HB4113 100TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY

  
  

 


 
100TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY
State of Illinois
2017 and 2018
HB4113

 

Introduced , by Rep. La Shawn K. Ford

 

SYNOPSIS AS INTRODUCED:
 
750 ILCS 5/102  from Ch. 40, par. 102
750 ILCS 5/602.5
750 ILCS 5/602.7
750 ILCS 5/602.10
750 ILCS 5/603.10

    Amends the Illinois Marriage and Dissolution of Marriage Act. To the list of purposes of the Act, adds recognizing that the involvement of each parent for equal time is presumptively in the children's best interests. Deletes language providing that nothing in the Act requires that each parent be allocated decision-making responsibilities. Provides that it is presumed that it is in the child's best interests to award equal time to each parent. Provides that it is presumed that both parents are fit and the court shall not place any restrictions on parenting time unless it finds by clear and convincing evidence (instead of a preponderance of the evidence) that a parent's exercise of parenting time would seriously endanger the child's physical, mental, moral, or emotional health. In specified situations, requires the court to issue a written decision stating its specific findings of fact and conclusions of law in support of its ruling. Provides that the court may restrict or modify parental responsibilities after a showing of clear and convincing evidence (instead of a preponderance of the evidence) that the restriction or modification is warranted.


LRB100 14598 HEP 29395 b

 

 

A BILL FOR

 

HB4113LRB100 14598 HEP 29395 b

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 102, 602.5, 602.7,
6602.10, and 603.10 as follows:
 
7    (750 ILCS 5/102)  (from Ch. 40, par. 102)
8    Sec. 102. Purposes; Rules of Construction. This Act shall
9be liberally construed and applied to promote its underlying
10purposes, which are to:
11        (1) provide adequate procedures for the solemnization
12    and registration of marriage;
13        (2) strengthen and preserve the integrity of marriage
14    and safeguard family relationships;
15        (3) promote the amicable settlement of disputes that
16    have arisen between parties to a marriage;
17        (4) mitigate the potential harm to spouses and their
18    children caused by the process of an action brought under
19    this Act, and protect children from exposure to conflict
20    and violence;
21        (5) ensure predictable decision-making for the care of
22    children and for the allocation of parenting time and other
23    parental responsibilities, and avoid prolonged uncertainty

 

 

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1    by expeditiously resolving issues involving children;
2        (6) recognize the right of children to a healthy
3    relationship with parents, and the responsibility of
4    parents to ensure such a relationship;
5        (7) acknowledge that the determination of children's
6    best interests, and the allocation of parenting time and
7    significant decision-making responsibilities, are among
8    the paramount responsibilities of our system of justice,
9    and to that end:
10            (A) recognize children's right to a strong and
11        healthy relationship with parents, and parents'
12        concomitant right and responsibility to create and
13        maintain such relationships;
14            (B) recognize that, in the absence of domestic
15        violence or any other factor that the court expressly
16        finds to be relevant, proximity to, and frequent
17        contact with, both parents promotes healthy
18        development of children;
19            (C) facilitate parental planning and agreement
20        about the children's upbringing and allocation of
21        parenting time and other parental responsibilities;
22            (D) continue existing parent-child relationships,
23        and secure the maximum involvement and cooperation of
24        parents regarding the physical, mental, moral, and
25        emotional well-being of the children during and after
26        the litigation; and

 

 

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1            (E) promote or order parents to participate in
2        programs designed to educate parents to:
3                (i) minimize or eliminate rancor and the
4            detrimental effect of litigation in any proceeding
5            involving children; and
6                (ii) facilitate the maximum cooperation of
7            parents in raising their children; and
8            (F) recognize that, in order to maximize the
9        opportunity for children to maintain and strengthen
10        the children's relationship with each parent, the
11        involvement of both parents for equal time is
12        presumptively in the best interests of the children;
13        (8) make reasonable provision for support during and
14    after an underlying dissolution of marriage, legal
15    separation, parentage, or parental responsibility
16    allocation action, including provision for timely advances
17    of interim fees and costs to all attorneys, experts, and
18    opinion witnesses including guardians ad litem and
19    children's representatives, to achieve substantial parity
20    in parties' access to funds for pre-judgment litigation
21    costs in an action for dissolution of marriage or legal
22    separation;
23        (9) eliminate the consideration of marital misconduct
24    in the adjudication of rights and duties incident to
25    dissolution of marriage, legal separation and declaration
26    of invalidity of marriage; and

 

 

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1        (10) make provision for the preservation and
2    conservation of marital assets during the litigation.
3(Source: P.A. 99-90, eff. 1-1-16.)
 
4    (750 ILCS 5/602.5)
5    Sec. 602.5. Allocation of parental responsibilities:
6decision-making.
7    (a) Generally. The court shall allocate decision-making
8responsibilities according to the child's best interests.
9Nothing in this Act requires that each parent be allocated
10decision-making responsibilities.
11    (b) Allocation of significant decision-making
12responsibilities. Unless the parents otherwise agree in
13writing on an allocation of significant decision-making
14responsibilities, or the issue of the allocation of parental
15responsibilities has been reserved under Section 401, the court
16shall make the determination. The court shall allocate to one
17or both of the parents the significant decision-making
18responsibility for each significant issue affecting the child.
19Those significant issues shall include, without limitation,
20the following:
21        (1) Education, including the choice of schools and
22    tutors.
23        (2) Health, including all decisions relating to the
24    medical, dental, and psychological needs of the child and
25    to the treatments arising or resulting from those needs.

 

 

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1        (3) Religion, subject to the following provisions:
2            (A) The court shall allocate decision-making
3        responsibility for the child's religious upbringing in
4        accordance with any express or implied agreement
5        between the parents.
6            (B) The court shall consider evidence of the
7        parents' past conduct as to the child's religious
8        upbringing in allocating decision-making
9        responsibilities consistent with demonstrated past
10        conduct in the absence of an express or implied
11        agreement between the parents.
12            (C) The court shall not allocate any aspect of the
13        child's religious upbringing if it determines that the
14        parents do not or did not have an express or implied
15        agreement for such religious upbringing or that there
16        is insufficient evidence to demonstrate a course of
17        conduct regarding the child's religious upbringing
18        that could serve as a basis for any such order.
19        (4) Extracurricular activities.
20    (c) Determination of child's best interests. In
21determining the child's best interests for purposes of
22allocating significant decision-making responsibilities, the
23court shall consider all relevant factors, including, without
24limitation, the following:
25        (1) the wishes of the child, taking into account the
26    child's maturity and ability to express reasoned and

 

 

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1    independent preferences as to decision-making;
2        (2) the child's adjustment to his or her home, school,
3    and community;
4        (3) the mental and physical health of all individuals
5    involved;
6        (4) the ability of the parents to cooperate to make
7    decisions, or the level of conflict between the parties
8    that may affect their ability to share decision-making;
9        (5) the level of each parent's participation in past
10    significant decision-making with respect to the child;
11        (6) any prior agreement or course of conduct between
12    the parents relating to decision-making with respect to the
13    child;
14        (7) the wishes of the parents;
15        (8) the child's needs;
16        (9) the distance between the parents' residences, the
17    cost and difficulty of transporting the child, each
18    parent's and the child's daily schedules, and the ability
19    of the parents to cooperate in the arrangement;
20        (10) whether a restriction on decision-making is
21    appropriate under Section 603.10;
22        (11) the willingness and ability of each parent to
23    facilitate and encourage a close and continuing
24    relationship between the other parent and the child;
25        (12) the physical violence or threat of physical
26    violence by the child's parent directed against the child;

 

 

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1        (13) the occurrence of abuse against the child or other
2    member of the child's household;
3        (14) whether one of the parents is a sex offender, and
4    if so, the exact nature of the offense and what, if any,
5    treatment in which the parent has successfully
6    participated; and
7        (15) any other factor that the court expressly finds to
8    be relevant.
9    (d) A parent shall have sole responsibility for making
10routine decisions with respect to the child and for emergency
11decisions affecting the child's health and safety during that
12parent's parenting time.
13    (e) In allocating significant decision-making
14responsibilities, the court shall not consider conduct of a
15parent that does not affect that parent's relationship to the
16child.
17(Source: P.A. 99-90, eff. 1-1-16.)
 
18    (750 ILCS 5/602.7)
19    Sec. 602.7. Allocation of parental responsibilities:
20parenting time.
21    (a) Best interests. The court shall allocate parenting time
22according to the child's best interests. It is presumed that it
23is in the child's best interests to award equal time to each
24parent.
25    (b) Allocation of parenting time. Unless the parents

 

 

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1present a mutually agreed written parenting plan and that plan
2is approved by the court, the court shall allocate parenting
3time. It is presumed both parents are fit and the court shall
4not place any restrictions on parenting time as defined in
5Section 600 and described in Section 603.10, unless it finds by
6clear and convincing a preponderance of the evidence that a
7parent's exercise of parenting time would seriously endanger
8the child's physical, mental, moral, or emotional health. If
9the court deviates from the presumptions contained in this
10subsection, the court shall issue a written decision stating
11its specific findings of fact and conclusions of law in support
12of the deviation from the presumption.
13    In determining the child's best interests for purposes of
14allocating parenting time, the court shall consider all
15relevant factors, including, without limitation, the
16following:
17        (1) the wishes of each parent seeking parenting time;
18        (2) the wishes of the child, taking into account the
19    child's maturity and ability to express reasoned and
20    independent preferences as to parenting time;
21        (3) the amount of time each parent spent performing
22    caretaking functions with respect to the child in the 24
23    months preceding the filing of any petition for allocation
24    of parental responsibilities or, if the child is under 2
25    years of age, since the child's birth;
26        (4) any prior agreement or course of conduct between

 

 

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1    the parents relating to caretaking functions with respect
2    to the child;
3        (5) the interaction and interrelationship of the child
4    with his or her parents and siblings and with any other
5    person who may significantly affect the child's best
6    interests;
7        (6) the child's adjustment to his or her home, school,
8    and community;
9        (7) the mental and physical health of all individuals
10    involved;
11        (8) the child's needs;
12        (9) the distance between the parents' residences, the
13    cost and difficulty of transporting the child, each
14    parent's and the child's daily schedules, and the ability
15    of the parents to cooperate in the arrangement;
16        (10) whether a restriction on parenting time is
17    appropriate;
18        (11) the physical violence or threat of physical
19    violence by the child's parent directed against the child
20    or other member of the child's household;
21        (12) the willingness and ability of each parent to
22    place the needs of the child ahead of his or her own needs;
23        (13) the willingness and ability of each parent to
24    facilitate and encourage a close and continuing
25    relationship between the other parent and the child;
26        (14) the occurrence of abuse against the child or other

 

 

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1    member of the child's household;
2        (15) whether one of the parents is a convicted sex
3    offender or lives with a convicted sex offender and, if so,
4    the exact nature of the offense and what if any treatment
5    the offender has successfully participated in; the parties
6    are entitled to a hearing on the issues raised in this
7    paragraph (15);
8        (16) the terms of a parent's military family-care plan
9    that a parent must complete before deployment if a parent
10    is a member of the United States Armed Forces who is being
11    deployed; and
12        (17) any other factor that the court expressly finds to
13    be relevant.
14    (c) In allocating parenting time, the court shall not
15consider conduct of a parent that does not affect that parent's
16relationship to the child.
17    (d) Upon motion, the court may allow a parent who is
18deployed or who has orders to be deployed as a member of the
19United States Armed Forces to designate a person known to the
20child to exercise reasonable substitute visitation on behalf of
21the deployed parent, if the court determines that substitute
22visitation is in the best interests of the child. In
23determining whether substitute visitation is in the best
24interests of the child, the court shall consider all of the
25relevant factors listed in subsection (b) of this Section and
26apply those factors to the person designated as a substitute

 

 

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1for the deployed parent for visitation purposes. Visitation
2orders entered under this subsection are subject to subsections
3(e) and (f) of Section 602.9 and subsections (c) and (d) of
4Section 603.10.
5    (e) If the street address of a parent is not identified
6pursuant to Section 708 of this Act, the court shall require
7the parties to identify reasonable alternative arrangements
8for parenting time by the other parent including, but not
9limited to, parenting time of the minor child at the residence
10of another person or at a local public or private facility.
11(Source: P.A. 99-90, eff. 1-1-16.)
 
12    (750 ILCS 5/602.10)
13    Sec. 602.10. Parenting plan.
14    (a) Filing of parenting plan. All parents, within 120 days
15after service or filing of any petition for allocation of
16parental responsibilities, must file with the court, either
17jointly or separately, a proposed parenting plan. The time
18period for filing a parenting plan may be extended by the court
19for good cause shown. If no appearance has been filed by the
20respondent, no parenting plan is required unless ordered by the
21court.
22    (b) No parenting plan filed. In the absence of filing of
23one or more parenting plans, the court must conduct an
24evidentiary hearing to allocate parental responsibilities.
25    (c) Mediation. The court shall order mediation to assist

 

 

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1the parents in formulating or modifying a parenting plan or in
2implementing a parenting plan unless the court determines that
3impediments to mediation exist. Costs under this subsection
4shall be allocated between the parties pursuant to the
5applicable statute or Supreme Court Rule.
6    (d) Parents' agreement on parenting plan. The parenting
7plan must be in writing and signed by both parents. The parents
8must submit the parenting plan to the court for approval within
9120 days after service of a petition for allocation of parental
10responsibilities or the filing of an appearance, except for
11good cause shown. Notwithstanding the provisions above, the
12parents may agree upon and submit a parenting plan at any time
13after the commencement of a proceeding until prior to the entry
14of a judgment of dissolution of marriage. The agreement is
15binding upon the court unless it finds, after considering the
16circumstances of the parties and any other relevant evidence
17produced by the parties, that the agreement is not in the best
18interests of the child. If the court does not approve the
19parenting plan, the court shall make express findings of the
20reason or reasons for its refusal to approve the plan. The
21court, on its own motion, may conduct an evidentiary hearing to
22determine whether the parenting plan is in the child's best
23interests.
24    (e) Parents cannot agree on parenting plan. When parents
25fail to submit an agreed parenting plan, each parent must file
26and submit a written, signed parenting plan to the court within

 

 

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1120 days after the filing of an appearance, except for good
2cause shown. The court's determination of parenting time should
3be based on the child's best interests, and it is presumed that
4it is in the child's best interests to award equal time to each
5parent. The filing of the plan may be excused by the court if:
6        (1) the parties have commenced mediation for the
7    purpose of formulating a parenting plan; or
8        (2) the parents have agreed in writing to extend the
9    time for filing a proposed plan and the court has approved
10    such an extension; or
11        (3) the court orders otherwise for good cause shown.
12    (f) Parenting plan contents. At a minimum, a parenting plan
13must set forth the following:
14        (1) an allocation of significant decision-making
15    responsibilities;
16        (2) provisions for the child's living arrangements and
17    for each parent's parenting time, including either:
18            (A) a schedule that designates in which parent's
19        home the minor child will reside on given days; or
20            (B) a formula or method for determining such a
21        schedule in sufficient detail to be enforced in a
22        subsequent proceeding;
23        (3) a mediation provision addressing any proposed
24    reallocation of parenting time or regarding the terms of
25    allocation of parental responsibilities, except that this
26    provision is not required if one parent is allocated all

 

 

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1    significant decision-making responsibilities;
2        (4) each parent's right of access to medical, dental,
3    and psychological records (subject to the Mental Health and
4    Developmental Disabilities Confidentiality Act), child
5    care records, and school and extracurricular records,
6    reports, and schedules, unless expressly denied by a court
7    order or denied under Section 602.11;
8        (5) a designation of the parent who will be denominated
9    as the parent with the majority of parenting time for
10    purposes of Section 606.10;
11        (6) the child's residential address for school
12    enrollment purposes only;
13        (7) each parent's residence address and phone number,
14    and each parent's place of employment and employment
15    address and phone number;
16        (8) a requirement that a parent changing his or her
17    residence provide at least 60 days prior written notice of
18    the change to any other parent under the parenting plan or
19    allocation judgment, unless such notice is impracticable
20    or unless otherwise ordered by the court. If such notice is
21    impracticable, written notice shall be given at the
22    earliest date practicable. At a minimum, the notice shall
23    set forth the following:
24            (A) the intended date of the change of residence;
25        and
26            (B) the address of the new residence;

 

 

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1        (9) provisions requiring each parent to notify the
2    other of emergencies, health care, travel plans, or other
3    significant child-related issues;
4        (10) transportation arrangements between the parents;
5        (11) provisions for communications, including
6    electronic communications, with the child during the other
7    parent's parenting time;
8        (12) provisions for resolving issues arising from a
9    parent's future relocation, if applicable;
10        (13) provisions for future modifications of the
11    parenting plan, if specified events occur;
12        (14) provisions for the exercise of the right of first
13    refusal, if so desired, that are consistent with the best
14    interests of the minor child; provisions in the plan for
15    the exercise of the right of first refusal must include:
16            (i) the length and kind of child-care requirements
17        invoking the right of first refusal;
18            (ii) notification to the other parent and for his
19        or her response;
20            (iii) transportation requirements; and
21            (iv) any other provision related to the exercise of
22        the right of first refusal necessary to protect and
23        promote the best interests of the minor child; and
24        (15) any other provision that addresses the child's
25    best interests or that will otherwise facilitate
26    cooperation between the parents.

 

 

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1    The personal information under items (6), (7), and (8) of
2this subsection is not required if there is evidence of or the
3parenting plan states that there is a history of domestic
4violence or abuse, or it is shown that the release of the
5information is not in the child's or parent's best interests.
6    (g) The court shall conduct a trial or hearing to determine
7a plan which maximizes the child's relationship and access to
8both parents and shall ensure that the access and the overall
9plan are in the best interests of the child. The court shall
10take the parenting plans into consideration when determining
11parenting time and responsibilities at trial or hearing.
12    (h) The court may consider, consistent with the best
13interests of the child as defined in Section 602.7 of this Act,
14whether to award to one or both of the parties the right of
15first refusal in accordance with Section 602.3 of this Act.
16(Source: P.A. 99-90, eff. 1-1-16; 99-763, eff. 1-1-17.)
 
17    (750 ILCS 5/603.10)
18    Sec. 603.10. Restriction of parental responsibilities.
19    (a) After a hearing, if the court finds by clear and
20convincing a preponderance of the evidence that a parent
21engaged in any conduct that seriously endangered the child's
22mental, moral, or physical health or that significantly
23impaired the child's emotional development, the court shall
24enter orders as necessary to protect the child. The court shall
25issue a written decision stating its specific findings of fact

 

 

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1and conclusions of law in support of its ruling. Such orders
2may include, but are not limited to, orders for one or more of
3the following:
4        (1) a reduction, elimination, or other adjustment of
5    the parent's decision-making responsibilities or parenting
6    time, or both decision-making responsibilities and
7    parenting time;
8        (2) supervision, including ordering the Department of
9    Children and Family Services to exercise continuing
10    supervision under Section 5 of the Children and Family
11    Services Act;
12        (3) requiring the exchange of the child between the
13    parents through an intermediary or in a protected setting;
14        (4) restraining a parent's communication with or
15    proximity to the other parent or the child;
16        (5) requiring a parent to abstain from possessing or
17    consuming alcohol or non-prescribed drugs while exercising
18    parenting time with the child and within a specified period
19    immediately preceding the exercise of parenting time;
20        (6) restricting the presence of specific persons while
21    a parent is exercising parenting time with the child;
22        (7) requiring a parent to post a bond to secure the
23    return of the child following the parent's exercise of
24    parenting time or to secure other performance required by
25    the court;
26        (8) requiring a parent to complete a treatment program

 

 

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1    for perpetrators of abuse, for drug or alcohol abuse, or
2    for other behavior that is the basis for restricting
3    parental responsibilities under this Section; and
4        (9) any other constraints or conditions that the court
5    deems necessary to provide for the child's safety or
6    welfare.
7    (b) The court may modify an order restricting parental
8responsibilities if, after a hearing, the court finds by clear
9and convincing a preponderance of the evidence that a
10modification is in the child's best interests based on (i) a
11change of circumstances that occurred after the entry of an
12order restricting parental responsibilities; or (ii) conduct
13of which the court was previously unaware that seriously
14endangers the child. In determining whether to modify an order
15under this subsection, the court must consider factors that
16include, but need not be limited to, the following:
17        (1) abuse, neglect, or abandonment of the child;
18        (2) abusing or allowing abuse of another person that
19    had an impact upon the child;
20        (3) use of drugs, alcohol, or any other substance in a
21    way that interferes with the parent's ability to perform
22    caretaking functions with respect to the child; and
23        (4) persistent continuing interference with the other
24    parent's access to the child, except for actions taken with
25    a reasonable, good-faith belief that they are necessary to
26    protect the child's safety pending adjudication of the

 

 

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1    facts underlying that belief, provided that the
2    interfering parent initiates a proceeding to determine
3    those facts as soon as practicable.
4    (c) An order granting parenting time to a parent or
5visitation to another person may be revoked by the court if
6that parent or other person is found to have knowingly used his
7or her parenting time or visitation to facilitate contact
8between the child and a parent who has been barred from contact
9with the child or to have knowingly used his or her parenting
10time or visitation to facilitate contact with the child that
11violates any restrictions imposed on a parent's parenting time
12by a court of competent jurisdiction. Nothing in this
13subsection limits a court's authority to enforce its orders in
14any other manner authorized by law.
15    (d) If parenting time of a parent is restricted, an order
16granting visitation to a non-parent with a child or an order
17granting parenting time to the other parent shall contain the
18following language:
19        "If a person granted parenting time or visitation under
20    this order uses that time to facilitate contact between the
21    child and a parent whose parenting time is restricted, or
22    if such a person violates any restrictions placed on
23    parenting time or visitation by the court, the parenting
24    time or visitation granted under this order shall be
25    revoked until further order of court."
26    (e) A parent who, after a hearing, is determined by the

 

 

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1court to have been convicted of any offense involving an
2illegal sex act perpetrated upon a victim less than 18 years of
3age, including but not limited to an offense under Article 11
4of the Criminal Code of 2012, is not entitled to parenting time
5while incarcerated or while on parole, probation, conditional
6discharge, periodic imprisonment, or mandatory supervised
7release for a felony offense, until the parent complies with
8such terms and conditions as the court determines are in the
9child's best interests, taking into account the exact nature of
10the offense and what, if any, treatment in which the parent
11successfully participated.
12    (f) A parent may not, while the child is present, visit any
13person granted visitation or parenting time who has been
14convicted of first degree murder, unless the court finds, after
15considering all relevant factors, including those set forth in
16subsection (b) of Section 602.7, that it would be in the
17child's best interests to allow the child to be present during
18such a visit.
19(Source: P.A. 99-90, eff. 1-1-16.)