After the Final Hearing: A New Reality

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Untying the Knot. An Expert Series on Divorce in Pensacola

So, you have had your final hearing, and it is possible that you received an oral ruling of the Court at its conclusion. If your judge did give an oral ruling at the conclusion of the hearing, then you know the decisions made on custody and timesharing issues, equitable distribution, and alimony. 

Even though you know where the judge stands on the big issues, you are probably scratching your head about the details of the ruling. You may have questions about the actual schedule, pick-up and drop-off times, or even holiday times. You may also have questions about what date the alimony is paid or if the child support will go through the Department of Revenue or be paid directly to you.

Final Judgement of Dissolution of Marriage

Even when a judge does rule on the spot, they often leave the drafting of the Final Judgment of Dissolution of Marriage to one of the attorneys. The attorneys draft the final order and send it to one another so that they can confer on the judge’s ruling to make sure that the Order accurately reflects what the judge ruled and add any details that may be missing if the parties can agree on the terms.

For example, a judge may order rotating holidays but not say if the father or the mother gets even or odd years. The attorneys may confer and be able to get a consensus on issues like that and then include that in the Order.

You can feel like you’re left in the dark while the attorneys go back and forth drafting an order to conclude your divorce. However, it’s important to realize that this conferring process between the lawyers during the drafting of the order is vital. Not only does it give you a better Order, but it also helps to eliminate any further disputes when a Judge may overlook things. Sometimes the attorneys will order the transcript from the Court Reporter to see the actual transcript of the judge’s ruling to ensure that the written order is what the Judge said. Occasionally, a Judge will draft the Final Judgment of Dissolution of Marriage, but this is very unusual in our circuit.

The back and forth you are waiting on (and paying for) may seem like a waste of time and money, but it can save you loads of both down the road. Your final judgment of dissolution of marriage will outline the terms of your divorce and will likely have an attached parenting plan and an equitable distribution schedule attached.

Even if your judge ruled at the conclusion of your final hearing, there might have been some issues that the Court “reserved“ on. 

Yes, this means that not all the details of your divorce are over at the Final Hearing (makes the final hearing seem less final, right?). However, it is very common for a judge to reserve on issues like entitlement to and amount of attorney’s fees awards and final numbers of child support. 

When the attorneys confer on the Order, they are often running guidelines and trying to reach settlement terms on issues that the Court reserved on. When the court reserves on an issue like attorney’s fees, that means that the court will take it up later. This is commonly done on attorney’s fee issues because the court wants to see what the asset and debt distribution looks like before the attorney’s fees can be awarded. The need and ability to pay attorney’s fees are partially based on the asset distribution. 

Finalizing and Appeal

While you’re waiting for the judge to either sign the Order or the attorneys to draft the Order, you have had an oral ruling that gives you the judge’s decision on the issues of your divorce. Still, you have nothing on paper that actually says you are divorced.

When you get the Final Judgment, you have strict timelines on when to file the necessary motions if you are considering any type of appeal. Family law judges have a great deal of discretion and, absent a true abuse of discretion or an egregious mistake being made by the Judge, love it or hate it, you will likely be forced to live with the decision that the Judge made.

If you simply cannot live with the ruling, you would want to talk seriously about the pros and cons of an appeal with your lawyer.

The Next Chapter

Assuming you will not take up any issues on appeal, this is the time to take a bubble bath, drink some champagne, toast the end of an era, and begin your single life again.

Remember at this point, it does not matter whether you wanted the divorce or not, whether you were the wronged party, or how bad your married life was. You are now in the driver’s seat of the next phase of your life. You are going it alone now, for better or worse, and you will not have your former spouse to blame.

Take this moment of closure and run with it….to have a happy life and give your children a happy life. Embrace the next phase and make sure that you leave the old behind.

Now is the time to let it go.

Let go of what is heavy, dead, and weighs you down, and move on. This is now the reality in which you live; no use arguing with it. Now let whatever can be forgiven be forgiven and focus on creating the life you want. 

If the Final Hearing was the winter of your life, you can look forward to the spring now. 

When I take a client, even on the first consultation, I see the person that will ultimately be unhitched and hopefully happier, stronger, and wiser after the divorce. 

Now, you just need to look in the mirror and see her yourself.

Autumn Beck Blackledge headshot

Autumn Beck Blackledge has been practicing law for over 20 years and started her own firm in 2014, practicing exclusively in Marital and Family law. She is a Pensacola native and graduate of Tate High School and Florida State University, and FSU College of Law.

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