Posted by Nydia Streets of Streets Law in Florida Divorce

How long does a party have after a Florida divorce is finalized to set it aside? It depends on why the order is being set aside. If it is for mistake, inadvertence, or excusable neglect, for example, the rules say up-to one year. What is the difference between a motion to set aside and a motion for enforcement? This was an issue in the case Mandelko v. Lopresti, 4D21-2041 (Fla. 4th DCA August 17, 2022).

The parties were divorced in 1996. As part of their marital settlement agreement, the former wife was awarded a portion of the former husband’s pension. The agreement was silent as to how the portion would be valued and the method of payment. The final judgment stated the court “reserve[d] jurisdiction over the parties and over all matters contained in this Final Judgment as permitted by law for purposes of enforcement . . . .” Twenty-three years later, the former wife filed a motion to set aside, enforce or clarify the agreement. As stated in the appellate opinion “Former Wife argued that Former Husband is a participant of a municipal pension plan which is not subject to the Employee Retirement Income Security Act, and as a result, the municipal pension plan will not pay her a share of the pension benefits pursuant to a Qualified Domestic Relations Order. Former Wife’s motion declared that, ‘by mutual mistake, the parties fashioned an equitable distribution award that is impossible to perform, untenable and will inevitably lead to compliance issues.’

A hearing was held before the general magistrate who reasoned the former wife was entitled to an annuity payment of $164.54 per month. The former husband filed a motion for exceptions, arguing the court had no jurisdiction to decide the former wife’s motion because she alleged a mistake that was not brought by motion within 1 year of the final judgment as required by the rules. The court rejected the general magistrate’s report and instead adopted the former husband’s request for relief, which was to pay the former wife a one-time payment of less than $2,000. The former wife appealed.

The appellate court noted “‘With respect to the characterization of motions, Florida courts place substance over form. In other words, ‘if the motion is mislabeled, the court will look to the substance of the motion, not the label.’’” The court concluded “In the underlying proceeding, both parties, as well as the trial court, characterized Former Wife’s motion as a motion to set aside or amend the final judgment pursuant to Florida Rule of Civil Procedure 1.540(b)(1) and/or Florida Family Law Rule of Procedure 12.540(b)(1). However, upon review of the motion’s substance, it is apparent that Former Wife’s motion is essentially a motion to enforce the final judgment. This distinction is significant because a motion to set aside or amend the final judgment must be filed within one year after the entry of the final judgment. See Fla. R. Civ. P. 1.540(b)(1); Fla. Fam. L. R. P. 12.540(b)(1). In contrast, a motion to enforce the final judgment has no such time limitation because ‘[a] trial court has the inherent authority and 4 jurisdiction to enforce court-approved settlement agreements.’ [internal citation omitted]. Thus, contrary to its ruling, the trial court had jurisdiction to consider Former Wife’s motion because the underlying action was seeking enforcement of the final judgment—specifically, the enforcement of paragraph 7 of the incorporated marital settlement agreement.”

The court concluded “Nevertheless, due to the incorporated marital settlement agreement’s ambiguity, enforcement is not possible until the trial court first determines the parties’ intent at the time they entered the agreement. Accordingly, we reverse and remand so the trial court can hold an evidentiary hearing for the purpose of determining the parties’ intent regarding the distribution/payment of Former Husband’s pension benefits and ‘resolve the ambiguity based on all of the relevant evidence bearing on the issue.’”

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