T.A. v. A.S.

335 So.3d 208

T.A., Appellant,

v.A.S., Appellee.

No. 2D21-1236

District Court of Appeal of Florida, Second District.

March 4, 2022

Benndrick C. Watson of Young Esquire Law, PLLC, Tampa, for Appellant.

David M. Scott of Law Office of David Scott, P.A., Fort Lauderdale, for Appellee.

SLEET, Judge.

T.A., the Father, appeals the final judgment of paternity in which the trial court determined him to be the biological father of the minor child C.S. and, among other things, set a timesharing schedule. The Father argues, and the Mother concedes, that the trial court erred by improperly basing the multiphase timesharing schedule on the completion of contingent events. Because the timesharing plan applies an impermissible prospective-based best interest analysis, we reverse that portion of the order. We find no merit in the Father's remaining arguments on appeal and affirm the order in all other respects.

The timesharing schedule that was issued in the final judgment is a prospective-based plan that includes four separate phases that allow for the Father's timesharing to be gradually increased based upon the completion of certain events and without judicial intervention. However, this court has disapproved of such prospective-based parenting plans. See Natali v. Natali , 313 So. 3d 958, 960 (Fla. 2d DCA 2021) ("This automatically graduated timesharing arrangement is thus contrary to the reasoning in Arthur disapproving a prospective-based best interest analysis on the basis that the factors ‘could change within the extended time period given by the court.’ " (quoting Arthur v. Arthur , 54 So. 3d 454, 459 (Fla. 2010) )).

Accordingly, we reverse only the portion of the final judgment relating to the multiphase timesharing schedule...