Florida law does not use the term custody. Courts allocate parental responsibility, which is decision-making, and time-sharing, which is the schedule, under Fla. Stat. § 61.13. A 2023 amendment created a rebuttable presumption that equal time-sharing is in the best interest of the child. RNC Legal represents parents in Florida parenting plan, relocation, and modification matters.
Parental Responsibility and Time-Sharing
Florida replaced the vocabulary of custody and visitation some years ago, and the change was substantive rather than cosmetic. Two separate questions are decided.
Parental responsibility concerns decision-making about the child — education, health care, religious upbringing, and similar questions. Florida’s default is shared parental responsibility, in which both parents retain full parental rights and confer on major decisions. A court orders sole parental responsibility only where shared responsibility would be detrimental to the child. In some cases a court grants shared responsibility but gives one parent ultimate decision-making authority over specified areas.
Time-sharing is the schedule: where the child is, and when. Every Florida case involving minor children requires a parenting plan that sets out the time-sharing schedule, how parental responsibility is allocated, and how the parents will communicate and handle matters such as transportation and school-related activity.
The 2023 Equal Time-Sharing Presumption
In 2023 the Legislature amended § 61.13 to create a rebuttable presumption that equal time-sharing is in the best interest of a minor child. Before the amendment, Florida law directed courts to begin from the child’s best interests without any presumption as to the schedule.
The presumption is rebuttable, not conclusive. A parent seeking something other than an equal schedule must persuade the court, by a preponderance of the evidence, that equal time-sharing is not in the child’s best interest — using the statutory factors.
The practical effect is a shift in who has to prove what. Arguments for an unequal schedule now need to be evidenced rather than assumed, and matters such as each parent’s historical involvement, work schedules, geographic distance between homes, and the child’s established routine carry more weight when presented concretely.
The Best Interest Factors
Section 61.13 sets out an extensive list of factors a court evaluates in determining a child’s best interest. They include each parent’s demonstrated capacity to facilitate a close and continuing relationship with the other parent, the division of parental responsibilities historically and after any litigation, the geographic viability of the parenting plan, the moral fitness and the mental and physical health of the parents, the home, school, and community record of the child, the reasonable preference of the child where the court deems the child of sufficient maturity, evidence of domestic violence or abuse, and each parent’s capacity to be informed about and participate in the child’s life.
One factor deserves particular attention because it is frequently underestimated: a parent’s willingness to support the child’s relationship with the other parent. Conduct that undermines that relationship tends to weigh heavily, and parents sometimes damage their own position through communications made in frustration.
Florida courts also expect parenting plans to be workable rather than aspirational. A schedule that ignores the distance between homes, the parents’ work patterns, or the child’s school calendar invites a return to court.
Relocation and Modification
Florida regulates parental relocation specifically. Under Fla. Stat. § 61.13001, a parent who wishes to move at least fifty miles from their principal residence for at least sixty consecutive days must obtain either a written agreement of the other parent and any other person entitled to time-sharing, or court approval on a petition that satisfies statutory content requirements. Moving first and seeking permission afterward is a serious error with real consequences.
Modification of an existing time-sharing arrangement requires more than a change of mind. Florida applies a demanding standard: a substantial, material, and unanticipated change in circumstances, together with a showing that modification is in the child’s best interest.
That standard exists to protect stability. It also means the parenting plan entered at the end of a case tends to govern for a long time, which is a strong argument for getting it right initially rather than planning to revisit it.
| Issue | Florida position |
|---|---|
| Terminology | Florida uses parental responsibility and time-sharing, not custody |
| Governing statute | Fla. Stat. § 61.13 |
| Time-sharing presumption | Since 2023, a rebuttable presumption that equal time-sharing is in the child’s best interest |
| Rebuttal standard | Preponderance of the evidence, using the statutory best-interest factors |
| Parental responsibility | Shared by default unless it would be detrimental to the child |
| Parenting plan | Required in every case involving minor children |
| Relocation | 50+ miles for 60+ consecutive days requires agreement or court approval (§ 61.13001) |
| Modification | Substantial, material, and unanticipated change in circumstances |
Matters We Handle
- Parenting plans and time-sharing schedules
- Rebutting or supporting the equal time-sharing presumption
- Shared and sole parental responsibility disputes
- Ultimate decision-making authority on specified issues
- Relocation petitions and objections under § 61.13001
- Modification of existing parenting plans
- Enforcement and contempt for time-sharing violations
- Paternity and parentage actions establishing time-sharing
Frequently Asked Questions
Does Florida favour the mother in custody cases?
No. Florida law directs courts to determine time-sharing on the best interest of the child, and it expressly does not create a preference based on a parent’s sex. Since 2023 the statute begins from a rebuttable presumption that equal time-sharing is in the child’s best interest.
What does the 2023 equal time-sharing presumption actually mean?
It means a Florida court starts from the position that a 50/50 schedule serves the child’s best interest. A parent seeking a different arrangement bears the burden of rebutting that presumption by a preponderance of the evidence using the best-interest factors in § 61.13.
What is the difference between parental responsibility and time-sharing?
Parental responsibility is decision-making authority over matters such as education and health care, and Florida’s default is that it is shared. Time-sharing is the physical schedule. A parent can have substantial decision-making authority and a minority of overnights, or the reverse.
Can I move out of state with my child?
Not unilaterally. Section 61.13001 requires either written agreement or court approval before relocating fifty miles or more for sixty consecutive days or longer. Relocating without one of those can result in the move being reversed and can affect the existing time-sharing arrangement.
How hard is it to change a parenting plan later?
Deliberately hard. Florida requires a substantial, material, and unanticipated change in circumstances plus a showing that the change serves the child’s best interest. The standard protects stability, which is why the initial parenting plan deserves close attention.
Family matters are decided on documents and dates as much as on argument. Bring what you have and we will tell you candidly where you stand. Consultations are free and confidential.
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