As you probably know by now, Florida law has done away with the terms “child custody”, “custodial parent”, “primary residence” and “visitation” (among others) as they relate to divorced couples with children, and it has replaced the old terms with these new ones: “parenting plans”, “parental responsibility”, and “timesharing”.
This isn’t a new change — it happened back in 2008, but in essence, before these terms were eliminated, the courts tended to favor the mother when it came to child-rearing. The changes are all the more appropriate now that same-sex marriage is legal and the issue of parental responsibility and timesharing will be litigated between same-sex couples with children (who may be biologically related to one or neither of the parents).
For a deeper explanation of why this change in terminology was necessary, click here.
(14) “Parenting plan” means a document created to govern the relationship between the parents relating to decisions that must be made regarding the minor child and must contain a time-sharing schedule for the parents and child. The issues concerning the minor child may include, but are not limited to, the child’s education, health care, and physical, social, and emotional well-being. In creating the plan, all circumstances between the parents, including their historic relationship, domestic violence, and other factors must be taken into consideration.
(a) The parenting plan must be:
1. Developed and agreed to by the parents and approved by a court; or
2. Established by the court, with or without the use of a court-ordered parenting plan recommendation, if the parents cannot agree to a plan or the parents agreed to a plan that is not approved by the court.
(17) “Shared parental responsibility” means a court-ordered relationship in which both parents retain full parental rights and responsibilities with respect to their child and in which both parents confer with each other so that major decisions affecting the welfare of the child will be determined jointly.
(18) “Sole parental responsibility” means a court-ordered relationship in which one parent makes decisions regarding the minor child.
(23) “Time-sharing schedule” means a timetable that must be included in the parenting plan that specifies the time, including overnights and holidays, that a minor child will spend with each parent. The time-sharing schedule shall be:
(a) Developed and agreed to by the parents of a minor child and approved by the court; or
(b) Established by the court if the parents cannot agree or if their agreed-upon schedule is not approved by the court.
The Difference Between Shared Parenting and Joint Custody
The old term “custody” referred to both physical, as in where the child lived; and legal, as in decisions about the child’s health, education, religious upbringing, and welfare. The parenting plan now dictates where the child will spend his or her time, as well as other major decisions about the child’s upbringing, and the timesharing agreement falls under the parenting plan.
Shared parental responsibility is the default in Florida courts now. It is similar to joint legal custody in that both parents are encouraged to be involved in the day-to-day decision-making affecting the child. The end goal is to have two parents who work together to raise the child, which statistically improves the child’s long-term success.
So essentially, the difference between shared parenting and joint custody is more an argument of semantics. Since the term “custody” doesn’t exist in Florida divorce law any longer, shared parenting (or shared parental responsibility) is the functional equivalent.
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