Posted by Nydia Streets of Streets Law in Florida Child Custody

Florida law has consistently held that a court is not permitted to delegate its decision-making authority to third parties when it comes to child custody issues. This is because the court, and not other professionals, are charged with making decisions that affect the best interest of a child. This was an issue in the case Malley v. Malley, 4D2023-0332 (Fla. 4th DCA June 20, 2024).

The parties had one child during their marriage. After a petition for divorce was filed, a trial was held, and the court granted the former wife majority time-sharing with the parties’ child and sole parental responsibility. The former husband was ordered to have two and a half hours of supervised time-sharing per week. In order for him to modify the parenting plan, the court ordered that he would have to submit proof of his completion of treatment for his personal issues to a court-appointed doctor who would then determine if the treatment was sufficient and advise the court accordingly. The former husband appealed.

The appellate court reversed on this issue holding “When making these determinations, a trial court may ‘condition increased timesharing on the successful completion of parenting courses and therapy[.]’ Subramanian v. Subramanian, 239 So. 3d 719, 721 (Fla. 4th DCA 2018). However, the trial court is to be the sole decider of whether a parent has sufficiently complied with court-ordered conditions to be eligible for an increase in timesharing and may not delegate this authority to anyone, including a court-appointed doctor.” The court remanded with instructions that the entire parenting plan could be reconsidered citing Preudhomme v. Bailey, 82 So. 3d 138, 142 (Fla. 4th DCA 2012) (“Because we are reversing on one aspect of the parenting plan, the court may reconsider the entire plan and take additional testimony as it deems appropriate on these issues.”).

Schedule your meeting with a Miami family law attorney to understand how the law may apply to your case.