Florida calls it dissolution of marriage rather than divorce, and the terminology is the least confusing part of the process for most people starting one.
The requirements are straightforward. What takes time is everything attached to the divorce—property, support, and, when there are children, the parenting arrangement. Understanding the sequence in advance makes the process considerably less disorienting.
The Requirements
One spouse must have been a Florida resident for at least six months before filing. You must prove residency, typically through a Florida driver’s license, voter registration, or a corroborating witness’s testimony. Before filing, speaking with a St. Augustine divorce lawyer can help you understand the residency requirement, filing process, and issues that may need to be resolved during the case.
Florida is a no-fault state. The ground is that the marriage is irretrievably broken, and neither spouse has to prove wrongdoing. One spouse cannot prevent a dissolution by refusing to agree that the marriage has ended.
Adultery and other misconduct are not grounds, though conduct can become relevant in limited ways — where marital funds were spent on an affair, for example, or where behavior bears on parenting.
Where the Case Is Filed
Dt. Johns County residents file dissolution cases in circuit court, with the courthouse in St. Augustine. Venue is generally proper where the parties last lived together as husband and wife, or where the respondent resides.
The court handles cases involving Ponte Vedra Beach, Palm Valley, Nocatee, Hastings, and the surrounding communities.
Simplified Dissolution
Florida offers a streamlined route for couples who meet strict criteria — no minor children together, the wife not pregnant, a complete written agreement on property and debt, both spouses willing to appear, and both giving up the right to financial disclosure and trial.
Where it applies, it is fast and inexpensive. The criteria are narrow enough that most couples do not qualify, and waiving financial disclosure is a genuine risk where one spouse has less visibility into the finances than the other.
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Mandatory Disclosure
Florida requires both parties in most dissolution cases to exchange a defined set of financial documents within a set period, without waiting to be asked.
The list is extensive — tax returns, pay records, bank and investment statements, retirement account statements, credit card statements, loan applications, deeds and business records. These documents can also be important when identifying and valuing property for the division of assets in a Florida divorce. Each party also files a financial affidavit setting out income, expenses, assets and liabilities under oath.
This obligation usually determines the timeline. Cases where both sides produce promptly move quickly. Cases where documents have to be compelled spend months on motions that resolve nothing except who was right about the paperwork.
The financial affidavit deserves care, and Griffin Family Law reviews it line by line before filing. It is sworn, and we identify and use inconsistencies between it and the documents produced.
The Steps
- A petition for dissolution is filed, and the other spouse is served.
- The respondent files an answer, and may file a counterpetition.
- Mandatory financial disclosure is exchanged.
- Temporary relief may be sought for support, timesharing, or use of the home.
- Discovery follows in contested cases.
- Mediation is required in most Florida circuits before a contested final hearing.
- The case resolves by agreement or proceeds to a final hearing.
Mediation Is Not Optional
Florida circuits generally require mediation before a contested final hearing, and it resolves a substantial majority of cases.
Mediation is confidential, and what is said there generally cannot be used later. The mediator does not decide anything and does not report to the judge on who was reasonable.
Timing matters considerably. Mediating before financial disclosure is complete usually fails, because the parties are negotiating over different pictures of the marriage. Mediating once the documents are in hand, when both sides can see the realistic range, works far more often.
An agreement reached in mediation is reduced to writing, signed, and becomes binding. That is worth understanding before attending, because people sometimes sign expecting another opportunity to reconsider.
Temporary Relief
A dissolution can take a year, and life does not pause while it runs. Florida allows either party to seek temporary relief early in the case.
Temporary orders can address support, a time-sharing schedule, exclusive use of the marital home, responsibility for household expenses, and payment of attorney fees where there is a disparity in access to funds.
That last item matters more than people expect. Where one spouse controlled the finances throughout the marriage, a temporary fee award allows the other to be properly represented rather than forced into a settlement by cost pressure alone.
Temporary orders are entered on limited information and do not preview the final result. Understanding the difference between temporary and final orders in a divorce case can help explain what these early rulings do—and do not—determine. Courts routinely enter different final judgments, in both directions.
Parenting Course Requirement
Florida requires both parents in a dissolution involving minor children to complete an approved parent education and family stabilization course.
It is typically four hours and can be completed online. Failing to complete it can delay the final judgment, and courts do not waive it lightly.
Completing it early, rather than at the last moment, removes an avoidable source of delay, and the material is genuinely useful for parents who have not thought through how children experience the process.
How Long It Takes
An uncontested dissolution with a complete agreement can be finalized within a few months, limited mainly by court scheduling.
A contested case involving disputed property, a business, or a contested parenting arrangement commonly takes a year or more. Cases requiring a business valuation or a parenting evaluation take longer still.
Florida has no mandatory waiting period comparable to some states, which means a genuinely agreed case can move as fast as the court can process it.
Child Support Runs on Guidelines
When there are minor children, Florida child support is calculated using a statutory guideline schedule based on the combined net income of both parents, the number of children, and the number of overnights each parent has.
Florida adds and apportions health insurance premiums attributable to the child and work-related childcare. Where a parent exercises a substantial share of overnights, a different formula applies that can change the result considerably.
Because overnights affect the calculation, disputes involving child custody and time-sharing can become closely connected to disputes about child support. Courts recognize that, and they decide the schedule based on the child’s best interests, with support following from it rather than the reverse.
Support generally continues until a child turns eighteen, extending to nineteen where the child is still in high school and expected to graduate, and potentially beyond for a child with a disability.
Before You File
- Gather three years of tax returns, pay records, and account statements.
- Obtain your credit report to identify debts you may not know exist.
- Photograph or inventory significant personal property.
- Establish and document the date of separation.
- Avoid unusual transfers or large purchases, which are noticed and damaging.
- Be careful what you post, because it is routinely introduced as evidence.
- Do not move a child out of the county without agreement or a court order.
That last point deserves emphasis. Relocating with a child before a parenting plan is in place converts a dissolution into an emergency, and it colors how the court views the parent who did it.
Keep in mind that Florida court files are public records. Financial affidavits, allegations, and orders are generally accessible, which is a reason some couples prefer to resolve as much as possible by agreement rather than through contested filings.
If you are considering dissolution in St. Johns County, an early conversation will tell you what the realistic timeline and cost look like for your situation. Call Griffin Family Law to arrange one.
