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1
HOUSE RESOLUTION

 
2    WHEREAS, The members of the Illinois House of
3Representatives are pleased to honor Jeffery Leving for his
4work in safeguarding the rights of fathers and protecting the
5welfare of children and families in this State; and
 
6    WHEREAS, Jeffery Leving began his career over 30 years ago,
7at a time when it was almost unheard of to fight for the rights
8of fathers and prevail in family court; determined to fight
9this bias, Mr. Leving and his firm carved a niche practice area
10and the name Jeffery Leving and the term "Fathers' Rights"
11became inseparable; and
 
12    WHEREAS, The Law Offices of Jeffery M. Leving, Ltd., has
13represented fathers, mothers, grandparents, and children, from
14all walks of life; the firm has worked on high profile cases,
15such as the reunification of Elian Gonzalez with his father in
16Cuba; utilizing Mr. Leving's encyclopedic knowledge of
17national and international law, the firm has also litigated
18international child abduction cases involving the nations of
19Egypt, Poland, Argentina, China, and Mexico seeking the
20reunification of children with parents who had almost abandoned
21hope that they would ever see their children again; and
 
22    WHEREAS, Jeffery Leving's firm prides itself on its

 

 

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1forward-thinking initiatives in the field of law and fathers'
2rights; every month, he administers a "Continuing Legal
3Education Think Tank", with featured speakers such as mental
4health professionals, leading attorneys, and other experts who
5present to attendees their strategies to maximize and leverage
6the collective knowledge and resources of the firm, which
7allows the firm to utilize pragmatic courtroom strategies that
8are key to the success of the firm and its clients; Mr. Leving
9is also heavily involved in mapping out strategies for complex
10and emotionally-charged cases and takes on many of the firm's
11cases as well; and
 
12    WHEREAS, Jeffery Leving and his firm work diligently to
13educate fathers of their rights as parents and have effectively
14advocated for judges to look to the letter and the spirit of
15the law and refute antiquated preconceptions that mothers were
16automatically endowed with superior rights to parenting and
17custody; and
 
18    WHEREAS, In addition to his work at the firm, Jeffery
19Leving is a founder of the Fatherhood Educational Institute, a
20not-for-profit charity whose mission is to help indigent
21fathers reunite with their children through education and
22support initiatives; he also serves as the Chair of the
23Illinois Council on Responsible Fatherhood at the pleasure of
24the Governor and served as a resource to the first White House

 

 

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1Office of Faith-Based and Neighborhood Partnerships Town Hall
2Meeting on Responsible Fatherhood and Healthy Families in
3Chicago; and
 
4    WHEREAS, Jeffery Leving and his firm have been honored by
5the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children "in
6recognition and appreciation for their outstanding commitment
7to the protection of children and the knowledge of the Hague
8Convention on the civil aspects of international child
9abduction"; he was also honored by the White House by being
10presented with the President's Volunteer Service Award for his
11work with the Council on Responsible Fatherhood and was the
12recipient of the 2012 Professional Achievement Award from the
13Illinois Institute of Technology Chicago-Kent College of Law
14for outstanding achievement in the legal profession; and
 
15    WHEREAS, Jeffery Leving is a co-author of Illinois laws
16concerning joint custody, virtual child visitation, parenting
17time interference, and paternity testing; he is also the author
18of 3 books, "Fathers' Rights", "Divorce Wars", and "How to Be a
19Good Divorced Dad"; and
 
20    WHEREAS, Jeffery Leving serves as a model of hard work,
21integrity, and dedication for the people of the State of
22Illinois; therefore, be it
 

 

 

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1    RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE
2NINETY-SEVENTH GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that
3we honor Jeffery Leving for his work in safeguarding the rights
4of fathers and protecting the welfare of children and families
5in this State, thank him for his great dedication to this
6important task, and wish him continued success and happiness in
7the future; and be it further
 
8    RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be
9presented to Jeffery Leving as a symbol of our esteem and
10respect.