Family Law

Florida Child Custody Laws

Family Law Areas

Custody Issues

Under Florida child custody laws, the court is responsible for determining the issues that pertain to child custody and shared parenting. These state laws deal with the legal and physical care of children whose parents are divorcing or those whose parents were never married. Florida child custody laws are designed to favor the best interests of a child, in accordance with the Uniform Child Custody Jurisdiction and Enforcement Act. Florida child custody laws follow the public policy of the state, which favors a child’s frequent contact with both parents. In addition, these laws encourage shared parenting rights and responsibilities.
In many divorce and paternity cases, parents share the responsibility for the care, custody, and control of a child.

Under Florida child custody laws, both parents must make all decisions regarding their child together. The law calls this “shared parenting” or “shared parental responsibility.” People sometimes refer to this situation as “joint custody,” but it is important to know the correct legal terminology. In a joint custody situation, you and your ex-spouse or ex-partner are expected to work out matters relating to your child (such as education, health, religion, activities, and other issues regarding the welfare of your child) together.

In some circumstances, the court may decide that sole parental responsibility should be awarded to one parent. This sole custody must be in the best interest of the child. It is usually reserved for situations involving abuse or neglect. Under Florida child custody laws, sole custody means that one parent has the sole responsibility and right to make all major decisions regarding a child without having to confer with the other parent. The court will still need to decide if it is in the child’s best interest to award the non-residential parent supervised or non-supervised visitation rights with the child.

Under current Florida child custody laws, each parent has the equal right to be designated the primary residential parent or custodian of a child. The primary residential parent is the parent with whom the child lives the majority of the time and the one who usually receives child support. The secondary residential parent is no less of a parent. The designation merely signifies that the child spends less than the majority of time with that parent. The secondary residential parent has visitation and contact rights and usually pays child support to the other parent.

During child custody proceedings, the court will consider a number of factors, to determine the best interest and welfare of the child, before granting primary and secondary residential custody. These factors may include the love, affection, and other emotional ties existing between the parents and the child; the mental health, physical health, and morality of the parents; and—most important of all—which parent is more likely to allow contact between the child and the secondary residential parent.

Florida law also allows, in limited situations, for rotating custody whereby the child spends equal time with both parents and neither parent is deemed the primary residential parent or custodian of the child. This framework is much trickier than it seems and is usually not favored by the courts. Many people going through a custody situation think that rotating custody is the answer when it is not really the best option for their family. It takes the help of a qualified family law attorney to help sort out this tricky area of the law.

If you and your spouse reside in two different states, the custody case becomes more complicated. The State of Florida has implemented a version of the Uniform Child Custody Jurisdiction and Enforcement Act into its Florida child custody laws. The law deters child custody controversy, discourages child kidnappings, and promotes cooperation and guidelines for custody disputes between states. The main purpose of this Act is to hold child custody proceedings in the home state of the child. It is important to know that removing a child either temporarily or permanently out of the State of Florida during custody proceedings may be a violation of Florida laws.

Family law cases involving children can be very emotional and often lead to complicated disputes. Issues concerning sole and shared custody, primary and secondary residential parentage, and out of state custody procedures can get extremely complicated. If you or a loved one is in the process of a divorce or child custody proceedings, it is essential to seek the help of a qualified Florida family law attorney. An experienced attorney can clarify Florida child custody laws, file the proper paperwork, as well as help protect the legal rights of you and your children. Please contact us today to speak with an experienced Florida family law attorney free of charge.

The Chartered Law Offices of Troum & Wallsh is located one block from Interstate 4 on Lee Road in Winter Park, Florida. Our experienced attorneys are licensed in all Florida State courts. We frequently handle family law cases in Orange, Seminole, Osceola, Lake, Marion, Volusia, and Brevard Counties. On occasion, we’ve taken cases outside the central Florida area.