Posted by Nydia Streets of Streets Law in Florida Child Custody

A party who wants to modify a Florida parenting plan has an “extraordinary burden” to show that there has been a substantial change in circumstances which warrants modification of time-sharing. This change must not have been contemplated at the time the parenting plan sought to be modified was established. In the case Lyles v. Guffey, 1D20-1159 (Fla. 1st DCA November 20, 2020), an appeal was taken concerning a request to modify time-sharing.

In 2014, the parties entered an agreement in which the mother had majority time-sharing and remained in Florida with the parties’ minor child, while the father moved out of state. In 2019, the father sought to modify the parenting plan, alleging he had moved back to Florida and that this was a substantial change in circumstances which warranted modification of the parenting plan. The trial court agreed with him and granted his petition for modification. The mother appealed.

The appellate court disagreed that there was a substantial change in circumstances and reversed the trial court’s decision, holding “A party seeking to modify a parenting plan must show (1) circumstances have substantially and materially changed* since the original time-sharing determination, (2) the change was not reasonably contemplated by the parties, and (3) the child's best interests justify changing the time-sharing plan. Garcia v. Guiles, 254 So. 3d 637, 640 (Fla. 1st DCA 2018). Demonstrating to the court that there has been a sufficient substantial change in circumstances places an "extraordinary burden" on the party seeking modification. Korkmaz v. Korkmaz, 200 So. 3d 263, 265 (Fla. 1st DCA 2016) (quoting Chamberlain v. Eisinger, 159 So. 3d 185, 189 (Fla. 4th DCA 2015)). The record in this case establishes that Appellee failed to meet the ‘extraordinary burden’ required of him as the party seeking modification of a final judgment of paternity because the evidence does not support the trial court's finding that Appellee's return to Florida was not reasonably contemplated. Korkmaz, 200 So. 3d at 265.”

If you are facing a modification action, it is important to understand how the law may apply to your case. Schedule a consultation with a Miami child custody lawyer to go over the specifics of your case.