Quite often, parties in Florida get divorced while their child or children are very young – such as under the age of 5 or 6, so just how does a Family Law court fashion a parenting plan or time sharing schedule that is designed to change as the children grow? Also what happens when former husbands and wives can no longer agree on parenting issues or one of them just refuses to follow the court ordered parenting plan? All of the above are issues that Florida Family Law judges deal with every day.
Here at New Horizons Law, P.A., Michael J. Costantino, Esq. deals with all of these issues on a regular basis and is prepared to file the appropriate pleadings that will help you enforce or modify your court ordered parenting plan in order that you can obtain the relief which is needed.
It is very important to understand that a court ordered parenting plan is not necessarily easy to modify because it requires that the parent seeking a modification establish that there has been a substantial material and unanticipated change in circumstances in regard to the parties’ minor children, and that the best interest of the minor children justify a modification of parental responsibility and parenting plan.
For example, if your ex-spouse was an alcoholic or drug addict or suffered from a mental illness at the time the Court issued the parenting plan in question, these character traits will probably not qualify as factors that the court considers when trying to decide if there has been a substantial material and unanticipated change in circumstances.
In addition, in Florida cases involving time-sharing with minor children, our courts are required to establish a “Parenting Plan” in every case, so if you are attempting to modify an old “custody” or “visitation” agreement, the court will set forth its’ findings in the form of Parenting Plan. Florida Statute § 61.13 sets forth the twenty different factors which the court is required to consider in determining the best interest of the child when it initially establishes a parenting plan as well as when the court decides whether or not to modify a parenting plan that is in place.
Florida Statute § 61.13 requires the Family Law court to make the best interest of the children as the primary consideration in deciding the issue of whether to modify the terms of a Parenting Plan. This means that every Florida Parenting Plan should be specifically created in order to meet the needs of each individual child who is the subject of the plan.
At New Horizons Law, P.A., Michael J. Costantino, Esq. is experienced in evaluating the statutory factors that § 61.13 requires be evaluated in order to modify your existing Parenting Plan in order to meet the needs of our clients and their children. Our office looks forward to assisting you in determining whether the circumstances of your case will allow a Florida Family Law Court to enter a modified Parenting Plan and time-sharing schedule.