Uncontested Divorce With Two Teenagers and Spouses Living in Different States

The Situation

These spouses had been married for well over a decade and had been living apart for years. They have two teenagers. The children live with their mother in Florida, and their father lives in another state, so the case turned on how the children would split their time and how support would work when the parents are far apart.

What They Agreed On

The parenting plan says the children live primarily with their mother during the school year. Because of the distance, it does not use a weekly rotation. Instead, their father has time-sharing during summer break and winter break on dates the parents confirm in writing, with a yearly planning deadline for summer dates and a fallback split of winter break if they cannot agree. The father arranges the children's travel, and exchanges take place at the mother's home or at the airport.

Child support was already being paid under an existing order from the father's state. The settlement agreement sets the same monthly amount under the Florida case, states that it is the same obligation and not an additional one, and credits every payment made under the older order. Payments continue through the state payment center. The agreement also covers health insurance through a state program, an equal split of uncovered medical costs, school fees, tutoring and camps, the mother paying for sports and activities, and the mother claiming both children for tax purposes. Both spouses waived alimony. Neither owns real property, vehicles or retirement accounts, so each keeps their own bank accounts and personal property.

How the Case Moved

The firm was hired on day zero. The spouses signed in a remote online notary session, and the petition and the other documents were filed 15 days after hire. The judge entered the Final Judgment 1 day later, which is 16 days after hire, without a hearing. The Final Judgment ratifies the parenting plan and the settlement agreement, and the stamped copies of both were attached to it.

What Slowed It Down

Filing waited for a payment card to be placed on file for the court filing fee after signing was done. The signed documents also had to be saved into the case file by hand before they could be uploaded.

What Other Couples Can Take From This

When parents live in different states, a parenting plan can be written around school breaks, travel and planning dates instead of a weekly schedule. When support is already being paid under another state's order, the agreement can say the new amount replaces and does not add to it.