The Florida child visitation guidelines are suggested minimums to ensure the child maintains a close and continuing relationship with both parents. You have a legal right to request parenting time far exceeding every other weekend, and the O’Mara Law Group is committed to helping you maximize your parenting time.
The Florida courts highly favor parental agreements. If the parents cannot agree about time-sharing, the court may order mediation or parent coordination. The parties can also choose these dispute resolution options voluntarily.
If an agreement still cannot be reached, the court may order visitation based on the Florida Title IV-D Standard Parenting Plan. This plan provides suggested minimum visitation times, which the court may adopt entirely or in part, based on such individual factors as the following:
Supervised visitation is limited to rare cases in which the child’s safety would be in jeopardy if left alone with the parent, including an imminent risk that the parent will remove the child from the state. Even when the court imposes supervised visitation, the arrangement is often temporary until the risk has abated. The parent under supervision must pay for the cost of supervision.
The Mark O’Mara Law Firm was a wonderful place and outstanding. Mark was very helpful and always made time for me, answering all my questions. But my hero was Susan Staggs, who prepared all of my paperwork. She is a real magician who takes it seriously.
Visitation is the time-sharing portion of the parenting plan. It is usually determined during a divorce or custody proceeding. An unmarried biological father may also file a petition for time-sharing. The first step is to contact a qualified family law attorney with experience handling complex child custody cases. We can file your petition and help you negotiate an agreement with the other parent.
After either parent initiates a divorce proceeding or files a custody petition, dispute resolution begins. Our attorneys have been very successful in helping parents reach parenting plan agreements outside of court that serve both parents better than the Standard Parenting Plan.
The court will encourage and support parental agreement. If necessary, the court will order mediation. As a Florida Supreme Court-Certified Family Mediator and certified Collaborator, Mark O’Mara has the skillset needed to facilitate this process.
A mediator is simply a neutral party that helps the parents communicate and reach a time-sharing agreement on their own terms.
In highly contentious situations, it may be necessary to transition to parenting coordination, a formal dispute-resolution process in which the parenting coordinator is more active in the negotiations between parents and has limited authority to make recommendations and decisions.
If you reach an agreement, your attorney can add the written agreement to your parenting plan and file it with the court. If you cannot agree, your attorney can file a proposed parenting plan to the court. Our lawyers will craft a plan that gives you the best possible terms likely to be approved by the court.
Once the orders are issued, they become legal and binding.
Below are answers to the questions we frequently receive about child visitation in Florida.
You can only deny visitation if the denial complies with a court order. You cannot deny the other parent time-sharing that has been ordered by the court. If you have an emergency reason to deny visitation, such as the threat of violence, you must file an emergency petition with the court.
A child is not legally entitled to refuse visitation. However, if the child has safety concerns, an emergency petition can be filed to modify the parenting plan. In addition, if the child has reached an age at which he or she can reasonably express preferences, the court may consider modifying the petition based on those preferences. Although the child’s preferences are important, they are not the only consideration.
If you are an unmarried biological father, you have the right to petition the court for custody and visitation. However, you must establish paternity by completing genetic testing and submitting the result to the court. After paternity is established, it is a father’s right to receive consideration for custody.
The child custody laws in Florida require the family court to give equal consideration to the father and mother for all matters pertaining to child custody, including visitation. There is no presumption in favor of the mother.
Sometimes unforeseen circumstances occur on a one-time basis. In these cases, you should make a reasonable allowance. However, if it becomes a regular occurrence, you can petition the court for a modification based on non-compliance.
It may be possible to get sole custody if the court determines the other parent’s failure to adhere to the parenting plan demonstrates a disregard for the best interests of the child.
If you are unable to maintain the visitation schedule due to changes in your work schedule or other unanticipated, material, and substantial changes in circumstances, you should request a modification as soon as possible and adhere to the parenting plan until the court approves the changes.
It is important to communicate with the other parent about changes in your schedule and try to reach an agreement that can be ratified by the court.
The child custody laws in Florida require the family court to give equal consideration to the father and mother for all matters pertaining to child custody, including visitation. There is no presumption in favor of the mother.
If you are facing a custody battle in a contested divorce or as an unmarried father in Orlando or across the Central Florida area, the O’Mara Law Group can help you achieve the best possible outcome for you and your child. We are one of Florida’s leading child custody law firms with unmatched experience and client satisfaction. Contact us today for a confidential case review.
