Page 53 - December 2015

Illinois Marriage and Dissolution of Marriage Act: Allocation of parenting time and responsibilities
Family law is a constantly evolving legal issue. Sig- nificant changes are upon us. The Illinois Legislature has modified certain sections of the Illinois Marriage and Dissolution of Marriage Act (IMDMA) that will go into effect on Jan. 1, 2016. The most significant of these
relationships;” and the facilitation of parental planning and agree- ment about the children’s upbringing and “allocation of parenting time and other responsibilities” [750 ILCS 6/102(4)-(7)].
FAMILY LAW
RACHEL JOHNSON
changes, and one that will have the greatest impact on the drafting and finalization of cus- tody judgments, eliminates the terms “custody” and “visitation,” and replaces them with “allocation of parenting time” and “parental responsibilities” [750 ILCS 5/600 -
Therefore, it seems that through its modification of the IMDMA, the Illinois Legislature is attempting to alleviate the overall con- tentious nature commonplace to divorce proceedings,
5/611].
Extracurricular activities have become noteworthy in the lives of
especially where custody of children is at issue.
The new Act defines “parenting time” as, “[T]he time dur- ing which a parent is responsible for exercising caretaking functions and non-significant decision-making responsibil- ities with respect to the child” [750 ILCS 5/600(e)]. The lan- guage of the statute has been revised to acknowledge that a non-custodial parent is not just playing a passive role in the child’s life; this time spent with one’s child is not just mere visitation, rather, it is an exercise of essential childrearing and parental responsibility. Additionally, no longer is the term “joint” custody used in the act. This is significant because prior to the revision of the act, parents who had joint custodial responsibilities were required to agree upon and make all major medical, education and religious decisions together. Under the new version of the statute, “The court shall allo- cate decision-making responsibilities according to the child’s best interests. Nothing in this act requires that each parent be allocated
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many of our kids. Many parental disputes have centered on the issue of driving our kids to and from their various events, such as sports. As discussed more fully below, the modifications address these realizations. Section 102 of the new Act explains its underlying purpose through the amendment of the act which includes mitigat- ing the harm to spouses and children from exposure to conflict and violence throughout the divorce process; ensuring predictable deci- sion making for the care of children and for the allocation of parent- ing time; the children’s right to a strong and healthy relationship with both parents; each parent’s right to “create and maintain such
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