98TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY
State of Illinois
2013 and 2014
HB1019

 

Introduced , by Rep. Michael J. Zalewski

 

SYNOPSIS AS INTRODUCED:
 
750 ILCS 5/602  from Ch. 40, par. 602
750 ILCS 5/607  from Ch. 40, par. 607
750 ILCS 5/610  from Ch. 40, par. 610
750 ILCS 5/612 new

    Amends the Illinois Marriage and Dissolution of Marriage Act. Provides that if an allegation that a child is an abused or neglected child is made in a custody or visitation proceeding, the court may request that the Department of Children and Family Services or a local law enforcement agency conduct an investigation of the allegation. Provides that if upon completion of the investigation, the Department or the local law enforcement agency finds that the allegation is unfounded, the court shall hold a hearing to review all available evidence regarding the allegation. Provides that if the court determines that an allegation that a child is an abused or neglected child is false, the person who made the allegation knew it to be false, and intended the allegation to influence a court ruling in the custody or visitation proceeding, the court may impose monetary sanctions and hold the person who made the false allegation in civil or criminal contempt. Provides that if a person has made a second false allegation, the court may also prohibit the person from receiving custody or visitation rights with regard to the child involved in the allegation. Requires the provision of written notice of the new provisions to parties in all proceedings in which custody or visitation is in issue.


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FISCAL NOTE ACT MAY APPLY

 

 

A BILL FOR

 

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1    AN ACT concerning civil law.
 
2    Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
3represented in the General Assembly:
 
4    Section 5. The Illinois Marriage and Dissolution of
5Marriage Act is amended by changing Sections 602, 607, and 610
6and by adding Section 612 as follows:
 
7    (750 ILCS 5/602)  (from Ch. 40, par. 602)
8    Sec. 602. Best Interest of Child.
9    (a) The court shall determine custody in accordance with
10the best interest of the child. The court shall consider all
11relevant factors including:
12        (1) the wishes of the child's parent or parents as to
13    his custody;
14        (2) the wishes of the child as to his custodian;
15        (3) the interaction and interrelationship of the child
16    with his parent or parents, his siblings and any other
17    person who may significantly affect the child's best
18    interest;
19        (4) the child's adjustment to his home, school and
20    community;
21        (5) the mental and physical health of all individuals
22    involved;
23        (6) the physical violence or threat of physical

 

 

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1    violence by the child's potential custodian, whether
2    directed against the child or directed against another
3    person;
4        (7) the occurrence of ongoing or repeated abuse as
5    defined in Section 103 of the Illinois Domestic Violence
6    Act of 1986, whether directed against the child or directed
7    against another person;
8        (8) the willingness and ability of each parent to
9    facilitate and encourage a close and continuing
10    relationship between the other parent and the child;
11        (9) whether one of the parents is a sex offender; and
12        (10) the terms of a parent's military family-care plan
13    that a parent must complete before deployment if a parent
14    is a member of the United States Armed Forces who is being
15    deployed; and .
16        (11) whether there has been a finding under Section 612
17    of this Act that a party has made a false allegation that
18    the child is an abused or neglected child.
19    In the case of a custody proceeding in which a stepparent
20has standing under Section 601, it is presumed to be in the
21best interest of the minor child that the natural parent have
22the custody of the minor child unless the presumption is
23rebutted by the stepparent.
24    (b) The court shall not consider conduct of a present or
25proposed custodian that does not affect his relationship to the
26child.

 

 

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1    (c) Unless the court finds the occurrence of ongoing abuse
2as defined in Section 103 of the Illinois Domestic Violence Act
3of 1986, the court shall presume that the maximum involvement
4and cooperation of both parents regarding the physical, mental,
5moral, and emotional well-being of their child is in the best
6interest of the child. There shall be no presumption in favor
7of or against joint custody.
8(Source: P.A. 95-331, eff. 8-21-07; 96-676, eff. 1-1-10.)
 
9    (750 ILCS 5/607)  (from Ch. 40, par. 607)
10    Sec. 607. Visitation.
11    (a) A parent not granted custody of the child is entitled
12to reasonable visitation rights unless the court finds, after a
13hearing, that visitation would endanger seriously the child's
14physical, mental, moral or emotional health. If the custodian's
15street address is not identified, pursuant to Section 708, the
16court shall require the parties to identify reasonable
17alternative arrangements for visitation by a non-custodial
18parent, including but not limited to visitation of the minor
19child at the residence of another person or at a local public
20or private facility.
21        (1) "Visitation" means in-person time spent between a
22    child and the child's parent. In appropriate
23    circumstances, it may include electronic communication
24    under conditions and at times determined by the court.
25        (2) "Electronic communication" means time that a

 

 

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1    parent spends with his or her child during which the child
2    is not in the parent's actual physical custody, but which
3    is facilitated by the use of communication tools such as
4    the telephone, electronic mail, instant messaging, video
5    conferencing or other wired or wireless technologies via
6    the Internet, or another medium of communication.
7    (a-3) Grandparents, great-grandparents, and siblings of a
8minor child, who is one year old or older, have standing to
9bring an action in circuit court by petition, requesting
10visitation in accordance with this Section. The term "sibling"
11in this Section means a brother, sister, stepbrother, or
12stepsister of the minor child. Grandparents,
13great-grandparents, and siblings also have standing to file a
14petition for visitation and any electronic communication
15rights in a pending dissolution proceeding or any other
16proceeding that involves custody or visitation issues,
17requesting visitation in accordance with this Section. A
18petition for visitation with a child by a person other than a
19parent must be filed in the county in which the child resides.
20Nothing in this subsection (a-3) and subsection (a-5) of this
21Section shall apply to a child in whose interests a petition is
22pending under Section 2-13 of the Juvenile Court Act of 1987 or
23a petition to adopt an unrelated child is pending under the
24Adoption Act.
25    (a-5)(1) Except as otherwise provided in this subsection
26(a-5), any grandparent, great-grandparent, or sibling may file

 

 

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1a petition for visitation rights to a minor child if there is
2an unreasonable denial of visitation by a parent and at least
3one of the following conditions exists:
4        (A) (Blank);
5        (A-5) the child's other parent is deceased or has been
6    missing for at least 3 months. For the purposes of this
7    Section a parent is considered to be missing if the
8    parent's location has not been determined and the parent
9    has been reported as missing to a law enforcement agency;
10        (A-10) a parent of the child is incompetent as a matter
11    of law;
12        (A-15) a parent has been incarcerated in jail or prison
13    during the 3 month period preceding the filing of the
14    petition;
15        (B) the child's mother and father are divorced or have
16    been legally separated from each other or there is pending
17    a dissolution proceeding involving a parent of the child or
18    another court proceeding involving custody or visitation
19    of the child (other than any adoption proceeding of an
20    unrelated child) and at least one parent does not object to
21    the grandparent, great-grandparent, or sibling having
22    visitation with the child. The visitation of the
23    grandparent, great-grandparent, or sibling must not
24    diminish the visitation of the parent who is not related to
25    the grandparent, great-grandparent, or sibling seeking
26    visitation;

 

 

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1        (C) (Blank);
2        (D) the child is born out of wedlock, the parents are
3    not living together, and the petitioner is a maternal
4    grandparent, great-grandparent, or sibling of the child
5    born out of wedlock; or
6        (E) the child is born out of wedlock, the parents are
7    not living together, the petitioner is a paternal
8    grandparent, great-grandparent, or sibling, and the
9    paternity has been established by a court of competent
10    jurisdiction.
11    (2) Any visitation rights granted pursuant to this Section
12before the filing of a petition for adoption of a child shall
13automatically terminate by operation of law upon the entry of
14an order terminating parental rights or granting the adoption
15of the child, whichever is earlier. If the person or persons
16who adopted the child are related to the child, as defined by
17Section 1 of the Adoption Act, any person who was related to
18the child as grandparent, great-grandparent, or sibling prior
19to the adoption shall have standing to bring an action pursuant
20to this Section requesting visitation with the child.
21    (3) In making a determination under this subsection (a-5),
22there is a rebuttable presumption that a fit parent's actions
23and decisions regarding grandparent, great-grandparent, or
24sibling visitation are not harmful to the child's mental,
25physical, or emotional health. The burden is on the party
26filing a petition under this Section to prove that the parent's

 

 

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1actions and decisions regarding visitation times are harmful to
2the child's mental, physical, or emotional health.
3    (4) In determining whether to grant visitation, the court
4shall consider the following:
5        (A) the preference of the child if the child is
6    determined to be of sufficient maturity to express a
7    preference;
8        (B) the mental and physical health of the child;
9        (C) the mental and physical health of the grandparent,
10    great-grandparent, or sibling;
11        (D) the length and quality of the prior relationship
12    between the child and the grandparent, great-grandparent,
13    or sibling;
14        (E) the good faith of the party in filing the petition;
15        (F) the good faith of the person denying visitation;
16        (G) the quantity of the visitation time requested and
17    the potential adverse impact that visitation would have on
18    the child's customary activities;
19        (H) whether the child resided with the petitioner for
20    at least 6 consecutive months with or without the current
21    custodian present;
22        (I) whether the petitioner had frequent or regular
23    contact or visitation with the child for at least 12
24    consecutive months;
25        (J) any other fact that establishes that the loss of
26    the relationship between the petitioner and the child is

 

 

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1    likely to harm the child's mental, physical, or emotional
2    health; and
3        (K) whether the grandparent, great-grandparent, or
4    sibling was a primary caretaker of the child for a period
5    of not less than 6 consecutive months; and .
6        (L) whether there has been a finding under Section 612
7    of this Act that a party has made a false allegation that
8    the child is an abused or neglected child.
9    (5) The court may order visitation rights for the
10grandparent, great-grandparent, or sibling that include
11reasonable access without requiring overnight or possessory
12visitation.
13    (a-7)(1) Unless by stipulation of the parties, no motion to
14modify a grandparent, great-grandparent, or sibling visitation
15order may be made earlier than 2 years after the date the order
16was filed, unless the court permits it to be made on the basis
17of affidavits that there is reason to believe the child's
18present environment may endanger seriously the child's mental,
19physical, or emotional health.
20    (2) The court shall not modify an order that grants
21visitation to a grandparent, great-grandparent, or sibling
22unless it finds by clear and convincing evidence, upon the
23basis of facts that have arisen since the prior visitation
24order or that were unknown to the court at the time of entry of
25the prior visitation, that a change has occurred in the
26circumstances of the child or his or her custodian, and that

 

 

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1the modification is necessary to protect the mental, physical,
2or emotional health of the child. The court shall state in its
3decision specific findings of fact in support of its
4modification or termination of the grandparent,
5great-grandparent, or sibling visitation. A child's parent may
6always petition to modify visitation upon changed
7circumstances when necessary to promote the child's best
8interest.
9    (3) Attorney fees and costs shall be assessed against a
10party seeking modification of the visitation order if the court
11finds that the modification action is vexatious and constitutes
12harassment.
13    (4) Notice under this subsection (a-7) shall be given as
14provided in subsections (c) and (d) of Section 601.
15    (b) (1) (Blank.)
16    (1.5) The Court may grant reasonable visitation privileges
17to a stepparent upon petition to the court by the stepparent,
18with notice to the parties required to be notified under
19Section 601 of this Act, if the court determines that it is in
20the best interests and welfare of the child, and may issue any
21necessary orders to enforce those visitation privileges. A
22petition for visitation privileges may be filed under this
23paragraph (1.5) whether or not a petition pursuant to this Act
24has been previously filed or is currently pending if the
25following circumstances are met:
26        (A) the child is at least 12 years old;

 

 

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1        (B) the child resided continuously with the parent and
2    stepparent for at least 5 years;
3        (C) the parent is deceased or is disabled and is unable
4    to care for the child;
5        (D) the child wishes to have reasonable visitation with
6    the stepparent; and
7        (E) the stepparent was providing for the care, control,
8    and welfare to the child prior to the initiation of the
9    petition for visitation.
10    (2)(A) A petition for visitation privileges shall not be
11filed pursuant to this subsection (b) by the parents or
12grandparents of a putative father if the paternity of the
13putative father has not been legally established.
14    (B) A petition for visitation privileges may not be filed
15under this subsection (b) if the child who is the subject of
16the grandparents' or great-grandparents' petition has been
17voluntarily surrendered by the parent or parents, except for a
18surrender to the Illinois Department of Children and Family
19Services or a foster care facility, or has been previously
20adopted by an individual or individuals who are not related to
21the biological parents of the child or is the subject of a
22pending adoption petition by an individual or individuals who
23are not related to the biological parents of the child.
24    (3) (Blank).
25    (c) The court may modify an order granting or denying
26visitation rights of a parent whenever modification would serve

 

 

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1the best interest of the child; but the court shall not
2restrict a parent's visitation rights unless it finds that the
3visitation would endanger seriously the child's physical,
4mental, moral or emotional health.
5    (d) If any court has entered an order prohibiting a
6non-custodial parent of a child from any contact with a child
7or restricting the non-custodial parent's contact with the
8child, the following provisions shall apply:
9        (1) If an order has been entered granting visitation
10    privileges with the child to a grandparent or
11    great-grandparent who is related to the child through the
12    non-custodial parent, the visitation privileges of the
13    grandparent or great-grandparent may be revoked if:
14            (i) a court has entered an order prohibiting the
15        non-custodial parent from any contact with the child,
16        and the grandparent or great-grandparent is found to
17        have used his or her visitation privileges to
18        facilitate contact between the child and the
19        non-custodial parent; or
20            (ii) a court has entered an order restricting the
21        non-custodial parent's contact with the child, and the
22        grandparent or great-grandparent is found to have used
23        his or her visitation privileges to facilitate contact
24        between the child and the non-custodial parent in a
25        manner that violates the terms of the order restricting
26        the non-custodial parent's contact with the child.

 

 

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1        Nothing in this subdivision (1) limits the authority of
2    the court to enforce its orders in any manner permitted by
3    law.
4        (2) Any order granting visitation privileges with the
5    child to a grandparent or great-grandparent who is related
6    to the child through the non-custodial parent shall contain
7    the following provision:
8        "If the (grandparent or great-grandparent, whichever
9    is applicable) who has been granted visitation privileges
10    under this order uses the visitation privileges to
11    facilitate contact between the child and the child's
12    non-custodial parent, the visitation privileges granted
13    under this order shall be permanently revoked."
14    (e) No parent, not granted custody of the child, or
15grandparent, or great-grandparent, or stepparent, or sibling
16of any minor child, convicted of any offense involving an
17illegal sex act perpetrated upon a victim less than 18 years of
18age including but not limited to offenses for violations of
19Article 12 of the Criminal Code of 1961, is entitled to
20visitation rights while incarcerated or while on parole,
21probation, conditional discharge, periodic imprisonment, or
22mandatory supervised release for that offense, and upon
23discharge from incarceration for a misdemeanor offense or upon
24discharge from parole, probation, conditional discharge,
25periodic imprisonment, or mandatory supervised release for a
26felony offense, visitation shall be denied until the person

 

 

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1successfully completes a treatment program approved by the
2court.
3    (f) Unless the court determines, after considering all
4relevant factors, including but not limited to those set forth
5in Section 602(a), that it would be in the best interests of
6the child to allow visitation, the court shall not enter an
7order providing visitation rights and pursuant to a motion to
8modify visitation shall revoke visitation rights previously
9granted to any person who would otherwise be entitled to
10petition for visitation rights under this Section who has been
11convicted of first degree murder of the parent, grandparent,
12great-grandparent, or sibling of the child who is the subject
13of the order. Until an order is entered pursuant to this
14subsection, no person shall visit, with the child present, a
15person who has been convicted of first degree murder of the
16parent, grandparent, great-grandparent, or sibling of the
17child without the consent of the child's parent, other than a
18parent convicted of first degree murder as set forth herein, or
19legal guardian.
20    (g) (Blank).
21    (h) Upon motion, the court may allow a parent who is
22deployed or who has orders to be deployed as a member of the
23United States Armed Forces to designate a person known to the
24child to exercise reasonable substitute visitation on behalf of
25the deployed parent, if the court determines that substitute
26visitation is in the best interest of the child. In determining

 

 

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1whether substitute visitation is in the best interest of the
2child, the court shall consider all of the relevant factors
3listed in subsection (a) of Section 602 and apply those factors
4to the person designated as a substitute for the deployed
5parent for visitation purposes.
6(Source: P.A. 96-331, eff. 1-1-10; 97-659, eff. 6-1-12.)
 
7    (750 ILCS 5/610)  (from Ch. 40, par. 610)
8    Sec. 610. Modification.
9    (a) Unless by stipulation of the parties or except as
10provided in subsection (a-5), no motion to modify a custody
11judgment may be made earlier than 2 years after its date,
12unless the court permits it to be made on the basis of (i)
13affidavits that there is reason to believe the child's present
14environment may endanger seriously his physical, mental, moral
15or emotional health; or (ii) a determination under Section 612
16of this Act that a party has made a false allegation that the
17child is an abused or neglected child.
18    (a-5) A motion to modify a custody judgment may be made at
19any time by a party who has been informed of the existence of
20facts requiring notice to be given under Section 609.5.
21    (b) The court shall not modify a prior custody judgment
22unless it finds by clear and convincing evidence, upon the
23basis of facts that have arisen since the prior judgment or
24that were unknown to the court at the time of entry of the
25prior judgment, that a change has occurred in the circumstances

 

 

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1of the child or his custodian, or in the case of a joint
2custody arrangement that a change has occurred in the
3circumstances of the child or either or both parties having
4custody, and that the modification is necessary to serve the
5best interest of the child. The existence of facts requiring
6notice to be given under Section 609.5 of this Act shall be
7considered a change in circumstance. In the case of joint
8custody, if the parties agree to a termination of a joint
9custody arrangement, the court shall so terminate the joint
10custody and make any modification which is in the child's best
11interest. The court shall state in its decision specific
12findings of fact in support of its modification or termination
13of joint custody if either parent opposes the modification or
14termination.
15    (c) Attorney fees and costs shall be assessed against a
16party seeking modification if the court finds that the
17modification action is vexatious and constitutes harassment.
18    (d) Notice under this Section shall be given as provided in
19subsections (c) and (d) of Section 601.
20    (e) (Blank).
21    (f) A court may only provide for a temporary modification
22of a custody or visitation order during a period of a parent's
23deployment by the United States Armed Forces in order to make
24reasonable accommodations necessitated by the deployment. The
25temporary order shall specify that deployment is the basis for
26the order and shall include provisions for:

 

 

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1        (1) custody or reasonable visitation during a period of
2    leave granted to the deployed parent if the custody or
3    reasonable visitation is in the child's best interest;
4        (2) if appropriate, visitation by electronic
5    communication; and
6        (3) the court's reservation of jurisdiction to modify
7    or terminate the temporary modification order upon the
8    termination of the deployed parent's deployment upon such
9    terms and conditions as the court may deem necessary to
10    serve the child's best interest at the time of the
11    termination of the deployment.
12    (g) A party's past, current, or possible future absence or
13relocation, or failure to comply with the court's orders on
14custody, visitation, or parenting time may not, by itself, be
15sufficient to justify a modification of a prior order if the
16reason for the absence, relocation or failure to comply is the
17party's deployment as a member of the United States Armed
18Forces.
19    (h) A determination under Section 612 of this Act that an
20occurrence of a false allegation in a custody or visitation
21proceeding that the child is an abused or neglected child shall
22be considered a change in circumstance for the purposes of
23subsection (b) of this Section.
24(Source: P.A. 96-676, eff. 1-1-10; 97-659, eff. 6-1-12.)
 
25    (750 ILCS 5/612 new)

 

 

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1    Sec. 612. Allegations of abuse or neglect.
2    (a) As used in this Section:
3    "Abused child" has the meaning ascribed to it in Section 3
4of the Abused and Neglected Child Reporting Act;
5    "Department" means the Department of Children and Family
6Services; and
7    "Neglected child" has the meaning ascribed to it in Section
83 of the Abused and Neglected Child Reporting Act.
9    (b) If an allegation that a child is an abused or neglected
10child is made in a custody or visitation proceeding, the court
11may request that the Department or a local law enforcement
12agency conduct an investigation of the allegation. Upon
13completion of the investigation, the Department or the local
14law enforcement agency shall report its findings to the court.
15If the Department or the local law enforcement agency finds
16that the allegation is unfounded, the court shall hold a
17hearing to review all available evidence regarding the
18allegation.
19    (c) If the court determines, based on the investigation
20described in subsection (b) or based on other evidence
21presented to the court, that an allegation that a child is an
22abused or neglected child is false and that the person who made
23the allegation knew it to be false at the time it was made and
24that the person intended the allegation to influence a court
25ruling in the custody or visitation proceeding, the court may:
26        (1) impose reasonable monetary sanctions equal to (i)

 

 

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1    the total of all costs incurred by the accused party as a
2    direct result of defending the allegation and by the
3    Department or the local law enforcement agency as a direct
4    result of investigating the allegation; and (ii)
5    reasonable attorney's fees incurred in recovering the
6    sanctions against the person making the allegation; and
7        (2) hold the person who made the false allegation in
8    civil contempt or criminal contempt, or both.
9    (d) If a court determines under this Section that a person
10has made a second false allegation in a custody or visitation
11proceeding that a child is an abused or neglected child, the
12court may, in addition to any remedy under subsection (c) of
13this Section, prohibit the person from receiving custody or
14visitation rights with regard to the child involved in the
15allegation.
16    (e) The court shall direct the circuit court clerk to
17provide a written notice to any party in a proceeding in which
18custody or visitation is in issue that making a false
19allegation that a child is an abused or neglected child in a
20custody or visitation proceeding may result in:
21        (1) monetary sanctions and a holding of the person in
22    contempt; and
23        (2) the loss of the person's right to custody or
24    visitation.