Florida Marital & Family Law Board Certified Attorney
Greater Orlando Family Law is proud to include among its team a Florida Marital & Family Law Board Certified attorney. In 2024, attorney Michael J. Vaghaiwalla was one of just seven attorneys to receive this prestigious certification from the Florida Bar. Indeed, there are less than 300 attorneys who currently hold this credential from the Bar.
What Board Certification Means
Under the state constitution, the Florida Supreme Court is responsible for licensing all attorneys who wish to practice in the state. Every lawyer admitted to the Florida Supreme Court is also a member of the Florida Bar, which is the professional organization that assists the Court in regulating the legal profession.
As part of this role, the Florida Supreme court established a Board certification program in 1982. Certification is not required for an attorney to practice in a particular field or subject. Rather, it enables the Florida Bar to recognize attorneys with “special knowledge, skills, or proficiency” in their field. This can help consumers identify specialists who can help them with a specific legal problem.
How Board Certification Works
To apply for a Marital and Family Law certification, an attorney must meet the following requirements:
- The attorney must have practiced law for at least 5 years;
- During the past 5 years, the attorney spent 50 percent or more of their time handling marital and family law matters, including at least 25 contested cases and 7 courtroom trials;
- The attorney completed 75 hours of Florida Bar-approved continuing legal education courses in marital and family law;
- The attorney passed both a written examination and a peer review.
Once a lawyer attains Florida Board certification in marital and family law, it must be renewed at least every 5 years.
What Board Certification Covers
Marital and family law is a fairly broad subject area that covers a number of topics. In terms of Florida Board certification, the State Bar tests attorneys in the following areas:
- Florida trial practice and courtroom procedures;
- rules of legal ethics, including the bounds of advocacy;
- the scope of the attorney-client relationship;
- alternative forms of dispute resolution in family law cases, including mediation, arbitration, and Collaborative Law;
- classification and division of marital property;
- spousal maintenance and child support;
- parental responsibility and timesharing;
- taxation issues affecting family law;
- domestic violence, including cyberstalking;
- enforcement and modification of spousal and child support orders;
- marital and antenuptial (prenuptial) agreements;
- annulments;
- laws affecting military marriages; and
- the rights of unmarried people living together (cohabitants).
Contact Our Florida Marital & Family Law Board Certified Lawyer for Help
Board certification represents the highest level of evaluation by the Florida Bar of an attorney’s competence and experience within their chosen specialty. That is why we are honored that the Bar has recognized our attorney Michael J. Vaghaiwalla as one of the top-tier practitioners in his field. So if you are looking for an experienced Florida marital and family law Board certified lawyer, call Greater Orlando Family Law today at 407-377-6399 to schedule a free case evaluation.
