They told me "custody" wasn't a thing...

In Florida, "custody" is no longer awarded to parents.  The Courts grant "parental responsibility" and "time-sharinh."  In most cases, they look for both of these to be equal and changing a "custody" order is a difficult task in most cases.  The majority of the time, this type of case stems from non-married parents that are actually filing for PATERNITY, being to give the father rights he did not get when a baby was born.  The other type of case is when parents who have already been to court want to change something.

In a paternity case and typically in a modification case, both parents will be required to attend mediation to attempt to resolve all the issues and be required to exchange a plethora of financial documents in order to calculate child support.  In a paternity case, both parents are also required to attend a 4-hour parenting class.

How much will it cost?

Legal fees for all cases can vary depending on how long they last, how aggressive the parties get, how often the lawyers need to intervene to facilitate communication, and of course how letigious each party is.  The hourly rate is $300 and the total number of hours is unknown.  In addition to this, you will be responsible for fees related to the parenting class; filing fees for the initial pleadings; and the fees of anyone else hired for your case including the mediatior (a mediation is required), court reporters, process servers, interpretters, etc..  Typically, you will pay an initial retainer fee to start the case and a smaller monthly payment plan after that, rather continuing to receive large monthly bills.