A new bill has been produced in Illinois that would make it standard to expect equal parenting time in child custody cases. This is a great step forward in most situations involving divorcing parents since the majority of cases involve two loving parents who simply don’t work out as a couple any longer.
Expecting two people to share the responsibility of raising a child or children together hasn’t always been standard, and for a long time, it was almost guaranteed that a mother would have priority in obtaining custody. This new bill would guarantee that efforts were made to have both parents share equal custody of their child or children since it’s known to be in the best interests of children in the majority of cases.
Both parents are important to a child’s life. They need both parents not only for financial support but also for moral and emotional support. Of course, courts do have to take into consideration all factors of the case before awarding equal parenting time, but unless a child could be put in harm’s way by doing so, sharing parenting time is normally the most logical way to move forward.
There are approximately 17 ways that parental time could be restricted in the bill, which address things such as violence or abuse. No one wants to put a child in danger. However, if this bill passes, it will make it easier for fathers, in particular, to guarantee that they’ll get a fair amount of time with their children, even after a divorce changes the structure of the family.
