawyers to litigate the divorce. That keeps many clients in the collaborative process.

At the end of a successful collaborative process, one party or the other files a settlement agreement with the court. Some parties file the settlement on a pro se basis.

Berzner said this approach is cheaper for the litigants because it doesn’t take as long as a traditional divorce. It also causes less stress, he said.

Donald Arney, 68, a retired Miami-Dade police officer, said he benefited from pursuing a non-traditional divorce.

Last July, Arney sought help from Jeffrey Miller’s DivorceYes. He and his then-wife had no children together and were
looking for a quickie divorce. Arney never met Miller in person and dealt with him solely by phone.

Arney was satisfied with the results. “Our divorce was amicable, if a divorce could be called amicable,” he said.

Jordana Mishory can be reached at jmishory@alm.com or at (954) 468-2616.
Photo of Jeff Miller by Melanie Bell
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