HB 1385 Florida House · 2025 Regular Session

Civil Remedy for Parental Abduction

Summary

Civil Remedy for Parental Abduction; Provides civil cause of action if child is unlawfully abducted from parent for specified amount of time; provides standard of proof & specified damages; authorizes reasonable attorney fees & costs for either party; provides when specified timeframe begins; provides affirmative defenses; requires specified court division to preside over such cause of action; provides statute of limitations; tolling such statute of limitations.

Bill status died 3 of 5 stages cleared

Introduction

Feb 2025

Committee Review

Apr 2025

House Passage

Apr 2025

Senate Passage

Governor

Introduced Feb 27, 2025 Last action Jun 16, 2025

Maddy AI version diff · 2 comparisons

What changed between versions

H 1385 c1 → H 1385 c2 · 4 edits

MODERATE

The bill was amended to expand its scope by adding detailed definitions for key terms like 'child' and 'parent,' clarifying when the 30-day unlawful abduction period begins, and establishing a statute of limitations with tolling provisions. These changes make the law more precise and ensure it applies consistently across different family law cases.

Scope change

The bill now explicitly defines 'child' and 'parent' in the context of time-sharing orders and clarifies procedural requirements for court assignment and filing deadlines.

DEFINITION

New definitions were added for 'child,' 'parent,' and 'unlawful abduction' to clarify who is protected and what actions constitute a violation.

REQUIREMENT

The timeframe for starting the 30-day abduction clock was clarified to begin at the time of abduction and continue until the child is returned, regardless of later scheduled visitation.

ENFORCEMENT

A statute of limitations of 2 years was added, with tolling during the period of unlawful abduction, and cases must be assigned to the family law division with prior jurisdiction.

ELIGIBILITY

Damages were modified to include treble actual damages with a minimum of $1,000, replacing the previous $10,000 flat amount.

Floor votes · House Apr 25, 2025

How they voted

107–0

Passed · 11 other

Total votes 118

Apr 25, 2025

D Democratic34

30 Yea 4

88% Yea

R Republican84

77 Yea 7

91% Yea

Vote distribution

All Yea All Nay Mixed No data

Full legislative history

Actions timeline

Total actions

Key actions

Committee

Apr 28, 2025

Committee

Referred to Rules

upper

Apr 25, 2025

Lower · Passed

CS passed; YEAS 108, NAYS 0

lower

Apr 18, 2025

Committee

Bill referred to House Calendar

lower

Apr 17, 2025

Lower · Passed

Reported out of Judiciary Committee

lower

Apr 17, 2025

Lower · Passed

Favorable with CS by Judiciary Committee

lower

Apr 15, 2025

Lower · Passed

Added to Judiciary Committee agenda

lower

Apr 11, 2025

Lower · Passed

Now in Judiciary Committee

lower

Apr 11, 2025

Committee

Referred to Judiciary Committee

lower

Apr 10, 2025

Lower · Passed

Reported out of Civil Justice & Claims Subcommittee

lower

Apr 10, 2025

Lower · Passed

Favorable with CS by Civil Justice & Claims Subcommittee

lower

Apr 8, 2025

Lower · Passed

PCS added to Civil Justice & Claims Subcommittee agenda

lower

Mar 5, 2025

Lower · Passed

Now in Civil Justice & Claims Subcommittee

lower

Mar 5, 2025

Committee

Referred to Judiciary Committee

lower

Mar 5, 2025

Committee

Referred to Civil Justice & Claims Subcommittee

lower

2 primary · 11 co-sponsors