Your Right to Parenting Time in Illinois

 Posted on December 00, 0000 in Visitation

If you are divorced or separated from your child’s other parent, you may face a number of challenges related to exercising your parental rights. It is often difficult for couples who have gone their separate ways to see eye-to-eye regarding their children, but that does not mean one parent is any less important than the other. Under Illinois law, you have a number of legal rights involving your child that cannot be taken from you without due process.

Parental Responsibilities

The Illinois legislature recently overhauled the understanding of child custody in the state, refocusing the law on the allocation of parental responsibilities rather than statuses and titles. Parents are no longer awarded sole or joint custody, and neither party assumes the title of custodial or non-custodial parent. Instead, each parent is assigned authority for specific responsibilities, which are divided into two primary considerations. The first is significant decision-making regarding the child, which includes education, health care, religious training, and extracurricular activities. The other involves each parent’s allocated parenting time, previously called visitation.

Reasonable Parenting Time

According to the Illinois Marriage and Dissolution of Marriage Act, every parent is presumed to have, at least, the right to reasonable parenting time with their children. This is true even if the parent has not been allocated any significant-decision making responsibilities. During parenting time, the parent is presumed to be in charge of caretaking functions and “non-significant decision-making responsibilities.” Such considerations include meals, personal hygiene, homework, bedtime routines, and other activities of day-to-day living.

Possible Limitations

Whether you work out a parenting time schedule with the other parent or one has been established by the court, you have the right to spend time with your child. Your right parenting time can only be restricted if the court finds that time with you or in your home presents a serious danger to the child’s physical, mental, emotional, or moral health. Restrictions may include required supervision by a third party or the other parent, visits being limited to a certain location, or any other accommodation the court sees fit to require. In the most extreme circumstances, your rights to parenting time could be revoked altogether, but restriction is usually the court’s first option.

Guidance Regarding the Law

If you have questions about parenting time or any other parental responsibilities, contact an experienced DuPage County family law attorney. A member of our team with work with you to help you understand your available options and rights under Illinois law. Call 630-409-8184 to schedule a confidential consultation at the Law Office of Matthew M. Williams today.

Source:

http://www.ilga.gov/legislation/ilcs/ilcs4.asp?DocName=075000050HPt%2E+VI&ActID=2086&ChapterID=0&SeqStart=8350000&SeqEnd=10200000