Robinson v. Robinson

Summary

The Fifth District Court of Appeals affirmed in part, reversed in part, and remanded a divorce judgment involving child support, division of equity in a marital residence held under a land installment contract, and division of pension and Social Security benefits. The court upheld the child-support obligation and installment payment arrangement but remanded for the trial court to address the applicability of the Social Security Fairness Act to the pension-benefit setoff.

Holdings

1. The trial court did not abuse its discretion by designating the wife as the child-support obligor and imposing a monthly obligation of $351.92 under the shared-parenting arrangement.
2. The trial court did not abuse its discretion by ordering the husband to pay the wife's equitable interest in the marital residence through monthly installments over approximately eight years and without mandatory interest.
3. The trial court erred by failing to rule on the husband's legal objection asserting that the Social Security Fairness Act affected the setoff of his Social Security benefits against the wife's public pension.

Questions Presented

1. Whether the trial court abused its discretion by requiring the husband to pay the wife's equitable interest in the marital residence over approximately eight years without interest.
2. Whether the trial court abused its discretion by designating the wife as the child-support obligor and imposing a reduced child-support obligation under the shared-parenting plan.
3. Whether the trial court erred by applying a setoff of the husband's Social Security benefits against the value of the wife's public pension without addressing the husband's objection based on the Social Security Fairness Act.

Disposition

reversed_and_remanded