Florida child custody

A Parenting Plan is required in all family law cases involving children. The Parenting Plan establishes parental responsibility and a time-sharing schedule.

The two primary issues in custody cases are parental responsibility and time-sharing. Parental responsibility is defined as shared, shared with ultimate decision-making authority, or sole.

Shared parental responsibility allows parents to mutually agree on major decisions such as education, religion, extracurricular activities, and medical needs.

Sole parental responsibility authorizes one parent to make all decisions without input from the other. This is very difficult to achieve — you must prove that giving the other parent decision-making authority would be detrimental to the children, which usually requires proof of abuse, abandonment, or neglect.

Shared parental responsibility with ultimate decision-making allows one parent to make a major decision when the parents cannot agree.

The statutory presumption is for shared parental responsibility, because it is considered in the children's best interests for both parents to play an active role in their lives. The judge will order shared parental responsibility unless you can show it would be detrimental to your children.

A time-sharing schedule is part of every Parenting Plan. The statutory presumption is equal time-sharing, because it is in the children's best interests to spend equal time with each parent. Most people call this 50-50 time-sharing, which can take the form of a 7-7 split, a 2-2-3 split, or a 3-4-4-3 split. Holiday time-sharing is another important issue and should be spelled out in detail, with specific dates and exchange times.

The court can order unequal time-sharing for a few reasons, such as the geographic distance between the parents, employment restrictions, or any circumstance that would make equal time with a parent contrary to the children's best interests.

A minor can testify only with the court's permission. A motion requesting a child's appearance and testimony must be filed, argued, and granted by the judge. If granted, the judge will usually ask the child prepared questions in camera (in chambers). Another way to secure a child's testimony is to file a motion seeking child hearsay statements; if granted, a person can tell the court what the child said.

If you are involved in a custody dispute, I am here to help. Let me draw on my thirty-plus years of trial experience to develop the strongest possible case. Call or email to schedule a consultation, and we can work together to put this matter behind you.