In 2023, Florida changed the starting line of every custody case. House Bill 1301 wrote into § 61.13 a rebuttable presumption that equal time-sharing is in the best interests of the child — making 50/50 the legal default rather than one option among many. If you are divorcing, establishing paternity, or modifying a schedule in Brevard County, this presumption frames your entire case. Here is how it works, how it gets rebutted, and what it means for you, from The Law Office of John Vernon Moore, P.A.
What the Presumption Actually Says
Unless parents agree otherwise, Florida courts must begin from the premise that equal time-sharing serves the child. A parent who wants a different schedule bears the burden of proving, by a preponderance of the evidence, that equal time-sharing is not in the child’s best interests — using the same § 61.13 factors courts have always weighed: each parent’s capacity and disposition to facilitate the relationship with the other parent, the division of parental responsibilities before the case, stability, the child’s needs, parental fitness, and the rest. The presumption did not abolish judgment; it assigned the burden of persuasion.
What It Changed in Real Cases
Before 2023, a parent seeking 50/50 had to make the case for it. Now the parent opposing 50/50 makes the case against it — a complete reversal of posture that changed negotiation leverage overnight. Practical consequences we see in Brevard courtrooms: equal schedules are ordered more often; “standard every-other-weekend” is no longer anyone’s automatic assumption; and parents who historically did less hands-on parenting arrive with statutory wind at their backs, while primary caregivers must build actual evidentiary cases rather than rely on history alone. Either way, preparation — not presumption — still decides close cases.
How the Presumption Gets Rebutted
Evidence that moves judges off equal time-sharing clusters into patterns: geography — homes far enough apart that a 50/50 rotation wrecks the school week (a Palm Bay-to-Titusville commute is a schedule problem no statute fixes); work realities — shift patterns, deployments, or travel that leave a parent unavailable for their proposed time; the child’s needs — special medical or educational requirements one home is better equipped to meet; safety — domestic violence (which triggers its own statutory presumptions against the abusive parent), substance abuse, or untreated mental illness; and demonstrated disengagement — a parent seeking equal time who has not exercised the time they already had. What does not rebut the presumption: gender, breadwinner status, or one parent’s preference to be primary.
Equal Time and Child Support
A persistent myth says 50/50 means no child support. Florida’s § 61.30 guidelines adjust at 73+ overnights per year, but they still weigh both parents’ incomes — at equal time-sharing with unequal incomes, the higher earner generally pays support so the child has comparable resources in both homes. Parents who fight for overnights as a support-reduction strategy tend to be transparent to judges; parents who fight for overnights because they want the parenting tend to get them.
Building Your Side of the Presumption
Whichever direction you argue, evidence beats assertion. For the parent seeking equal time: show the infrastructure — a residence with space for the children, a work schedule that fits your proposed rotation, involvement in school and medical life now, not starting the week of the hearing. For the parent opposing it: document, do not characterize — attendance records, communication logs, the calendar of who actually did what, professional records where safety is the issue. The parenting plan you propose should embody your evidence: realistic, child-centered, and specific.
Does the Presumption Apply to Modifications?
HB 1301 also eased modification law — the substantial change in circumstances no longer needs to be “unanticipated.” A parent seeking to move an old unequal schedule toward equal time still needs a substantial change, but the reformed standard plus the presumption has made post-2023 modification cases meaningfully more winnable than their pre-2023 counterparts. Relocation cases remain governed by the separate § 61.13001 framework.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is 50/50 automatic now?
No — it is the presumed starting point, not a guarantee. Courts still apply the best-interests factors, and the presumption yields to evidence.
Does equal time-sharing mean alternating weeks?
Not necessarily — week-on/week-off, 2-2-3, and 2-2-5-5 rotations all achieve equal time. The right rotation depends on the children’s ages and the parents’ logistics.
My decree is from 2019 and very unequal. Can I use the new law?
The presumption alone is not a substantial change, but combined with real changed circumstances, post-2023 modification law is friendlier than what your decree was entered under. Worth a consultation on your specific facts.
Does the presumption apply to unmarried parents?
Yes — once paternity is established, time-sharing is decided under the same § 61.13 framework. See our paternity practice.
The Starting Line Moved — Make Sure You Are Ready
With over 89 years of combined experience, our team has tried time-sharing cases under both the old law and the new. Call (321) 529-7777 or contact us online for a free 30-minute consultation.