Florida Child Custody, Military Service, and Grandparents’ Rights
If a parent who is the subject of a Florida child custody order is activated, deployed, or temporarily assigned to military service, that military parent may be able to designate the child’s grandparents to care for the child in his or her absence.
Related: Florida Grandparents’ Rights and Collaborative Divorce
Florida Statutes section 61.13002(2) states that, if a military parent so desires, a grandparent can take over that parent’s time-sharing schedule under certain circumstances. The activation, deployment, or temporary assignment must be ordered for more than 90 days and materially affect the military parent’s ability to exercise his or her time-sharing rights. The military parent must notify the other parent of the designation in writing. The written notice must be provided to the other parent at least 10 days before the grandparent is to take over the military parent’s time-sharing.