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Family law

Shared parental responsibility

Florida term

In Florida, a court-ordered arrangement in which both parents keep full parental rights and responsibilities and make major decisions about their child together.[1]

In more detail

Florida courts must order shared parental responsibility unless it would be detrimental to the child, considering evidence such as domestic violence.[2] The court can still give one parent the final say over specific areas, such as education or health care.[2]

Varies by state

This is a Florida term; other states say joint legal custody or joint decision-making. Find your state’s rules.

Related terms

  • Parenting planA document setting out how parents will raise their child after separating: how decisions are made about things like school and health care, and a schedule of time with each parent.
  • Time-sharing scheduleIn Florida, the timetable in a parenting plan that sets when the child spends time with each parent, including overnights and holidays.
  • Legal custodyThe right and responsibility to make important decisions about a child, such as health care, education and welfare.
  • Sole custodyCustody held by one parent alone, for decisions about the child, where the child lives, or both.

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Sources

The official documents this definition is based on, with the date we last read each one. Definitions are in our own words.

  1. Fla. Stat. § 61.046 (Definitions)leg.state.fl.uschecked ↩
  2. Fla. Stat. § 61.13 (Support of children; parenting and time-sharing)leg.state.fl.uschecked ↩

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MediationList. (2026, October 28). Shared parental responsibility: Definition. https://mediationlist.com/glossary/shared-parental-responsibility/

APA 7th ed. A retrieval date is included only for pages whose content changes, such as maps, data and tools.