Jacksonville Divorce Lawyer Blog
New York Yankee fans can rest assured that Alex Rodriguez (A-Rod) will be able to focus on baseball this year. His Florida divorce is over after less than a year battling with his (ex) wife, Cynthia Rodriguez. The couple was able to reach a settlement agreement, trumping the need to go to court.
Cynthia Rodriguez filed for divorce in Miami, Florida in July, 2008. The petition filed with the court stated, “The marriage of the parties is irretrievably broken because of the husband’s extramarital affairs and other marital misconduct.” Florida is a “no-fault” divorce state, meaning that the affairs really held no legal bearing on alimony. However, any money A-Rod used in advancing the relationships could come back to pad the pocket of Mrs. A-Rod. For example, a trip to England to visit a certain pop star could be fully reimbursed depending on the settlement reached by the couple.
Though their settlement agreement is not being released, even with Florida Court documents being public record, certain things are almost a guarantee in Florida. First, the house, valued at an estimated $12 million. Cynthia and the kids most likely got the home. Florida courts’ rule of thumb is “the best interest of the child.” It is assumed that it is the in the children’s best interest to remain in the same home, with little disruption. Second, we can all assume that she received alimony. Alimony is typically only permanent in a “long-term marriage” and since the couple was married only five years ago, chances are she may have gotten enough to last us all permanently, but it’s not in the settlement as such.
Cynthia Rodriguez, being a stay-at-home mom, most likely received the majority timesharing or custody of the children with A-Rod to get visitation. As such, she’s entitled to child support. In accordance with Florida Statutes, child support, is determined based on the gross income of the parties. Given A-Rod’s extensive income, with or without alimony, the family is going to be taken care of.
Depending on the income exhausted in “extramarital affairs and other misconduct,” A-Rod probably lost out on his equitable split and had to give up more than 50% of the assets. However, the details of their ante nuptial agreement are unknown making equitable division a real possibility for the baseball star.
Written by: Lenorae C. Atter
Family Law Attorney
Wood, Atter & Wolf, P.A.