As of July 1, 2023, a new law was signed into effect that significantly changed how time-sharing is decided upon in a divorce or custody case involving minor children. The legislation affected any cases not yet decided and any future cases to be presented. Referred to as the 50/50 Timesharing Presumption, the new law was created to emphasize the importance of having both parents actively involved in their children’s upbringing.
Florida law in this area has been evolving over a period of more than 4 decades, at a time when mothers had the lioness’s share of the time-sharing, and had primary custody or later were named the primary residential parent. Rotating custody (what we now call equal time-sharing) was specifically disfavored. My how times have changed.
Although equal time-sharing had become more and more common and judges found fewer and fewer reasons not to order equal time-sharing, there was no legal presumption in favor of any particular time-sharing schedule. Under the new law, the court is required to consider many factors to determine what plan is in the best interests of the children, including minimizing disruption, ensuring stability, shielding them from conflict, protecting them against domestic violence and substance abuse, and the degree to which each parent fosters the relationship between the children and the other parent, and to which each parent prioritizes the needs of the children over the needs of the parent. The presumption was changed to favor equal time sharing to promote stability and security for children involved in a divorce.
The presumption assumes 50/50 time-sharing unless one parent can prove that that situation is not in the children’s best interest, or that one parent cannot exercise that schedule effectively. Long distance parenting plans cannot achieve an equal time-sharing schedule. Although equal time-sharing is the presumption, the court will recommend a plan based on each family’s unique situation and what they determine to be what is in the children’s best interest. It is fair to say that equal time-sharing is now the rule in Florida, not the exception.
