Barrington Parental Rights & Responsibilities Lawyer

Fighting to Protect Your Rights in Cook County

Although parents usually have the best intentions when it comes to their children, even the most loving partners can sometimes disagree about exactly what is the best option for actually carrying out these plans. When a relationship ends in divorce, it can be even harder to find common ground on how children should be cared for. Parties tend to be conflicted about several aspects of their roles as parents, both in quantitative time and in qualitative form.

As parents struggle to decide whom the children will live with and how to make important choices on their upbringing and education, there can be a lot of tension and conflict. Our parental rights lawyers in Barrington want you to know that you do not have to face these challenges on your own. Mandas Law is dedicated to helping you work toward a positive outcome for you and your family.

To learn more from our skilled parental rights attorneys about the true rights and responsibilities of parents, contact our team today. We help clients throughout Cook, McHenry, DuPage, and Lake Counties.

What are Parental Responsibilities in Illinois?

In the state of Illinois, the phrase of “custody” has been eliminated from legal terminology. The term “custody” carries negative connotations, as one parent received superior rights over the other in regards to their children. Instead, the terminology of the law now states that decisions made on such child-related matters should be referred to as “allocation of parental responsibility” as well as the “allocation of parenting time.”

Under Illinois law, there are four primary categories of overarching responsibility that a parent may hold.

Those four parental responsibilities include the child’s access to:

• Education: A crucial choice is making sure that the children have all the access they need for a strong education, whether that means tutoring or new school supplies

• Healthcare: This refers not only to a child’s medical needs, such as doctor and dental visits, but a child’s emotional and mental well-being too

• Religion: A child's religious preference must also be taken into consideration, including the location of the church that a child might attend, or the nature of any religious training

• Extracurricular activities: Care must be taken to make sure a child’s extracurriculars are not neglected, including participation in music lessons, sports, cultural societies, or clubs

What are the Components of the Allocation of Parental Responsibilities in Illinois?

The major question following a divorce is how these four areas of responsibility will be divided. In many cases, the duty of parents to care for these aspects is shared between both partners, but in other cases, only one of the parents gets to bear the responsibility for the children.

In order to determine what would maximize a child’s interests and development, the court will take into account key factors, including:

• The wishes of the children, provided that they are older than twelve

• The adjustment of the children in adapting to their current home, community, neighborhood, and school

• The children’s physical, mental, and emotional state

• The ability of both parents to transport children between locations

Dependable Support

No matter your individual circumstance, our dedicated Barrington parental rights and responsibilities attorneys stand ready to fight for you. We can defend your relationship with your children, always making sure their best interest is at the utmost priority, whether through traditional litigation or mediation.

Contact us now at (847) 906-2555 so that our passionate attorneys at Mandas Law can protect your rights today.