HANSEN V. HANSEN
Annotate this Case
Download PDF
NOT FINAL UNTIL TIME EXPIRES TO FILE REHEARING MOTION AND, IF FILED, DISPOSED OF. IN THE DISTRICT COURT OF APPEAL OF FLORIDA THIRD DISTRICT JULY TERM, A.D. 2005 ELISABETH HANSEN, ** Appellant/ Cross-Appellee, vs. ** ** KARL HANSEN, CASE NO. 3D03-2016 ** CONSOLIDATED WITH: 3D03-2007 Appellee/ Cross-Appellant. ** LOWER TRIBUNAL CASE NO. 97-11137 ** Opinion filed July 13, 2005. An Appeal from the Circuit Court for Miami-Dade County, Paul Siegel , Judge. Maurice Jay Kutner; Cynthia L. Greene, for appellant/crossappellee. Karl Hansen, appellee/cross-appellant, in proper person. Before COPE, C.J. and FLETCHER and WELLS, JJ. FLETCHER, Judge. The parties, Karl Hansen [former husband] Hansen [former wife] were divorced in 1998. final judgment, the parties agreed upon and Elisabeth Prior to entry of shared parental responsibilities and residential parent. the former wife became the primary The mediated settlement agreement specified that the former husband has visitation every weekend and certain holidays, and all long weekends are alternated between the parents. The issues left unresolved are whether the former wife could have one weekend a month visitation, and which parent would pick up and return the child on Sundays after visitation, as the father lives in Coral Gables and the mother lives in Ft. Lauderdale. The child is now ten years old. As an ongoing matter, the parties have not been able to agree to the former wife s one weekend per month of visitation. In July 2002, the former wife filed a petition to determine visitation, access and contact, in order to resolve the open issue of weekend visitation. previously weekend, acquiesced but interfering child. The that with her to as the The former wife stated that she former the child ability to recommendations of husband s was have the now having older quality time court-appointed every this was with the Parental Coordinator, Dr. Julio Vigil, are that the parents alternate weekends with the child, that the child have an optional midweek overnight stay with the father, and that the parties share summer visitation. After hearing extensive testimony from Dr. Vigil and the parties, the trial court granted the former wife s petition to 2 determine the unresolved issue and adjusted the existing visitation schedule to include one weekend each month for the wife, and granted the husband the option of a midweek dinner visitation. The trial court denied the former wife s supplemental petition for modification and denied her motion to amend the pleadings to conform to the evidence presented at the hearing, which included discussion of modifying the existing visitation schedule for certain holidays, summers and alternate weekends. The former wife appealed, and the former husband cross-appealed. The lower court proceeding was an initial determination of an issue that had been settlement agreement. reserved in the parties mediated The record before us supports the trial court s conclusions that increased weekend visitation with the mother will benefit the child, and that such an alteration of schedule will not adversely affect the child s relationship with either the father or mother. The trial court took positive steps toward resolving the issue, but should have settled it completely holiday by granting scheduling in alternating weekend accordance visitation with Dr. and Vigil s recommendations. We therefore reverse in part and remand with instructions that the trial court issue an order granting the former wife alternate weekend visitation with 3 the child and summer visitation in full accord with Dr. Vigil s recommendations. On remand, the trial court is directed to establish a specific holiday visitation schedule. The trial court s order affirmed in all other respects. Reversed and remanded in part, and affirmed in part. 4 is
Some case metadata and case summaries were written with the help of AI, which can produce inaccuracies. You should read the full case before relying on it for legal research purposes.
This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.
