Child custody is one of Beller Law, PL’s primary practice areas. Contact us to discuss your rights, obligations, options, and how we can help. We are always committed to achieving efficient and timely results to help you get onto your new path forward as soon as possible.
How Does Child Custody Work in Florida?
In recent years, Florida has worked on simplifying the language we use to discuss child custody. Florida’s child custody laws rarely use the word “custody” anymore. Instead, Florida law describes child custody in terms of parental “time-sharing” according to a parenting plan, and parental rights and responsibilities. The law also changed in 2023 to presume that equal time-sharing with parents is in the best interests of children.
Parental Time-Sharing
Parental time-sharing, also called physical custody, is when the child is in your care and living with you. Florida courts order the child to split time equally between parents unless:
- The parents agree to an alternative arrangement,
- One or both parents having parenting time would be detrimental to the child, or
- A parent proves it is more likely that time sharing is not in the child’s best interests.
Although the law assumes that shared time is in the child’s best interests, it acknowledges that the importance of stability in the child’s life may justify a different arrangement.
Parental Rights and Responsibilities
Florida law refers to your parental rights and responsibilities to make decisions about your child’s life as legal custody. Parents typically have the right and responsibility to decide:
- The type of education and care their child receives,
- Their child’s moral and religious upbringing, and
- What healthcare their child will receive.
These decisions can extend even into other areas, like what extracurricular activities the child participates in and more. Under Florida’s parents’ bill of rights, parents also have the right to:
- Access their child’s school records and medical information;
- Prevent the use of the child’s fingerprints, blood, or likeness without consent; and
- Prompt notification if a government or institutional employee suspects someone has committed a crime against the child.
Florida courts award shared parental rights and responsibilities unless it would be detrimental to the child. Factors that suggest shared legal custody would be detrimental include:
- If there is evidence of domestic violence committed by one or both parents;
- If one parent reasonably believes the other presents an imminent risk of committing domestic or sexual violence against the child or parent; or
- If one parent reasonably believes the other presents an imminent risk of abusing, neglecting, or abandoning the child.
The court can order a different plan in such circumstances.
Parenting Plans
In Florida, a parenting plan:
- Describes the allocation of daily child-rearing responsibilities;
- Explains the parent’s time-sharing arrangements and schedule;
- Identifies which parent is responsible for the child’s healthcare, school-related issues, and other activities;
- Explains what methods and technologies the parents will use to communicate with the child; and
- Identifies a location to exchange the child.
In short, the parenting plan details the breakdown of parenting time and responsibilities.
How Does a Judge Decide Custody?
Usually, if you and the other parent agree on a custody arrangement, the court will sign off on what you propose. But how does a judge decide custody otherwise? Generally, they do so by evaluating the child’s best interests.
What Factors Affect the Child’s Best Interests?
The law identifies several factors bearing on the child’s best interests. Specifically, the court evaluates the parent’s ability and willingness to:
- Maintain a close parent-child relationship;
- Respect the time-sharing schedule;
- Adapt to reasonable changes;
- Identify and act upon the child’s needs;
- Know and understand details about the child’s life inside and outside of the home;
- Provide a consistent routine, including schedules and discipline;
- Communicate cooperatively and keep the other parent informed about the child;
- Be involved in the child’s activities;
- Provide a living environment free from substance abuse;
- Protect the child from the effects of child custody proceedings; and
- Meet the child’s needs.
The court also considers:
- The child’s unique needs;
- How the parents divided responsibilities in the past;
- How the parents will divide responsibilities in the future;
- How long the child has lived in a stable environment, and whether it is best to keep the child in that environment;
- How far apart the parents live from each other and from the child’s school;
- Each parent’s moral fitness, mental health, and physical health;
- The child’s history at home, school, and in the community;
- The child’s preferences when mature enough to consider and express them;
- Any evidence or reasonable risk of domestic violence to the other parent or child;
- Any evidence or reasonable risk to the child of child abuse, neglect, or abandonment; and
- Any evidence that a parent knowingly lied to the court about domestic violence, sexual violence, child abuse, neglect, or abandonment.
In evaluating these factors, the judge considers evidence like testimony from parents or others who know the child, medical or school records, and screenshots of messages or social media posts.
What Does a Judge Ask the Parents in a Custody Case?
When judges consider child custody, they must address each factor related to the child’s best interests. To do so, the judge may ask parents questions, asking them to explain:
- The child’s skills, interests, and unique childcare requirements;
- Details about the child’s school and home life;
- Their attitude toward co-parenting;
- How they have cared for the child in the past; and
- How they anticipate caring for the child in the future.
The judge will ask questions that provide information on the child’s best interests. The court will also likely ask what custody arrangement each parent wants and why.
What Does a Judge Ask a Child in a Custody Case?
Although children rarely testify in child custody cases, in certain circumstances an attorney may ask for permission for the child to speak with the judge. You must have permission from a judge before bringing a child to court. When the judge does agree to hear from a child, a judge may:
- Speak to the child privately without the parents present;
- Appoint a guardian ad litem (GAL) who interviews the child and represents the child’s interests throughout the case; or
- Order an expert child psychologist to evaluate custody.
Whoever interviews the child may ask about the following:
- The child’s school life, home life, and favorite activities;
- What the child likes to do with each parent;
- Where the child would prefer to live and why;
- Whether either parent harms the child; and
- Whether the child’s experiences align with how the parents have described them.
A judge may decide to speak with the child based on what they observe between the parents, or a parent may request such measures.
Establish Child Custody
To speak about your child custody rights and options, reach out to Beller Law, PL. We can evaluate how a judge might rule on child custody in your unique situation. Then, we can work with you to protect your rights and your children.