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Father’s Custody Rights in the Orlando, Florida Area

Fathers have the same rights as Mothers regarding custody during an Orlando divorce in Florida. Fathers have as much right as the Mothers to ask for 50/50 time sharing with their child, or whatever custody and visitation the Father thinks is appropriate under his current circumstances. The Tender Years Doctrine has been abolished in Florida.

That means the Mother cannot deny you visitation and time sharing with your child. That means that the Mother cannot unilaterally remove you from the emergency contact list at the child’s school or day care. That means that you are entitled to know of all the child’s doctor’s appointments in the event that you want to attend. That means you should be notified of all the child’s school activities, etc. You cannot be excluded from the child’s life.

Currently there is no presumption of 50/50 time sharing in Florida. The court analyzes custody and time sharing using the BEST INTEREST OF THE CHILD factors. These factors can be found in FS 61.13. Fathers have all the rights as Mother under FS 61.13 during a divorce in Florida.

Until there is a Temporary Custody Order from the judge, both parents have the same rights to time share with their child. This means that the Father can see the child, and the Mother can see the child.  No one parent has a priority right to the child.

However, if there is a Temporary Injunction for Domestic Violence, that may prevent a parent from having unsupervised contact with the child. The parent may have to have supervised visitation with the child.

A pending DCFS case may also affect your ability to see your child.

Certain pending criminal charges may affect your ability to see your child.

Other than those specific circumstances mentioned above, the general rule is the Father has the same rights as the Mother to time sharing with the child in Florida during a divorce.

However, in an Orlando Paternity case, until there has been a legal establishment of paternity, time sharing and co-parenting, the Mother has sole custody of the child. If the Father is on the birth certificate, that establishes a presumption he is the Father. However, the Father still needs to go into court as soon as possible. He needs to file a Petition to Establish Paternity, Custody, Co-parenting and Timesharing. A Father should also File a Motion for a Temporary Hearing on paternity, time sharing custody and co-parenting.

If you have more questions regarding a Father’s Rights in Florida during a dissolution of marriage or paternity and custody matter, you may contact Ann Marie Gilden, Esquire of Ann Marie Giordano Gilden, P.A. at 407-732-7620 to set an initial consultation.

This article is for informational purposes only. It does not form an attorney client privilege.