Boynton Beach Parenting & Timesharing Lawyer
Children’s issues are an emotional subject to deal with, and they arise during a difficult time in a parent’s life, such as amid a divorce, paternity dispute, or post-divorce modification proceeding. The assistance of a qualified attorney to guide you during this time can be indispensable to helping you make the best decisions for yourself and your family. At the Law Office of Taryn G. Sinatra, P.A., you’ll find a Florida Board-Certified Family Law Specialist offering top-quality legal services at an affordable rate. Our attorneys are here to help you reach an amicable settlement with your co-parent whenever possible, including preparing you for and assisting you in court-ordered mediation to help reach an agreement. When the gulf is too wide, our experienced courtroom litigators will vigorously protect and pursue your rights to ensure you maintain meaningful contact with your kids post-divorce. Contact our compassionate and dedicated Boynton Beach parenting & timesharing lawyers today.
Help With Parenting Plans in Boynton Beach
A parenting plan is exactly what it sounds like – a written document outlining matters related to parenting. While couples living together might not need a written document telling them how to parent, when the parents are living separately, a written plan is essential to making sure the parents are on the same page when it comes to parental responsibility and timesharing. Parents need to be clear with each other about how they will share information and communicate with one another regarding medical concerns, educational concerns, and matters such as travel and vacation with the kids. Having an official written document to refer to ensures each parent’s rights will be respected.
A parenting plan is required in any divorce with minor children, as well as a paternity action or proceeding to modify child custody arrangements in Florida. The more detailed the parenting plan, the better it is likely to work. At a minimum, Florida law requires a parenting plan to include the following elements:
- Describe in adequate detail how the parents will share and be responsible for the daily tasks associated with the upbringing of the child;
- Include the time-sharing schedule arrangements that specify the time that the minor child will spend with each parent;
- Designate who will be responsible for: all forms of health care; school-related matters, including the address to be used for school-boundary determination and registration; and other activities
- Describe in adequate detail the methods and technologies that the parents will use to communicate with the child.
Children benefit when the parents can work out mutually agreeable custody and visitation plans. This is not always possible to do on your own, even when you start with the best of intentions. The Law Office of Taryn G. Sinatra, P.A., can help you negotiate or mediate to come up with a plan that works best for your family and meets your unique needs.
Helping the Courts Fashion Parenting and Timesharing in Your Best Interests
If the parents can’t work out parenting and timesharing on their own, the task falls to the court to decide how custody, visitation and parental responsibility should be divided. In these situations, our experienced courtroom litigators act as strong and effective advocates to persuade the court of the essential facts that would yield the best result. Courts are required to evaluate “all of the factors affecting the welfare and interests of the particular minor child and the circumstances of that family,” including, but not limited to:
- The demonstrated capacity and disposition of each parent to facilitate and encourage a close and continuing parent-child relationship, to honor the time-sharing schedule, and to be reasonable when changes are required.
- The anticipated division of parental responsibilities after the litigation, including the extent to which parental responsibilities will be delegated to third parties.
- The demonstrated capacity and disposition of each parent to determine, consider, and act upon the needs of the child as opposed to the needs or desires of the parent.
- The length of time the child has lived in a stable, satisfactory environment and the desirability of maintaining continuity.
- The geographic viability of the parenting plan, with special attention paid to the needs of school-age children and the amount of time to be spent traveling to effectuate the parenting plan. This factor does not create a presumption for or against relocation of either parent with a child.
- The moral fitness of the parents.
- The mental and physical health of the parents.
- The home, school, and community record of the child.
- The reasonable preference of the child, if the court deems the child to be of sufficient intelligence, understanding, and experience to express a preference.
- The demonstrated knowledge, capacity, and disposition of each parent to be informed of the circumstances of the minor child, including, but not limited to, the child’s friends, teachers, medical care providers, daily activities, and favorite things.
- The demonstrated capacity and disposition of each parent to provide a consistent routine for the child, such as discipline, and daily schedules for homework, meals, and bedtime.
- The demonstrated capacity of each parent to communicate with and keep the other parent informed of issues and activities regarding the minor child, and the willingness of each parent to adopt a unified front on all major issues when dealing with the child.
- Evidence of domestic violence, sexual violence, child abuse, child abandonment, or child neglect, regardless of whether a prior or pending action relating to those issues has been brought.
- Evidence that either parent has knowingly provided false information to the court regarding any prior or pending action regarding domestic violence, sexual violence, child abuse, child abandonment, or child neglect.
- The particular parenting tasks customarily performed by each parent and the division of parental responsibilities before the institution of litigation and during the pending litigation, including the extent to which parenting responsibilities were undertaken by third parties.
- The demonstrated capacity and disposition of each parent to participate and be involved in the child’s school and extracurricular activities.
- The demonstrated capacity and disposition of each parent to maintain an environment for the child which is free from substance abuse.
- The capacity and disposition of each parent to protect the child from the ongoing litigation as demonstrated by not discussing the litigation with the child, not sharing documents or electronic media related to the litigation with the child, and refraining from disparaging comments about the other parent to the child.
- The developmental stages and needs of the child and the demonstrated capacity and disposition of each parent to meet the child’s developmental needs.
- Any other factor that is relevant to the determination of a specific parenting plan, including the time-sharing schedule.
Contact the Law Office of Taryn G. Sinatra, P.A., Today
For help with child custody and visitation, parental responsibility, and all children’s issues in a Florida divorce, paternity proceeding, or post-judgment modification motion in Palm Beach or Broward County, call the Boynton Beach parenting and timesharing lawyers at the Law Office of Taryn G. Sinatra, P.A., for sound, practical advice and effective representation to get results in you and your children’s best interests.
