Marion County Family Court: how, where and when to do each step

Where family cases are filed in Marion

Marion County belongs to the Fifth Judicial Circuit (with Lake, Sumter, Citrus and Hernando). Everything family-related is in one building in downtown Ocala:

• Marion County Judicial Center, 110 NW 1st Avenue, Ocala, FL 34475. The Clerk's family office (Family / Domestic Relations) is on the first floor; the domestic violence department is in room 102. Monday to Friday, 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. Clerk phone (352) 671-5604.
• Online: with or without a lawyer, you can file through the Florida Courts E-Filing Portal (myflcourtaccess.com).
• The building has security screening; allow extra time and bring photo ID.

What it costs to open a case

Fees are statewide: about $408 for a divorce, $300 for paternity, custody or child support without a divorce, $10 per summons and about $50 to reopen a case for a modification. Protective injunctions are free. If you can't pay, ask the Clerk for the indigency application; if approved, you pay no filing fee or circuit mediation.

The basic steps of a family case in Marion

1. Petition with the cover sheet, notice of related cases, social security notice and, with children, the UCCJEA affidavit. For a divorce you must prove six months of Florida residency. The Marion Clerk publishes packets and checklists by case type (adoption, divorce, paternity, parenting plan, support, modifications, relocation, temporary custody by relatives, name change) at marioncountyclerk.org.
2. Birth certificate: a Marion-specific rule. In family cases that are not a divorce (paternity, custody, support), Administrative Order M2010-16 requires filing each child's certificate of live birth. Bring it from the start.
3. Service by the sheriff or a process server, or voluntary acceptance. The other side has 20 days to answer.
4. Mandatory disclosure: financial affidavit and Rule 12.285 documents within 45 days.
5. Standing orders: when the case is opened, both parties are bound by Marion's automatic order (one version for cases with children, another without) prohibiting taking the children out of state, disposing of assets or cancelling insurance while the case is pending.
6. Parenting course, mediation and hearings.
7. Final judgment, never sooner than 20 days after the divorce petition is filed.

No lawyer? The Self-Help Office in the Law Library

• Where: the Fifth Circuit's Family Self-Help Office is now inside the County Law Library, first floor of the Judicial Center, 110 NW 1st Ave., Ocala.
• Walk-in hours: Monday to Friday, 8:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Phone (352) 401-6717 (leave a message and they call back), email marionfamilyselfhelp@circuit5.org. There's also an online inquiry form at circuit5.org.
• What they do: explain the procedure, give you the checklists and review your file to tell you what's missing before the final hearing. No legal advice.
• The law library has computers with Westlaw and a word processor, family law self-help materials with forms you can copy ($0.15 a page), stamps and envelopes.
• Free legal help: Community Legal Services of Mid-Florida, 1610 SE 36th Avenue, Ocala, (352) 629-0105 or (800) 405-1417. It runs family law form review clinics on the first Friday of each month.

The parenting course

In every divorce with minor children and every paternity case where parental responsibility is decided, each parent must complete the Parent Education and Family Stabilization Course before the final judgment. It's a minimum of 4 hours, can be taken online, in English or Spanish with any provider approved by the Department of Children and Families (myflfamilies.com), and the certificate is filed in the case.

Mediation: how it works in Marion

In the Fifth Circuit, family mediation requires a judge's order:

• Requirements: an open case, a financial affidavit from both parties filed within the last 12 months, and the Order for Mediation (requested by motion; the updated order form is at circuit5.org).
• Court program: available for divorces and paternity cases with combined annual income under $100,000. Scheduled by emailing Marionmediation@circuit5.org with a copy of the order. Sessions are at Mediation Services, second floor of the Judicial Center, room 2-2001, or by video conference.
• Cost: based on combined income, on the state's usual scale ($60 per person per session under $50,000 and $120 above); free if indigent. Confirm the amount when scheduling.
• Over $100,000 combined, you must hire a certified private mediator.

How you get a hearing

• Without a lawyer: once the file is complete, the Self-Help Office reviews it and the case moves to the final hearing; the court mails you the notice with date, time and how to appear. Stop by the office when you think you've filed everything.
• With a lawyer or for motions: hearings are requested by email to the judge's division (each Marion division has its own mailbox for requests and orders), stating the case number, subject, time needed and participants' emails, after conferring with the other side. Several judges ask that you not call the office.
• Zoom whenever possible: several Marion judges hold family hearings on Zoom by default and only set in-person hearings when the matter requires it. Some divisions require self-represented parties to file a copy of their photo ID (license number and date of birth redacted) 48 hours ahead, and exhibits to be sent three business days ahead, numbered. Read your division judge's standing order.
• Magistrates: child support, contempt and temporary matters may go before a general magistrate; you'll receive an order of referral and can object.

Interpreter: in family cases the court normally does not provide a Spanish interpreter; bring a qualified one. In protective injunction cases it does.

Uncontested divorce: the final hearing

If both sides signed the marital settlement agreement (and the parenting plan if there are children): complete the file per the Clerk's checklist (answer or waiver, financial affidavits, certificates of disclosure and of the parenting course, agreement, parenting plan and child support worksheet), ask the Self-Help Office to review it, and the court sets a short final hearing, normally on Zoom. The simplified dissolution (no minor children, no pregnancy, full agreement) is filed with both spouses present before the Clerk.

Child support

• Cases opened by the Department of Revenue (DOR) are heard by a child support hearing officer, not the family judge. DOR's statewide line: (850) 488-5437.
• In a divorce or paternity case, support is calculated with the Florida guidelines and decided by the judge or magistrate. Remember the birth certificate in non-divorce cases.
• Payments go through the State Disbursement Unit.
• If you got a license suspension notice, the window to object is short.

Use our child support estimator to know what to expect, and read how Florida child support is calculated.

Protective injunctions (domestic violence)

• Where and when: the Clerk's domestic violence department, room 102 of the Judicial Center, 110 NW 1st Ave., Ocala. For the judge to review it the same day, apply between 8:00 a.m. and 2:30 p.m.; the Clerk accepts completed petitions until 5:00 p.m. Phone (352) 671-5604.
• After hours: the petition is filed at the Marion County Jail, video visitation area, 700 NW 30th Avenue, Ocala, (352) 351-8077, 24 hours a day.
• Cost: none. Bring photo ID and as much information as possible on where to find the other person: the order only takes effect once they're served.
• What happens next: if there's merit, the judge signs a temporary order and you're given a hearing date within 15 days. You must attend or the order is dismissed. You can bring witnesses, a lawyer and a victim advocate.
• Help: the Marion County Sheriff's Office has victim advocates, and the county has a shelter for domestic violence victims. If you're in immediate danger, call 911.

Practical tips for court day

• If the hearing is on Zoom, log in 10 minutes early, from a quiet place, camera on and microphone muted until you're called; have your ID at hand.
• Send exhibits ahead per the judge's order; they're not accepted on the day of a virtual hearing.
• If the hearing is in person, allow 15 minutes for building security.
• Keep your address current with the Clerk; notices go to the address in the file.

How we can help

We handle family cases in Ocala and all of Marion County, in English and Spanish: divorce, child custody, child support, mediation representation and other family law services. Start with a free 15-minute call; a longer or in-person consultation costs $150.

Luis A. Morales has been a lawyer since 2001, is admitted in Florida and Puerto Rico, and handles each case personally from Orlando; most Marion family hearings are held on Zoom.

Frequently asked questions