Dividing up the money during divorce is not enough to get a decree. If you share children, you must also take care of child custody and care.
Florida requires parents to create a parenting plan. Learn about some of the items you need to include in a parenting plan.
What does a parenting plan need?
The parenting plan is the agreement you and your ex enter into on the details of how you will take care of your children after the divorce. The court requires several elements in the parenting plan.
Legal custody
A court prefers that both parents maintain joint legal custody. This means that parents have an equal right to make decisions regarding education, religion and medical care for their children. A court may not support joint legal custody if there is a history of domestic violence or other criminal activities.
Schedule
The schedule for how you and the other parent will split physical custody of the kids is the centerpiece of a parenting plan. This calendar should account for every day of the year, including:
- Holidays
- Summer break
- School days
- Special occasions
You and the other parent should include how you will handle schedule changes.
Transportation
The parenting plan should detail how the children will move back and forth between houses. School is a common point of custody swaps. Should that not work, you may designate a neutral place for the exchange.
Agreements
All other agreements regarding how you will care for your children go into the parenting plan. This may include communication between the parents, the designated school zone address and other pertinent information.
Remember, you and your ex know your children better than a judge. Keeping your kids in mind will ensure you maintain control of post-divorce life versus a court making decisions.
