Schaumburg Child Custody Attorney

Schaumburg Child Custody Attorney

In recent years, this Chicago suburb has been consistently ranked as one of the best places to live in Illinois. As people flock to Schaumburg in ever larger numbers, Cook County judges deal with a growing number of transfers, modifications, and original proceedings regarding child custody and visitation matters. All these decisions must uphold the best interests of the children. Frequently, this determination is difficult to make.

In this often crazy environment, you need the experienced Schaumburg child custody attorneys at Andrea Heckman Law on your side. We do more than serve as a strong voice for you to ensure your legal and financial rights are protected. We also offer solid legal advice, so you can make the best possible choices for yourself and your family.

Initial Determinations

Generally, initial child custody determinations are part of a divorce or a standalone paternity action. Illinois law presumes that children benefit from frequent and consistent contact with both parents. Obviously, this presumption does not apply in all situations. Furthermore, the established child custody determination factors are different in different situations. Some key factors include:

• Child and Parental Preference: Legally, Cook County judges can accept the preference of a 10-year-old at face value and reject the preference of a 17-year-old. The law is that subjective. Additionally, some parents are fine with weekend visitation rights and nothing more. Some parents express preferences directly and others do so indirectly, through their prior parenting patterns.
• Child’s Relationship with Each Parent: This factor is often more prevalent in subsequent modifications. Over time, children often gravitate toward one parent or the other. Sometimes these shifts are temporary and sometimes they are permanent.
• Child’s Current Situation: Typically, a parent files for divorce after several months or years of separation. By that time, there is an established custody and visitation routine. Even if these routines are not perfect, many judges would prefer they continue. In a nutshell, the devil you know is better than the devil you do not know.

Other factors include a history of violence and a parent’s ability to co-parent. This violence could be physical, emotional, verbal, or otherwise. In terms of co-parenting, a parent must be willing to compromise in order to resolve common parenting time disputes.

Subsequent Modifications

These factors often change over time, and they often change frequently. For example, most families relocate once every three or four years. Job changes, which usually include salary and/or schedule changes, occur about as frequently.

These changes, and others like them, could be the basis for a motion to modify if the change directly affected the children. Additionally, the change must be permanent, unanticipated at the time of the prior orders, and at least to a large extent, involuntary.

Generally, Cook County judges approve agreed motions to modify without requiring hearings. To achieve this agreement, our Schaumburg child custody attorneys often engage in some preliminary negotiations. For example, Father might agree to allow Mother to relocate with the children if Mother agrees to expanded weekend visitation (weekends begin on Thursday and end on Monday).

Contact a Dedicated Attorney

Even the most carefully crafted visitation and child custody are not set in stone. For a free consultation with an experienced family law attorney in Schaumburg, contact Andrea Heckman Law.