You're not up at night grieving. You're project-managing. There's a reenlistment window, a lease ending, a move, or a tax year coming, and this marriage is the last open item on the list. You've read the $400 internet-forms stories and the $5,000 lawyer stories, and you don't trust either one.

What you're really asking is simple: can this be finished for a known price, on a real timeline, without a law firm turning my easy case into a hard one?

Yes. Here's how it works. Call Good Life Legal at 850-362-7228, or complete the form on this page and we will call you.

Reviewed for legal accuracy by Matthew Ausley, Attorney.

The plain-English definition

Uncontested divorce in Florida is defined as a dissolution of marriage where both spouses agree on everything: how the property and debts divide, and the parenting plan if there are children. The case still goes through the court, but nothing is fought. One spouse states the marriage is irretrievably broken (Fla. Stat. § 61.052), the paperwork is prepared and filed, and a judge enters a final judgment. It is usually the fastest and least expensive way through a Florida divorce, and its product is a written settlement covering all property and debts, done once and correctly.

Three things that shape every uncontested divorce case in Florida:

  • The residency rule. At least one spouse (not both) must have lived in Florida for the six months before filing (Fla. Stat. § 61.021). Mobile military couples trip on this more than anyone.
  • The paperwork is lighter by agreement. Both spouses complete financial affidavits under Fla. Fam. L. R. P. 12.285, but in an agreed case the rule's fuller document exchange is typically waived by agreement, and since late 2023 agreeing spouses may jointly waive filing the affidavits with the court. County practice varies on the details.
  • The 20-day floor. A final judgment can be entered no sooner than 20 days after filing (Fla. Stat. § 61.19). That's a minimum the law sets, not a speed anyone promises.

Local pro tip: the law is the same in all 67 Florida counties, but the courthouse experience is not. Which building hears your case, how an agreed case gets its final hearing date, even the filing fee vary by county. That's why we've written local guides for many of the communities we serve: find yours below and you'll know your courthouse before your final hearing.

The two ways a simple divorce goes wrong

You're worried about overpaying for something easy. And somewhere underneath that, you're worried about the opposite: doing it cheap, missing something, and finding out in three years that the settlement skipped a debt, botched the TSP, or can't be enforced.

Both worries are correct. They're the two real failure modes, and steering between them is the entire job. Wanting it cheap and right at the same time isn't naive. It's the standard we price to.

Here's the thing most people don't realize: agreement doesn't finish a divorce. Paperwork does. Even a fully agreed Florida case completes financial affidavits, needs a written settlement covering every asset and every debt, and ends with a final hearing somebody has to request. The internet-forms route skips none of those steps. It just leaves you to do them alone.

Why "we'll get to it" costs more than starting

There's no emergency here, and we won't invent one. But an agreed divorce has quiet costs of its own when it sits, and you should see them plainly.

  • Agreements don't expire. Moods do. Today you agree on everything. One new relationship, one tax refund, one argument, and a single disputed detail makes this a different case with a different fee. The best time to paper an agreement is while it still exists.
  • Your deadline is real. The court's calendar doesn't care. Reenlistment windows, PCS orders, leases, and tax years are the real triggers we see for families across Florida. The law's 20-day floor is a minimum, and nothing about a court moves fast on demand. Finishing before your date means starting now.
  • Forms don't cover what you forgot. A settlement has to catch everything once: the car loan, the credit card, the TSP a junior enlisted marriage quietly grew under the Blended Retirement System. What the paperwork misses doesn't disappear. It waits.
  • Nothing schedules itself. One Florida clerk's office answers "why hasn't a hearing been set?" in its own public FAQ because agreed cases stall at the finish line constantly. Hearings are requested, not issued, in every Florida circuit. We request yours.

That's the whole honest list. No drama in it, just the reasons finished beats almost-finished. Ten minutes now beats redoing it in three years: 850-362-7228.

The uncontested path through a Florida courthouse

The finish line is a short final hearing at your county's courthouse. The road to it is the same across Florida; what changes county to county is the building, the clerk, and the fee, and your local guide below carries those particulars. Most of the path, you won't need to drive anywhere. Here it is, start to finish.

  1. The first conversation. Ten minutes by phone, no charge, to confirm your case really is uncontested. If it is, the consultation is one hour with an attorney, $150 prepaid, and you leave knowing the total fixed price in writing.
  2. The settlement agreement. The actual product: a written agreement covering every asset and every debt, once, correctly. If you have children, this step also builds the parenting plan and each of you completes Florida's 4-hour parenting course (Fla. Stat. § 61.21).
  3. Filing with your county's Clerk. We file with the Clerk of Court, typically in the county where you and your spouse last lived together as a married couple. Filing fees are set county by county, and your local guide carries your county's number. The Clerk's fee is separate from ours, which never changes.
  4. Your spouse accepts service, typically. In a fully agreed case, your spouse typically accepts service in writing instead of being formally served by a process server. Nobody gets handed papers at work, which is part of why agreed cases stay agreeable. County practice varies on the exact form this takes. Formal service, with its 20-day response deadline, is what happens instead when the agreement is incomplete or falls apart.
  5. The lighter paperwork step. You and your spouse complete financial affidavits: the short form under $50,000 of gross annual income, the long form at or above it. In an agreed case, the fuller mandatory disclosure exchange under Rule 12.285 is typically waived by agreement, and since November 2023 agreeing spouses may also jointly waive filing the affidavits with the court. County practice varies on the details. If the agreement collapses, the full document exchange applies, on the rule's 45-day clock counted from service.
  6. The final hearing, requested, not waited for. We request the hearing date at your county's courthouse and prepare you for exactly what it requires. The law allows a final judgment as early as 20 days after filing (§ 61.19); that's a floor the statute sets, not a schedule. On our path the whole process usually runs about three months.

Find the divorce guide for your community

We have written local guides for many of the communities we serve: your courthouse, your clerk, your county's filing fee, and its way of finishing an agreed case. Start with the town you'd say you're from.

Don't see your town? These are starting points; we serve communities across North and Central Florida, more local guides are on the way, and your nearest guide above links to its neighbors.

Simple cases deserve to stay simple

We handle uncontested divorces across North and Central Florida every week, alongside the contested ones, which is exactly why we know where simple cases go wrong and how to keep yours from becoming one of them.

This firm was built against the hourly meter. We watched simple divorces grow expensive one six-minute increment at a time, and clients afraid to ask their own lawyer a question. So the price here is fixed, total, and in writing before you hire us. Your case cannot cost more because you called.

"A simple divorce should be simple: one price, one plan, everything covered once. That's the product."

We don't take every case, and an uncontested case that's ours gets the same attention a contested one does, because the settlement you sign is the one you live with. Fixed fee, in writing, before you hire us. Founded in 2016. Bilingual: English / Spanish.

Three terms worth understanding before anything else

The residency requirement

To divorce in Florida, at least one spouse must have lived in the state for the six months before the petition is filed. Only one of you needs to meet it, and the six months run before filing, not before the judgment. For PCS-mobile military families, this single rule decides whether Florida is open to you yet (Fla. Stat. § 61.021).

The financial affidavit

A sworn snapshot of what you earn, own, and owe. Both spouses complete one even when everything is agreed: the short form if your gross annual income is under $50,000, the long form at or above it. Since late 2023, agreeing couples may skip filing them with the court, but not exchanging them with each other. The rule's fuller document exchange is typically waived by agreement in an agreed case, one of the reasons agreed cases finish faster, though county practice varies (Fla. Fam. L. R. P. 12.285).

The final hearing

The short court appearance that turns your agreement into a judgment, held at your county's courthouse. The catch: it is never scheduled automatically, anywhere in Florida. One Florida clerk's office answers "why hasn't a hearing been set?" in its own public FAQ because agreed cases sit waiting for a date nobody requested. We request it.

The questions agreed couples actually ask

How long does an uncontested divorce take in Florida?

Here's the thing: the law allows a final judgment 20 days after filing (Fla. Stat. § 61.19), but that's a floor, not a schedule. On our path an uncontested Florida case usually runs about three months: settlement, filing, your spouse typically accepting service rather than being formally served, a lighter paperwork step because agreed cases typically waive the fuller disclosure exchange, and a final hearing we request rather than wait for. Complete paperwork is what actually makes a case fast.

How much does it cost to file for divorce in Florida?

The Clerk's filing fee is set county by county, plus a small per-summons fee. Your county's exact number is on your local guide. The Clerk's fee is separate from ours, which is fixed and quoted in writing before you hire us, so the total you start with is the total you finish with.

We agree on everything. Do we really need a lawyer?

The reality is that agreement is the easy part; an enforceable settlement covering every asset and debt, once, correctly, is the product a lawyer delivers. Filled-in forms don't check what's missing. The couples who regret this route didn't disagree, they under-documented: a skipped TSP, an unassigned debt, a plan that couldn't be enforced when circumstances changed.

Do we both need our own lawyer?

No. We represent one spouse; the other is always free to have the agreement reviewed by counsel of their own. In a genuinely agreed case that structure keeps costs down without cutting corners, and we'll tell you plainly if your case has the kind of imbalance where separate review is the wise move.

What if my spouse changes their mind halfway through?

Then it's a different case with a different fee, and we tell you that before you hire us, not after. One genuinely disputed detail is all it takes. The fuller procedure comes back with it: formal service if your spouse hasn't accepted it, and the full document exchange under Rule 12.285 on its 45-day clock. If it happens, you get a new written quote for the new scope and a straight recommendation about whether to negotiate, mediate, or hold. What you never get here is a meter that was quietly running all along.

We're military. Can we file in Florida?

If at least one spouse has lived in Florida for the six months before filing, yes (Fla. Stat. § 61.021). Only one of you needs to meet it. And one more thing junior enlisted couples miss: even a short marriage can hold a divisible TSP under the Blended Retirement System, and the settlement should say who keeps it.

Do we both have to appear in court?

An uncontested case ends with a short final hearing at your county's courthouse. It's brief and unceremonious, and we prepare you for exactly what yours requires before you ever walk in. Which building hears it, and how the date gets set, varies by county; your local guide carries those particulars.

What clients say

"I would highly recommend Good Life Legal. They assisted me with my divorce and the process went perfectly. I was absolutely satisfied with the results."
Tim B. · Google review

"First time ever needing a lawyer for anything and with it being for divorce I was very scared. Good Life Legal absolutely made the whole process understandable and helped with what I asked for during the divorce. They listen and do care!"
Abigail A. · Google review

"I had an excellent experience with Good Life Legal! From the very beginning, the team was professional, responsive, and genuinely cared about my situation."
Rebecca M. · Google review

We don't take every case. Here's why that's good for you.

We don't take every case, and we only take an uncontested case that actually is one. The first conversation is an honest read, not a pitch.

What happens on the call: ten minutes by phone, no charge. We ask direct questions, confirm your agreement holds together, and give you a clear next step. If it makes sense to go further, one hour with an attorney, $150 prepaid, and you leave with the total fixed price in writing.

If your case isn't right for us, we'll give you a name, not a directory. Someone we know personally. If it is a match, we move fast. Your deadline is usually the reason you called.

You've done the hard part. The rest is paperwork. Let's finish it.

By the end of one call you'll know whether your case qualifies, what the path looks like, and your total price. Concrete answers, no lecture. Call Good Life Legal at 850-362-7228, or complete the form on this page and we will call you.

Confidential. No pressure. No obligation. Serving families across North and Central Florida, from Pensacola to Jacksonville to Orlando.