Elizabeth Chamberlain v. John Douglas Eisinger, 159 So. 3d 185

Background

Parties divorced in Maryland (2007); Mother received primary custody and Father paid alimony ($2,000→$2,300) and child support ($1,200). Father later moved to Florida.
Multiple Maryland consent orders modified custody for individual children; no adjustment to child support at those times.
Mother moved to Florida in July 2010 while Father had summer timesharing; disputes followed about where children should reside and parenting access.
Father filed in Florida (2010) to modify timesharing and requested supervised timesharing for Mother; psychologist Dr. Edwards evaluated family and recommended limiting Mother’s access to daughters.
After a four-day trial, Florida trial court found a substantial change in circumstances, transferred majority timesharing for both daughters and the older son to Father, imposed counseling, modified child support (Mother to pay $533/month retroactive to Oct. 1, 2010), and denied Father’s request to modify alimony.
On appeal, Fourth DCA affirmed timesharing modification, reversed the retroactive child support calculation (remanded to correctly account for actual alimony payments), and remanded for detailed findings supporting any imputation of Father’s income.

Issues

Issue	Chamberlain's Argument	Eisinger's Argument	Held
Whether trial court erred in finding substantial change in circumstances to modify timesharing	Mother: No substantial change; modification undermines reunification with daughters	Father: There was a substantial change—children thrived with him and daughters reported stress with Mother	Affirmed — trial court did not abuse discretion; considered statutory best-interest factors and credible evaluations (Dr. Edwards)
Whether ordering therapy and giving Father custody of daughters prevented reunification	Mother: Court improperly delegated reunification responsibility to Father and impeded therapy	Father: Therapy requirement and custody change appropriate to protect children and facilitate reunification	Affirmed — Mother presented no evidence Father would thwart reunification; court noted Mother’s disparaging conduct toward children
Whether trial court erred in calculating retroactive child support by treating unpaid alimony as income to Mother	Mother: Court erroneously included alimony as income though Father failed to pay it	Father: (implicit) alimony obligation exists per judgment	Reversed in part — remand to determine actual alimony paid between Oct. 1, 2010 and final judgment and recalculate retroactive support accordingly
Whether trial court erred by imputing income to Father without adequate findings	Father: Trial court erred in imputing ~$73,000/yr without stating factual basis	Mother: Trial court properly imputed income based on lifestyle and other evidence	Reversed/remanded — trial court must make specific factual findings describing source, amount, and adjustments supporting imputation

Key Cases Cited

Sanchez v. Hernandez, 45 So. 3d 57 (Fla. 4th DCA 2010) (standard for modifying custody/substantial change requirement)
Wade v. Hirschman, 903 So. 2d 928 (Fla. 2005) (custody modification principle and best-interests analysis)
Knipe v. Knipe, 840 So. 2d 335 (Fla. 4th DCA 2003) (statutory best-interest factors in parenting plan modifications)
Marlowe v. Marlowe, 123 So. 3d 1194 (Fla. 1st DCA 2013) (reversing retroactive child support calculation that assumed unpaid alimony was paid)
Swor v. Swor, 56 So. 3d 825 (Fla. 2d DCA 2011) (error to include unpaid alimony in child support calculations)
Alon v. Alon, 665 So. 2d 1110 (Fla. 4th DCA 1996) (trial court must state factual basis when imputing income)
Bimonte v. Martin-Bimonte, 679 So. 2d 18 (Fla. 4th DCA 1996) (error to impute income without supporting findings)
McKenna v. McKenna, 31 So. 3d 890 (Fla. 4th DCA 2010) (abuse-of-discretion standard for child support awards)
Pedersen v. Pedersen, 752 So. 2d 89 (Fla. 1st DCA 2000) (high burden to show material change in custody)
Schutz v. Schutz, 581 So. 2d 1290 (Fla. 1991) (custodial parent’s obligation to encourage noncustodial relationship)