Child Custody Enforcement Issues in Illinois

 Posted on March 27, 2024 in Child Custody

Once you have a finalized parenting plan, you have every right to expect your co-parent to follow it. These plans, once ordered or approved by a court, essentially have the force of law. Your co-parent could face serious repercussions if they choose not to follow the parenting plan or honor your parenting time. Co-parents can violate parenting plans in a number of ways, from failing to show up for custody hand-offs to making decisions they did not have the right to make on their own. If your co-parent is refusing to abide by your parenting plan, an experienced Will County, IL child custody enforcement attorney can help you force them into compliance. 

Common Types of Parenting Plan Violations 

Common ways a co-parent might violate their parenting plan include: 

• Ignoring right of first refusal clauses - A right of first refusal clause in a parenting time agreement means that if one parent is not available to watch his or her children during that parent’s parenting time, they are to ask the other parent to watch the children first rather than using a sitter. If you have the right of first refusal and you find out that your children spent the weekend at your former parents-in-law’s home because your ex-spouse was out of town, this is likely a parenting plan violation. 
• Failing to make custody hand-offs - If you arrive at the designated custody hand-off site at the appointed time and your co-parent and children simply never show up, they have likely violated your parenting time order. If this occurs only once or twice and there is a reasonable explanation, like a scheduling mix-up or emergency, and your co-parent delivers the children as quickly as possible, there is probably no actionable violation. 
• Making decisions that are not his or hers to make - If you have been allocated certain decision-making responsibilities or certain decisions are supposed to be approved by both parents, and you learn that your co-parent is making big decisions about the children without talking to you, there may be a violation. For example, if you are allocated responsibility for your children’s religious upbringing and you learn that your ex-spouse baptized them into a different religion without your consent, this may be a violation. 

If your spouse has violated your parenting plan, there are steps a lawyer can take to help you enforce the court-ordered or agreed-upon plan. 

Contact a Naperville, IL Family Lawyer 

Law Office of Ronald L. Hendrix, P.C. is committed to helping parents enforce their legally binding parenting plans. Our experienced Will County, IL parenting plan attorneys will do all we can to bring the other parent into compliance. Attorney Hendrix is a court-appointed mediator. Contact us at 630-355-7776 for a complimentary consultation.