Choosing the right lawyer for you is the most important decision you will make. If you are facing a divorce, child custody battle, or a criminal matter, chances are you have your plate full. Add the additional task of finding the right lawyer for YOU and your case, and it can be overwhelming. I cannot stress enough the importance of hiring the right lawyer for YOU. Doing so can...
Love is grand, but divorce is brutal. Here comes that rabid divorce dog! Could the person you love turn against you and bite you like a rabid dog? Of course, but you can protect yourself from the divorce dog by having a prenuptial agreement in place before you get married. A lot of people think a prenuptial agreement is only for the rich. That is not true! A...
If you are stopped for by the police for suspicion of driving under the influence in Florida, should you blow into the DUI Breath Machine or not? I get asked this question at almost every social event I attend. In this video, I address that issue and tell what I always tell people. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pZhWHaB3HW0&t=56s
DUI Breath Machine: Should I blow or not? Please subscribe to...
Is your family law case in need of a Modification of Final Judgment? When the Court finalizes your divorce, paternity, or child support case, there is a Final Judgment entered. The Final Judgment is a Court Order for the people involved in the case in regards to children, financial and other issues. Let's face it, we are all real people with real lives to live. Sometimes what we thought would...
I get this question in every dissolution of marriage with children or paternity case I handle. There are four answers to the question of "When does child support end in Florida?" When the child turns eighteen;When the child turns nineteen;Sometime after the child turns eighteen; orNever. Clear as mud, huh? That is because lawyers wrote the law! Child support ends when a child turns eighteen...
Last week, the Florida Supreme Court ruled Stand Your Ground applies to police officers. Before this decision, a police officer charged in a police shooting could only claim self-defense. How are police shootings investigated? In South Florida, The Florida Department of Law Enforcement investigates most police shootings. However, a police department does have the authority to investigate their...
Florida Stand Your Ground Law: Maybe standing your ground is not always a good idea? Florida has a solid Stand Your Ground Law that ensures your right to self-defense. To stand your ground means you do not have to retreat from a threat. Deadly force is justified when confronted with imminent death, great bodily harm, or to prevent a forcible felony. To take advantage of the law, you must have a...
A father's rights depend upon whether he is the legal father, the biological father, or both. For example, you and your girlfriend have a baby, you are living together, and everything is fine for a while. Then something changes, the relationship goes south. Maybe you split up, and now you are having problems seeing your child, the most common scenario I see. In my practice, I have...
What is an Uncontested Divorce? In my practice, I get this question all the time. It is almost never accurate. A common occurrence is confusion between an Uncontested and a Simple Divorce. See my blog post on Simple Divorce, "Simplified Divorce Explained." Please see our YouTube channel, "Your South Florida Lawyer, Patrick J. McGeehan," for more videos explaining legal concepts in easy to...
In Florida, for example, we have a streamed lined process called a Simplified Divorce. A Simplified Divorce is much faster than the usual divorce process, which can take months. For example, if your marriage is short and there are no assets, and you meet the requirements for a Simplified Divorce, this might be for you. So what are the requirements for a simplified divorce? 1. The Petition for...
