Steve Bartlett Law

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Steve Bartlett Law Board-Certified Criminal Trial Lawyer. Criminal Defense & Family Law in Pasco & Pinellas. Never a Prosecutor. Always on Your Side.

One of those Florida legal changes that sounds much bigger than it actually is took effect October 1.The Florida Supreme...
10/12/2026

One of those Florida legal changes that sounds much bigger than it actually is took effect October 1.

The Florida Supreme Court changed the way family-law forms are named and maintained. So if you already have a divorce, parenting, child-support, or other family-law case pending and your paperwork has the old form designation on it, don’t assume everything suddenly became invalid.

It didn’t.

The more useful lesson is that Florida now has one unified system for these forms, which should make future updates easier. That also makes it a good idea to check the current official version instead of relying on a PDF that has been sitting on a computer for a few years.

I broke down what changed—and what didn’t—in this week’s Bartlett Legal Update.

https://stevebartlettlaw.com/florida-family-law-forms-change-2026/

Here is one of those family-law rules that makes sense once you separate the two issues.The other parent is months behin...
09/28/2026

Here is one of those family-law rules that makes sense once you separate the two issues.

The other parent is months behind on child support. You are furious. Friday comes around and you think: Why should I send the child for the weekend when I have not been paid?

Florida law says those are two different court orders.

You generally cannot withhold time-sharing to collect unpaid support. And if the other parent refuses your time-sharing, you do not get to stop paying support in response.

That does not mean you have to shrug off the problem. Courts have ways to enforce unpaid support, and they also have ways to enforce a parenting plan.

What usually hurts people is deciding to create their own punishment and ending up with both parents accused of violating orders.

A real safety issue is different. If the child is actually in danger, treat it as a safety problem and get legal help. But unpaid support by itself is not a reason to cancel a court-ordered weekend.

I wrote more about it in this week’s Bartlett Legal Update:

https://stevebartlettlaw.com/withhold-time-sharing-unpaid-child-support-florida/

Steve Bartlett Law | Pasco & Pinellas Counties
(727) 942-1000

Every case is different. Results are not guaranteed.

A Florida law taking effect October 1 is worth knowing about if you or someone in your family is out on bond with a no-c...
09/21/2026

A Florida law taking effect October 1 is worth knowing about if you or someone in your family is out on bond with a no-contact order.

In certain violent-crime cases, intentionally violating that no-contact order will no longer just create a problem with the original bond. It can also become a new criminal charge.
One part people get wrong all the time: if the person protected by the order calls, texts, says “come home,” or tells you it is okay to have contact, that does not cancel the judge’s order. Until the judge changes it, the order is still the order.

The new law also changes what happens after certain new arrests while someone is already on pretrial release. In covered cases, the person has to stay in custody until first appearance so the judge can review what happened.
I wrote this week’s Bartlett Legal Update to explain what changes October 1, what “no contact” can include, and why trying to handle contact informally can make a bad situation worse.

https://stevebartlettlaw.com/florida-no-contact-pretrial-release-law-2026/
Law Offices of Steve Bartlett
Pasco & Pinellas Counties
(727) 942-1000

Every case is different. Results are not guaranteed.

Here’s a question that comes up more often than people might expect:“What if I realize I shouldn’t drive, pull over, and...
09/14/2026

Here’s a question that comes up more often than people might expect:

“What if I realize I shouldn’t drive, pull over, and fall asleep in the car?”

That is certainly safer than continuing down the road. Unfortunately, it does not guarantee that Florida police won’t make a DUI arrest.

Florida law does not require the officer to see the car moving. The dispute may instead be whether the person had “actual physical control” of the vehicle.

Where were you sleeping? Where were the keys? Was the engine running? Could the car actually be driven? Is there any reliable evidence showing when you arrived or whether you were impaired at that time?

Those details can make a real difference. Even moving to the back seat is not a magic answer that automatically prevents an arrest.

I broke down the issue in this week’s Bartlett Legal Update:

https://stevebartlettlaw.com/dui-florida-parked-sleeping-in-car/

The better decision is to arrange a ride before drinking. But if an arrest has already happened, the reports, video, testing records, vehicle condition, and complete timeline should all be examined.

Steve Bartlett Law
Pasco and Pinellas Counties
(727) 942-1000

I will not promise you a result.

Every school year, I hear some version of the same question:“My ex changed our child’s school. Can they do that?”Sometim...
09/07/2026

Every school year, I hear some version of the same question:

“My ex changed our child’s school. Can they do that?”

Sometimes the answer is yes. Often it’s no. The first place I look isn’t the school portal—it’s the most recent parenting plan.

If the parents share parental responsibility, changing schools is usually the kind of major educational decision they should make together. But some orders give one parent ultimate authority over education. The address used for school registration also isn’t always the same thing as final decision-making power.

I wrote a new guide explaining what the different provisions mean, what courts may consider, and why enrolling first and dealing with the disagreement later can make matters worse.

If a school deadline is approaching, start with the paperwork.

https://stevebartlettlaw.com/can-one-parent-change-child-school-without-permission-florida/

Steve Bartlett
(727) 942-1000

I sometimes read a police report that says an officer “searched the vehicle and its contents.”That sentence skips the mo...
08/31/2026

I sometimes read a police report that says an officer “searched the vehicle and its contents.”

That sentence skips the most important question: Why was the officer allowed to open the bag?

A purse or backpack is not automatically searchable because it was sitting in a car. If police had probable cause to search the vehicle for something the bag could hold, that may be enough. But a driver’s consent is different. So is an arrest. So is an inventory after a car is towed.

I would want to see where the bag was, who owned it, what the officer claimed to be looking for, and what happened before the zipper was opened.

That is what I wrote about this week:

https://stevebartlettlaw.com/can-police-search-your-purse-or-backpack-without-a-warrant-in-florida/

A lot of people hear, “The police had a warrant,” and assume that ends the discussion.It doesn’t.A judge’s signature mat...
08/24/2026

A lot of people hear, “The police had a warrant,” and assume that ends the discussion.

It doesn’t.

A judge’s signature matters, but I still want to know what the judge was told. Was the information current? Did the affidavit actually connect the evidence to the house, phone, car, or account that police wanted to search? Did the officer leave out something important or describe a recording differently from what was actually said?

Then there is another question: Did police stay within the limits of the warrant once they began searching?

These cases can turn on a few sentences in an affidavit. The warrant, affidavit, recordings, investigative reports, and list of property seized should be examined together.

That is the subject of this week’s article:

https://stevebartlettlaw.com/what-can-make-a-search-warrant-invalid-in-florida/

Here’s an interesting Fourth Amendment question: Can a hotel manager let police search your room?Usually not while you a...
08/17/2026

Here’s an interesting Fourth Amendment question: Can a hotel manager let police search your room?

Usually not while you are still a lawful guest.

A hotel may own the building and retain a key, but that does not ordinarily give its employees the right to waive your constitutional protection. Permission for a housekeeper to replace towels is not permission for police to open luggage and search drawers.

Checkout time can change everything. So can an agreed late checkout, an actual eviction, an emergency, or consent from the guest.

I wrote about where the lines are drawn and what records can become important if the search results in an arrest:

https://stevebartlettlaw.com/can-police-search-your-hotel-room-without-a-warrant-in-florida/

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New Port Richey, FL
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