Child Custody Attorneys in Barrington

Legal parenting issues directly affect your parental rights, which means that they are of the utmost importance. This is a complicated area of the law that requires considerable legal understanding. Whether you are facing a divorce involving children, have a parenting issue outside of marriage to resolve, or need a post-divorce modification, an experienced child custody attorney in Barrington can help. 

Parenting Matters in Illinois

In Illinois, child custody is referred to as parental responsibilities and parenting time. Parental responsibilities relate to legal custody – or primary decision-making authority – and parenting time relates to physical custody – or how you divide your time with your children. Within each, a considerable number of legal challenges and complications can arise. 

Best Interest Factors

When the court makes decisions on behalf of parents regarding parenting matters, it is always guided by the children’s best interests. Toward this end, there is a range of best interest factors that the court takes into consideration. Examples include:

• Each parent’s preference
• Each child’s preference (if he or she is old enough and mature enough to do so reasonably)
• Each parent’s mental and physical health
• Any special needs any of the children have
• Each parent’s level of involvement in parenting the children in the past 

Parenting Time

A primary factor in parenting cases is how you and your ex will divide your time with your children. In terms of scheduling, you have nearly limitless options if you and your spouse are able to resolve the matter between yourselves. If not, however, you will likely receive a standard parenting time schedule from the court. 

The two basic scheduling options include:

• One parent’s home becomes the children’s primary residence, where they spend the majority of their overnights, while the other parent has a visitation schedule.
• Both parents adopt a more equal division of their parenting time.

Parental Responsibilities

Those primary decisions we make as parents that guide our children’s upbringings are referred to as parental responsibilities, and the categories of decisions involved include:

• Your children’s schooling 
• Your children’s health care
• Your children’s religious education
• Your children’s extracurricular activities and travel
• Where your children live

Parental responsibility can be joint or sole, and the options include:

• You and your children’s other parent make these decisions between yourselves (one of you may take on the authority to break a deadlock after you’ve run out of negotiation options regarding the decision at hand)
• You and your children’s other parent divide these decisions between yourselves according to the category of decision that is being made. 
• One of you is granted sole parental responsibilities and makes these decisions on your own. 

Discuss Your Concerns with an Experienced Child Custody Lawyer in Barrington

The trusted child custody lawyers at SAM LAW OFFICE LLC in Barrington understand that every parenting case is of primary importance to the family involved, and we dedicate our practice to helping. For more information, please don’t wait to contact us today.