Throwing Out Your Divorce Settlement: It IS Possible
Sometimes, divorce cases can go smoothly and without a hiccup, sometimes there are a few potential snags but the couples work past them, and sometimes divorces are so ugly it forces even their attorneys to wonder how the parties were married in the first place. In these latter instances, parties may feel compelled to resort to improper or even illegal tactics to obtain a divorce settlement. When this happens, there may be recourse for the party who was injured by the other spouse’s misconduct. However, like with all legal issues, you only have a limited time to act.
If you think that you were the victim of coercion or duress in your divorce, act now. Contact the Fort Lauderdale divorce attorneys at the office of Edward J. Jennings, P.A., to reverse the settlement and obtain a new, fair one.
Prime Example of Coercion
This past January, a divorce settlement between two Florida residents that was reached four years prior was reversed due to coercion. According to the record, the wife had obtained photos of her husband and his mistress via unknown means. She used the photos as blackmail, telling her husband that if he did not mediate a settlement that was favorable to her, she would make the photos public. The mediator even participated in the saga, telling the husband that if he did not agree to the wife’s terms, “[he] would be refused time-sharing with [his] children, would owe alimony . . . in addition to child support and would have to pay thirty thousand dollars ($30,000) in attorney’s fees to [the former wife]’s attorney.”
Two and half years after the initial settlement was agreed upon, and after several attempts to have the judgement modified, the husband filed a complaint with the circuit court in Duval County. In his complaint, he asserted that the wife utilized “strong-arm and extortionate tactics” which amounted to “fraud on the court.”
Unfortunately, the court sided with the husband but was forced to rule in favor of the wife. Why? Because the tactics the wife used are considered intrinsic fraud. In order for the husband to have come out ahead, he would have had to raise the issue within one year after the consent final judgment was entered.
This case serves as a prime example in two ways, it appears:
- It is possible to reverse a divorce settlement; and
- That knowing the statute of limitations is essential to the outcome of a case, no matter who files it or what the complaint is about.
Talk to an Attorney About Your Legal Rights
If you believe that your former spouse used illegal or extortionate tactics to coerce you into a settlement that you would not have agreed to otherwise, call the Fort Lauderdale divorce lawyers at the office of Edward J. Jennings, P.A. today. As the above case proves, you have limited time to act, so do not wait and retain legal representation right away.
Resource:
edca.1dca.org/DCADocs/2017/0336/170336_1284_01032018_02530213_i.pdf
