Under Florida law, you are allowed to represent yourself in your divorce or alimony proceedings. Fortunately, Florida has family law forms online and at local courthouses throughout the state. However, just because you can legally represent yourself doesn’t mean you should.
If you are seeking to adjust your alimony, either the amount you pay or the amount you receive, it means that you have already gone through a divorce which may have been lengthy and expensive. It’s understandable that you may not want to hire an attorney again.
However, representing yourself is usually not wise. The forms provided for free to the public may appear simple; however, many clients end up using those forms only to spend more money in the long run than they would have spent if they had hired an attorney from the outset of the case. Alimony adjustment is not a simple issue, and there are very specific requirements that must be followed in handling the case.
You will need to introduce evidence showing why the alimony should be adjusted. The stronger your case, the better the odds are that the court will grant you the relief that you are seeking. An attorney can help advise you on the best way to build a strong case.
In addition, although attorney’s fees and court costs may seem high, if you end up losing your case, the amount of alimony that you either miss out on collecting, or that you have to pay, could exceed the attorney’s fees by a great deal. It’s almost always best to hire an attorney in your Florida alimony dispute.