CopyCited 8 times | Published | Supreme Court of Florida
...Boyd of Boyd, Harris & Smith, Tallahassee, and Chriss Walker, Office of Child Support Enforcement, Dept. of Health and Rehabilitative Services, Tallahassee, for appellant. McDONALD, Justice. The state Department of Health and Rehabilitative Services (HRS) appeals a circuit court ruling that section 409.2567, Florida Statutes (1977), is unconstitutional. This Court has jurisdiction under article V, section 3(b)(1), Florida Constitution. Section 409.2567 allows HRS to provide child support collection and paternity determination services to persons not receiving governmental subsidies....
...ation." Soverino v. State,
356 So.2d 269, 271 (Fla. 1978). "Any classification must bear a just and reasonable relation to a legitimate purpose." In re Estate of Reed,
354 So.2d 864, 865 (Fla. 1978), citing Gammon v. Cobb,
335 So.2d 261 (Fla. 1976). Section
409.2567 meets this test....
...The basic purpose of sections
409.2551-409.2597, Florida Statutes (1977), is to maintain children "from the resources of responsible parents, thereby relieving, at least in part, the burden presently borne by the general citizenry through public assistance programs." Section
409.2551, Florida Statutes (1977). Section
409.2567 supports this purpose by allowing the identification of responsible parents and the award of support from them prior to, and in place of, receiving public assistance. The legislature passed sections
409.2551-409.2597 in order to receive federal aid to families with dependent children (AFDC) funds. The pertinent language of section
409.2567, "any individual not otherwise eligible for such services," comes directly from the federal statute. 42 U.S.C. § 654(6)(A). Since section
409.2561(4) allows reimbursement of HRS's expenses out of support payments, individual plaintiffs under section
409.2567 are not receiving free counsel....
...With the advent of legal aid societies, and the willingness of members of the Florida Bar to contribute their services when needed, indigent defendants in such suits should be able to secure representation. The trial judge had other objections to the statute, with which we disagree. We find that section 409.2567 suffers from no constitutional defect....
CopyCited 6 times | Published | Florida 5th District Court of Appeal | 1990 WL 134770
...onths after, her mother was divorced. At the behest of the mother acting for the use and benefit of the child, the real party in interest, [2] the Department of Health and Rehabilitative Services (HRS) of the State of Florida instituted action under section 409.2567, Florida Statutes, against Robert to establish that Robert was the father of Victoria and obligated for her support....
CopyCited 3 times | Published | Florida 5th District Court of Appeal | 1989 WL 139522
...t. The court then found that HRS lacked statutory authority to proceed on behalf of the former wife to seek modification of child support previously agreed to by the parties and approved by the court. This appeal followed. The former wife urges that Section
409.2567, [1] Florida Statutes (1987), mandates HRS to provide child support modification representation to non-AFDC recipients to assure compliance with Title IV-D of the Social Security Act, 42 U.S.C. § 651 et seq. The former husband counters that HRS lacks standing to seek a modification in this case because, while section
409.2561 expressly authorizes HRS to apply for modification of a court order on behalf of AFDC clients, section
409.2567, relating to non-AFDC clients, is limited by its terms to "support enforcement and paternity determinations." The former husband contends that by failing to expressly include the authority to file a petition to modify existing court orders, the legislature intended to exclude such petitions from the services provided non-AFDC clients. [2] The present controversy arises from the meaning of the term "support enforcement" as used in section
409.2567....
...Accordingly, we determine that HRS is authorized and empowered to proceed with the modification petition on behalf of the former wife. REVERSED and REMANDED for trial on the modification petition. SHARP, W., J., concurs. ORFINGER, Judge, Retired, dissents without opinion. NOTES [1] Section 409.2567, Florida Statutes (1987) provides: 409.2567 Services to individuals not otherwise eligible....
...s responsible. [2] The former husband also argues that expansion of HRS legal counsel to such cases would violate the intent of the child support legislation by adding to the tax burden of the general public. This argument is without merit, however, section 409.2567 expressly authorizes HRS to recover its costs from the obligor or the obligee....
CopyCited 3 times | Published | Supreme Court of Florida | 1991 WL 117534
...hange in need and ability to pay. This broader interpretation is entirely consistent with the intent of Florida's child support enforcement law, i.e., that children shall be maintained from the resources of their parents. Our reading of the statute [section
409.2567] assumes its application will conform to the congressional mandate requiring states to make available to non-AFDC recipients all the same services afforded to welfare recipients. Wilkinson,
552 So.2d at 349-50 (citation, footnote omitted). Wilkinson interpreted section
409.2567, Florida Statutes (1987), [5] which now reads:
409.2567 Services to individuals not otherwise eligible....
...The court shall order payment of administrative costs without requiring the department to have a member of the bar testify or submit an affidavit as to the reasonableness of the costs. (Emphasis added.) Although the state attorney raised the applicability of section 409.2567, both the trial court and the district court ignored that section in making their decisions. Section 409.2567, however, is an integral part of the state's child support program....
...he cause and shall have the right to settle and compromise actions brought pursuant to law." Therefore, contrary to the district court's reasoning in Thaysen, the legislature, by entering into an agreement with the federal government and by enacting section 409.2567, meant that public attorneys can be used in all child support proceedings, including modifications....
CopyCited 3 times | Published | Florida 5th District Court of Appeal | 1990 WL 98753
...The trial court found that no authority exists for the intervention, dismissed the complaint, and awarded attorneys' fees to the father. H.R.S. appeals the order entered subsequent to the final judgment of dissolution that awarded child support. We reverse. The first sentence of section 409.2567, Florida Statutes (1987), reads: "All support enforcement and paternity determination services provided by the Department shall be made available on behalf of all dependent children." This mandate requires H.R.S....
...to provide legal services to persons who do not receive government aid. [1] The constitutionality of the Florida statute withstood attack in Department of Health and Rehabilitative Services v. Heffler,
382 So.2d 301 (Fla. 1980). This court broadly interpreted section
409.2567 to permit H.R.S....
...services "to collect child support arrearages after the child is no longer dependent." Parrish v. Dep't of Health & Rehabilitative Services,
525 So.2d 1029 (Fla. 5th DCA 1988); Dep't of Health & Rehabilitative Services v. Bachtal,
517 So.2d 787 (Fla. 2d DCA 1988); § 88.012, Fla. Stat. (1987). Since section
409.2567 provides that all H.R.S....
...e child reaches its majority before H.R.S. institutes enforcement proceedings. Finally, we have noted that Chapter 88 requires H.R.S. to enforce pre-majority *245 support obligations for out-of-state children who have reached majority. We think that section 409.2567 requires H.R.S....
CopyCited 1 times | Published | Florida 1st District Court of Appeal | 2010 Fla. App. LEXIS 17143, 2010 WL 4483712
...rt, based on the child support guidelines in section
61.30, Florida Statutes. [4] DOR "may establish a parent's child support obligation," by proceeding on behalf of: 1. An applicant or recipient of public assistance, as provided by ss.
409.2561 and
409.2567; 2. A former recipient of public assistance, as provided by s.
409.2569; 3. An individual who has applied for services as provided by s.
409.2567; 4....
...[8] As DOR concedes, a relative caregiver (like Ms. Phillips) can apply to the department for child support services, and DOR can act on her behalf to obtain support from both parents. It is also clear that there is no attorney-client relationship between DOR and the child support obligee. See § 409.2567(2), Fla....
CopyCited 1 times | Published | Florida 5th District Court of Appeal
...ordered the mother, as court appointed custodian of the child, to institute a paternity action against the putative father to establish his duty of support and ordered the child support enforcement unit of HRS to assist the mother as provided under section 409.2567, Florida Statutes (1981)....
...Hollis,
439 So.2d 947 (Fla. 1st DCA 1983). In this case the juvenile judge was well within the exercise of its jurisdiction to direct the custodian it had appointed to act in a specific manner deemed by the court to be in the best interest of the dependent child. Section
409.2567, Florida Statutes (1981), provides: All child support collection and paternity determination services provided by the department shall be made available to any individual not otherwise eligible for such services, upon proper application filed with the department....
...ection in instances other than those where HRS is exercising its discretion under section
409.2561 to seek reimbursement for public assistance paid under section 409.255 to aid families with dependent children. Whether the statutory duty provided by section
409.2567 can be enforced by judicial proceeding, such as mandamus, by an individual entitled to its benefits is not presented by this appeal....
...a request by the judge to HRS for it to assist the custodian of the dependent child as to matters concerning which HRS has a statutory duty to act. However, the juvenile court did not have authority to summarily order HRS to render assistance under section 409.2567 in such a manner as to be able to enforce a violation of that order as a contempt of court....
CopyPublished | Florida 3rd District Court of Appeal | 1990 Fla. App. LEXIS 8360, 1990 WL 165354
...RS nor the state attorney could represent someone in a clearly civil matter. He acknowledges that Thaysen conflicts with our case of Wilkinson v. Coggin,
552 So.2d 348 (Fla. 5th DCA 1989) which held that the term “support enforcement” as used in section
409.2567 means more than merely enforcing a support order; it means enforcing the noncustodian’s support obligation. It appears from a reading of Wilkinson that while the panel interpreted the language of
409.2567, it did not specifically determine that the statute was applicable in cases where the father was not in default and the child was not dependent....
CopyPublished | District Court of Appeal of Florida | 1992 Fla. App. LEXIS 3321, 1992 WL 60032
...w of the trial court’s order vacating a prior final judgment on the ground that HRS did not have the authority to represent Ms. Craft *504 because she was not a welfare recipient. We reverse. Ms. Craft, former wife, contracted with HRS pursuant to section 409.2567, Florida Statutes (1989), to represent her in child support modification proceedings....
CopyPublished | District Court of Appeal of Florida | 1992 Fla. App. LEXIS 5823, 1992 WL 118453
.... Looking at it from another direction, if the prior final judgment is to be disregarded and the mother (and her subrogee, HRS) are not bound by it then the father is likewise not bound and is entitled to have HRS proceed under section
409.2561 (or section
409.2567, Florida Statutes), against the mother to enforce her obligation to contribute to the support of K.K....
CopyPublished | Florida 3rd District Court of Appeal | 1991 Fla. App. LEXIS 207, 1991 WL 2789
...led by HRS on her behalf. The wife admitted that she did not receive Aid for Dependent Children (AFDC). There is no evidence that the children of the parties are dependent, or that the husband was delinquent in payment of support. HRS’ reliance on section 409.2567, Florida Statutes (1989), as its authority to represent Ms....
CopyPublished | District Court of Appeal of Florida | 1991 Fla. App. LEXIS 924, 1991 WL 15005
...They showed first that the proceedings in the Bay County Circuit Court commenced as a URESA action and sought in part to modify the order to which HRS was a party. Petitioners main argument, however, focuses on several provisions of chapter 409, Florida Statutes. Section 409.2567 provides: All support and paternity determination services provided by the department shall be made available on behalf of all dependent children....
...ad to authorize it to appear on behalf of a public assistance recipient in defending against a petition for reduction in child support, and we agree. That being so, HRS can appear on behalf of Ms. Saba-tino in the lower court proceedings pursuant to section 409.2567, see State, Department of Health and Rehabilitative Services v....
CopyPublished | Florida 3rd District Court of Appeal | 1991 Fla. App. LEXIS 1712, 1991 WL 27186
...As such, the child is not being supported by the father in accordance with his moral and legal obligations to provide support.” Appellants rely on Wilkinson v. Coggin,
552 So.2d 348 (Fla. 5th DCA 1989), which they assert “broadly interprets the concept of support enforcement as used in section
409.2567, as referring to a noncustodial parent’s general obligation of support.” They contend that chapter 409, Florida Statutes, authorizes HRS “to proceed with the establishment of support through modification proceedings on behalf o...
...The question here is whether HRS has the authority to represent a welfare nonre-cipient in an action to establish a child support obligation when the dissolution final judgment did not so provide. Reading the pertinent sections of chapter 409 in pari materia, especially taking into account the amendment to section 409.2567, we are inclined to follow Wilkinson’s construction of the statute and to find that HRS has the authority to represent welfare nonrecipients in all support proceedings in which it has the authority to represent similarly situated welfare recipients....
CopyPublished | District Court of Appeal of Florida | 12 Fla. L. Weekly 489, 1987 Fla. App. LEXIS 6697
support enforcement services as permitted under section
409.2567, Florida Statutes (1986 Supp.). HRS also claims
CopyPublished | Florida 1st District Court of Appeal
...nt shall institute, within 30 days after determination of the obligor's reasonable ability to pay, action as is necessary to secure the obligor's payment of current support and any arrearage which may have accrued under an existing order of support. Section 409.2567 provides in pertinent part (emphasis added): All support and paternity determination services provided by the department shall be made available on behalf of all dependent children....
...In Heffler, the supreme court quashed an order finding the Department's provision of paternity determination services to persons not receiving governmental subsidies (i.e. free counsel) to be a denial of equal protection of the law. The court found section
409.2567 constitutional, citing the statute's purpose to maintain children "from the resources of responsible parents, thereby relieving, at least in part, the burden presently borne by the general citizenry through *1091 public assistance programs."
382 So.2d at 302. The court noted that the legislature passed sections
409.2551-409.2597 in order to receive federal aid to families with dependent children (AFDC) funds, and that the pertinent language of section
409.2567 comes directly from the federal statute. Id. In Blue, the district court reversed an order denying the Department's motion to intervene on behalf of a former wife in an action to collect child support arrearages, observing: Since section
409.2567 provides that all H.R.S....
CopyPublished | Florida 2nd District Court of Appeal | 2001 Fla. App. LEXIS 18513, 2001 WL 1744275
...The department is also correct that fees and costs can only be assessed against an obligor but not against a custodial parent. Section
61.16, Florida Statutes, provides that “[i]n Title IV D cases, attorney’s fees ... and costs ... shall be assessed only against the nonprevailing obli-gor....” See also §
409.2567, Fla....
CopyPublished | District Court of Appeal of Florida | 1999 Fla. App. LEXIS 16633, 1999 WL 1127719
...es. This motion was denied. Appellant then sought discovery of any documents showing that either Raye Liebert or the State of New Hampshire had applied for DOR services. The child support hearing officer denied the discovery request, citing sections
409.2567 and
409.2564(1), Florida Statutes (1997), and finding it irrelevant whether or not an application had been filed with DOR for services. Section
409.2567 provides: All child support services provided by the department shall be made available on behalf of all dependent children....
CopyPublished | District Court of Appeal of Florida | 1993 Fla. App. LEXIS 12168, 1993 WL 504498
...e petition. Davis v. Davis,
581 So.2d 1005 (Fla. 1st DCA 1992). *1312 Appellee concedes error as to this issue, and we therefore reverse as to this issue. As to the third issue, administrative costs are defined in section
409.2554, Florida Statutes. Section
409.2567, Florida Statutes, unambiguously provides that “the obligor is responsible for all administrative costs.” The statute directs that costs be imposed and does not direct that these costs may be imposed on a need and ability to pay analysis as under chapter 61, Florida Statutes....
CopyPublished | District Court of Appeal of Florida | 1994 Fla. App. LEXIS 7753, 1994 WL 406148
...§ 302.33 (d)(1). Florida implemented Title IV-D through the enactment of sections
409.2551 through
409.2597, Florida Statutes (1989). These statutes provide that the obligor is responsible for all “administrative costs,” assuming a present ability to pay. §
409.2567, Fla.Stat....
CopyPublished | Florida 2nd District Court of Appeal | 1992 Fla. App. LEXIS 8976, 1992 WL 187236
...cent decision in State, Department of Health & Rehabilitative Services v. Harvey,
593 So.2d 611 (Fla. 2d DCA 1992), we, again, as in Harvey , reverse the order requiring HRS to pay the prevailing party’s fees in this action brought pursuant to section
409.2567, Florida Statutes (1989)....
CopyPublished | District Court of Appeal of Florida | 1995 Fla. App. LEXIS 8891, 1995 WL 497120
...ice of process fees, and other expenses incurred by the clerk of the circuit court, shall be assessed only against the nonpre-vailing obligor after the court makes a determination of the nonprevailing obli-gor’s ability to pay such costs and fees. §
409.2567, Fla.Stat. (Supp.1994) (emphasis added); see also §
742.045, Fla.Stat. (1993). The statute is clear that administrative costs can be assessed only against a nonprevailing obligor, not an obligee. §
409.2567, Fla.Stat....
...The agency and the mother do not seek, however, to increase the assessment of administrative costs against the father. Under the statute, administrative costs are to be assessed against a nonprevailing obligor upon a determination of the nonprevailing obligor’s ability to pay. Id. § 409.2567....
