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Few disputes feel as personal as one over your own children. The outcome decides how often you see them, who makes the decisions that shape their lives, and what your family looks like for years to come. When that is uncertain, the pressure can be exhausting, and it is easy to make a rushed decision that follows you long after the case is over.
You do not have to work through it alone, and you do not have to accept an arrangement that pushes you to the edge of your child’s life. At Weldon Law Group, PLLC, we represent parents across Jacksonville, Duval County, and Northeast Florida in custody matters, whether they arise in a divorce, a separation, or a case between parents who were never married.
Attorney Ian Weldon spent more than a decade as a trial attorney before building this firm, which matters in custody cases more than most people realize: when parents cannot agree, these disputes are decided in a courtroom, on the strength of the evidence and how it is presented. We handle that part so you can stay focused on your child.
The earlier we see your case, the more we can do with it.
One of the first things that surprises parents is the language. Florida law no longer uses the words “custody” or “visitation.” Instead, every case involving children is built around a parenting plan that covers two separate things: parental responsibility and time-sharing. Knowing which one is actually in dispute is what shapes the right strategy, because a fight over decision-making is very different from a fight over the schedule.
Parental responsibility is the authority to make major decisions about your child, including education, healthcare, and religious upbringing. Florida courts start from the position that this should be shared between both parents, and shared responsibility is only set aside when the court finds it would be detrimental to the child.
There is one important exception. When a parent has been convicted of a first-degree misdemeanor or higher involving domestic violence, the law presumes that shared parental responsibility would harm the child, and the burden shifts to that parent. If safety is part of your case, whether you are raising a concern or answering an accusation, it often overlaps with a domestic violence matter, and the two need to be handled together rather than in isolation.
Time-sharing is the schedule: where your child lives and how the days, holidays, and school breaks are divided. It is written into the parenting plan in detail, down to exchanges and how the two of you will communicate. A plan that is vague is a plan that produces conflict later, so the goal is to make it specific enough that both parents know exactly what to expect. We build these plans to hold up in real life, not just to satisfy the court on paper.
This is the single most important change in Florida custody law, and many parents walking into it have no idea it happened. As of July 1, 2023, Florida law includes a rebuttable presumption that equal, 50/50 time-sharing is in the best interests of the child. In plain terms, the court now begins from the assumption that both parents should have roughly equal time, and that assumption stands unless someone proves it should not.
What that means for you depends entirely on which side of it you are on:
Either way, the case is won or lost on preparation, which is where the real work of a custody lawyer happens.
Florida courts weigh a long list of best-interests factors set out in the statute, and those factors are the tools used both to defend an equal schedule and to argue for a different one. Rather than reciting all of them, we focus on the ones that actually decide cases and build your evidence around them:
Our job is to translate the facts of your life into these factors: gathering the records, communications, and witnesses that support your position, and answering anything the other side raises before it hardens into the court’s impression of you. When there are safety concerns, that can also mean pursuing or responding to a child protective order as part of the broader plan.
Contact us for more information about our services.
When parents were never married, the mother has the initial legal rights until paternity is established. For a father, that step is not a formality; it is the door to any legal right to time-sharing or decision-making at all. Once paternity is established, the same parenting-plan process opens up that any other parent goes through, including the same 50/50 starting point, which means it can settle:
We help fathers secure their legal standing and their place in their child’s life, and we help mothers establish paternity where it affects support and parental responsibility. Because support and time-sharing are decided under different rules, we coordinate a custody case with any related child support issue so the two stay consistent rather than working against each other.
A custody order reflects your family at one moment in time, and families change. Two situations bring parents back to court, and each has its own rules.
hanging an existing parenting plan is not automatic. Florida generally requires you to show two things:
Relocation is one of the most common triggers, and it follows its own procedure: a move of more than 50 miles for 60 days or longer generally requires the other parent’s written agreement or the court’s approval before it can happen. Because modifications turn on meeting that specific threshold, we cover them in depth on our modifications page.
When the other parent ignores the plan, missing exchanges, withholding the child, or refusing to communicate, the court can step in with make-up time, mandatory counseling, or contempt findings.
The parent who keeps calm, consistent records tends to be in the far stronger position, because documented patterns carry more weight than heated accusations. We help you document what is happening and file the right motion so the order actually means something.
Most parents do not need a lecture on the law. They need someone to do the work that turns their side of the story into a case the court will accept. That work generally includes:
Some cases settle quietly, and others have to be fought. We prepare every case as if it may end up in front of a judge, because the ones that are ready for that tend to settle on better terms.
Contested custody is decided in a courtroom, and that is worth weighing when you choose a lawyer. Attorney Ian Weldon built his career as a trial attorney at the Jacksonville Public Defender’s Office before founding this firm, so a hearing is familiar ground rather than a last resort. Parents who work with us can expect:
We represent parents throughout Jacksonville, Duval County, and the surrounding communities of Northeast Florida. Se habla Español
Question | Answer |
Does Florida favor mothers in custody cases? | No. Florida law is gender-neutral, and the court does not start from a preference for either parent. Since 2023, it starts from a presumption of equal time-sharing for both. What moves a case is each parent’s involvement and stability, not their gender. |
Can I get more than equal time-sharing? | Yes, but you have to rebut the 50/50 presumption by showing, by the greater weight of the evidence, that a different split is better for your child. That usually rests on concrete issues such as safety, one parent’s limited involvement, or distance between homes, supported by real documentation. |
At what age can my child choose which parent to live with? | Florida sets no fixed age at which a child decides. A judge may consider a mature child’s preference as one factor among many, but it never controls the outcome on its own, and courts are cautious about putting a child in the middle of the dispute. |
Can a parent with a criminal or domestic violence history get time-sharing? | Often yes, but it may be limited or supervised. A domestic violence conviction can trigger a presumption against shared decision-making, and the court’s focus stays on whether contact is safe. These cases call for careful, honest handling on both sides. |
Do we have to go to court, or can we agree on a plan? | Many parents reach an agreed parenting plan, frequently through mediation, and the court approves it as long as it serves the child. Court becomes necessary only when you cannot agree. An agreed plan is usually faster and less costly, but it still needs to be written correctly to be enforceable. |
Do I need a lawyer for a custody case? | You are not required to have one, but custody turns on evidence, deadlines, and how your case is presented, and mistakes made early are hard to undo. A lawyer helps you meet the legal standard, prepare a plan that holds up, and avoid giving up rights you did not know were at stake. |
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