Rolling Meadows Child Custody Attorneys

Divorce Lawyers for the Allocation of Parental Responsibilities in Arlington Heights

The decision to end your marriage and get a divorce is usually not an easy one, especially if you have children. Your family is likely to experience a great deal of upheaval as you separate from your ex-spouse, and you will want to do everything you can to maintain consistency for your children and provide for their ongoing needs. When determining how decisions will be made for your children following your divorce, it is essential to work with an experienced lawyer.

The family law attorneys of A. Traub & Associates are dedicated to protecting your parental rights and helping you reach a divorce settlement that provides for your children's best interests. We will work with you to address your concerns about child custody, and if necessary, we will provide you with strong representation in family court proceedings.

Illinois Laws Regarding Parental Responsibility

During a divorce case, parents will likely be concerned about how the custody of their children will be handled. However, following a change to the law in 2016, the state of Illinois no longer uses the term "custody." Instead, divorcing or separated parents will need to address the "allocation of parental responsibility," which refers to the right to make decisions about children's upbringing. There are four different areas of decision-making responsibility:

1. Education - This includes deciding where children will go to school, as well as choosing any tutors or other types of instruction.
2. Health - This includes all decisions related to children's medical or dental care, as well as any psychological or mental health treatments they receive.
3. Religion - This includes decisions about whether or where children will go to church or participate in any other religious activities.
4. Extracurricular activities - This includes decisions about the activities children will pursue outside of school, such as sports, music or dance lessons, or clubs.

Each of these areas of responsibility can be shared by both parents or allocated solely to one parent. Decisions about how parental responsibility is allocated will be set down in a parenting plan that will be incorporated into a couple's divorce decree. Parents may be able to create a parenting plan on their own, either through negotiations that are done with the help of their attorneys or by participating in mediation. However, if parents cannot come to an agreement, the decisions about how to allocate parental responsibility will be left up to a family court judge.

When deciding how to allocate decision-making responsibilities, a judge will look at a variety of factors to determine what is in the children's best interests. These factors include:

• The children's needs, the wishes of each parent, and the wishes of the children, while taking into consideration a child's level of maturity and their ability to independently express their own preferences.
• The mental and physical health of the parents, the children, and any other interested parties.
• How well the children have adjusted to their home, school, and surrounding community.
• The parents' ability and willingness to cooperate in making decisions for their children, while also considering whether each parent is willing to encourage and facilitate their children's relationship with the other parent.
• Each parent's level of participation in making decisions for children in the past, as well as any agreements or conduct between the parents about how decision-making would be handled.
• Whether either parent's decision-making responsibility should be restricted because of a history of domestic violence or abuse, because they are a registered sex offender, or because there is evidence that they engaged in conduct that endangered a child's physical or mental health or impaired their emotional development.

Contact a Rolling Meadows Parental Responsibility Attorney

The decisions made during your divorce will affect your family for years to come. To ensure that your parental rights and your children's best interests will be protected, you need an experienced family law attorney on your side. At A. Traub & Associates, we will guide you through the divorce process, working to reach an outcome that will meet your family's needs.

To set up a confidential consultation, contact our office at 847-749-4182. We assist with divorce and child-related cases in Palatine, Mt. Prospect, Inverness, Arlington Heights, Schaumburg, Rolling Meadows, Wheeling, Hoffman Estates, Des Plaines, Elk Grove Village, Buffalo Grove, Long Grove, and throughout Northwest Cook County.