How Can I Get Sole Custody in an Illinois Divorce?

 Posted on June 07, 2024 in Child Custody

There are two types of custody: child custody, which involves making decisions about the child, and physical custody, which is when the child is in his or her parent’s physical care. Illinois law refers to child custody as “parental responsibilities” and refers to physical custody as “parenting time.”

By default, the law prefers that both parents share parental responsibilities and parenting time more or less equally. The mother and father have equal rights to the child, and courts are very reluctant to interfere with those rights. Therefore, a judge will award sole custody to one parent only in certain cases. The best way to find out if you are eligible for sole custody is to consult an Illinois child custody lawyer.

When Do Courts Award Sole Custody?

In any custody trial, the court has two objectives: protect the child and preserve the rights of the parents. However, if those two objectives conflict, the court will protect the child. This means that if a parent is a threat to the well-being of his or her child, the court may restrict that parent’s rights.

Sometimes, a judge may award sole child custody to one parent, meaning that the parent has all the parental responsibilities and makes all major decisions for the child. Other times, if a parent presents a particularly serious threat to the child’s emotional, psychological, or physical well-being, a judge may also restrict that parent’s parenting time.

In some cases, a judge will award sole custody to one parent if the other parent does not want to be involved in the child’s life.

How Do Judges Determine if a Parent is a Threat to the Child?

Courts look at several factors when determining how parental responsibilities and parenting time should be divided, such as:

• The wishes of the child
• The wishes of the parents
• Each parent’s relationship with the child
• Any reports of abuse or neglect
• The living situation of each parent
• Who is living with each parent
• The child’s emotional, developmental, and physical needs
• The ability of each parent to meet those needs
• Each parent’s emotional, psychological, and physical health

Keep in mind that even if a judge determines that you should get sole custody of the child, your co-parent will likely still have visitation rights, or parenting time, with the child. A judge will only restrict a parent’s parenting time in certain cases, and even then the parent may still be allowed to have supervised visits with the child.

Contact a DuPage County, IL Child Custody Lawyer

Because Illinois law takes parental rights so seriously, it is not easy to get a judge to award sole custody. To do so, you will need to prove that the other parent is unfit to make decisions for the child. The best way to do that is by hiring an experienced Wheaton, Illinois child custody attorney. At A. Traub & Associates, we have experience in child custody cases, and we know what will convince a court to award sole custody to one of the parents. Call 630-426-0196 to tell our skilled attorneys about your case so we can work on getting you the best results possible.