HB1589 EngrossedLRB097 05412 AJO 45470 b

1    AN ACT concerning civil law.
 
2    Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
3represented in the General Assembly:
 
4    Section 5. The Illinois Marriage and Dissolution of
5Marriage Act is amended by changing Sections 603, 606, 607, and
6610 as follows:
 
7    (750 ILCS 5/603)  (from Ch. 40, par. 603)
8    Sec. 603. Temporary Orders.
9    (a) A party to a custody proceeding, including a proceeding
10to modify custody, may move for a temporary custody order. The
11court may award temporary custody under the standards of
12Section 602, and the standards and procedures of Section 602.1,
13and the provisions of subsection (f) of Section 610 after a
14hearing, or, if there is no objection, solely on the basis of
15the affidavits or the agreement of the parties if the court
16finds that the parties' agreement is in the best interest of
17the child.
18    (b) If a proceeding for dissolution of marriage or legal
19separation or declaration of invalidity of marriage is
20dismissed, any temporary custody order is vacated unless a
21parent or the child's custodian moves that the proceeding
22continue as a custody proceeding and the court finds, after a
23hearing, that the circumstances of the parents and the best

 

 

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1interest of the child requires that a custody judgment be
2issued.
3    (c) If a custody proceeding commenced in the absence of a
4petition for dissolution of marriage or legal separation, under
5either subparagraph (ii) of paragraph (1), or paragraph (2), of
6subsection (d) of Section 601, is dismissed, any temporary
7custody order is vacated.
8(Source: P.A. 86-530; 87-1255.)
 
9    (750 ILCS 5/606)  (from Ch. 40, par. 606)
10    Sec. 606. Hearings.
11    (a) Custody proceedings shall receive priority in being set
12for hearing.
13    (b) The court may tax as costs the payment of necessary
14travel and other expenses incurred by any person whose presence
15at the hearing the court deems necessary to determine the best
16interest of the child.
17    (c) The court, without a jury, shall determine questions of
18law and fact. If it finds that a public hearing may be
19detrimental to the child's best interest, the court may exclude
20the public from a custody hearing, but may admit any person who
21has a direct and legitimate interest in the particular case or
22a legitimate educational or research interest in the work of
23the court.
24    (d) If the court finds it necessary, in order to protect
25the child's welfare, that the record of any interview, report,

 

 

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1investigation, or testimony in a custody proceeding be kept
2secret, the court may make an appropriate order sealing the
3record.
4    (e) Previous statements made by the child relating to any
5allegations that the child is an abused or neglected child
6within the meaning of the Abused and Neglected Child Reporting
7Act, or an abused or neglected minor within the meaning of the
8Juvenile Court Act of 1987, shall be admissible in evidence in
9a hearing concerning custody of or visitation with the child.
10No such statement, however, if uncorroborated and not subject
11to cross-examination, shall be sufficient in itself to support
12a finding of abuse or neglect.
13    (f) Custody and visitation proceedings in which a parent is
14a member of the United States Armed Forces who is deployed or
15who has orders to be deployed shall, upon the request of either
16party or on the court's own motion receive expedited priority
17in being set for hearing.
18    (g) In any custody or visitation proceeding in which a
19parent is a member of the United States Armed Forces who is
20deployed or who has orders to be deployed, the court shall,
21upon a request of the service member, permit the deployed
22parent who is unavailable to appear for the proceeding to
23testify by telephone, audiovisual means, or other electronic
24means. The court shall cooperate with the deployed parent in
25designating an appropriate location for the testimony.
26(Source: P.A. 87-1081.)
 

 

 

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1    (750 ILCS 5/607)  (from Ch. 40, par. 607)
2    Sec. 607. Visitation.
3    (a) A parent not granted custody of the child is entitled
4to reasonable visitation rights unless the court finds, after a
5hearing, that visitation would endanger seriously the child's
6physical, mental, moral or emotional health. If the custodian's
7street address is not identified, pursuant to Section 708, the
8court shall require the parties to identify reasonable
9alternative arrangements for visitation by a non-custodial
10parent, including but not limited to visitation of the minor
11child at the residence of another person or at a local public
12or private facility.
13        (1) "Visitation" means in-person time spent between a
14    child and the child's parent. In appropriate
15    circumstances, it may include electronic communication
16    under conditions and at times determined by the court.
17        (2) "Electronic communication" means time that a
18    parent spends with his or her child during which the child
19    is not in the parent's actual physical custody, but which
20    is facilitated by the use of communication tools such as
21    the telephone, electronic mail, instant messaging, video
22    conferencing or other wired or wireless technologies via
23    the Internet, or another medium of communication.
24    (a-3) Grandparents, great-grandparents, and siblings of a
25minor child, who is one year old or older, have standing to

 

 

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1bring an action in circuit court by petition, requesting
2visitation in accordance with this Section. The term "sibling"
3in this Section means a brother, sister, stepbrother, or
4stepsister of the minor child. Grandparents,
5great-grandparents, and siblings also have standing to file a
6petition for visitation and any electronic communication
7rights in a pending dissolution proceeding or any other
8proceeding that involves custody or visitation issues,
9requesting visitation in accordance with this Section. A
10petition for visitation with a child by a person other than a
11parent must be filed in the county in which the child resides.
12Nothing in this subsection (a-3) and subsection (a-5) of this
13Section shall apply to a child in whose interests a petition is
14pending under Section 2-13 of the Juvenile Court Act of 1987 or
15a petition to adopt an unrelated child is pending under the
16Adoption Act.
17    (a-5)(1) Except as otherwise provided in this subsection
18(a-5), any grandparent, great-grandparent, or sibling may file
19a petition for visitation rights to a minor child if there is
20an unreasonable denial of visitation by a parent and at least
21one of the following conditions exists:
22        (A) (Blank);
23        (A-5) the child's other parent is deceased or has been
24    missing for at least 3 months. For the purposes of this
25    Section a parent is considered to be missing if the
26    parent's location has not been determined and the parent

 

 

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1    has been reported as missing to a law enforcement agency;
2        (A-10) a parent of the child is incompetent as a matter
3    of law;
4        (A-15) a parent has been incarcerated in jail or prison
5    during the 3 month period preceding the filing of the
6    petition;
7        (B) the child's mother and father are divorced or have
8    been legally separated from each other or there is pending
9    a dissolution proceeding involving a parent of the child or
10    another court proceeding involving custody or visitation
11    of the child (other than any adoption proceeding of an
12    unrelated child) and at least one parent does not object to
13    the grandparent, great-grandparent, or sibling having
14    visitation with the child. The visitation of the
15    grandparent, great-grandparent, or sibling must not
16    diminish the visitation of the parent who is not related to
17    the grandparent, great-grandparent, or sibling seeking
18    visitation;
19        (C) (Blank);
20        (D) the child is born out of wedlock, the parents are
21    not living together, and the petitioner is a maternal
22    grandparent, great-grandparent, or sibling of the child
23    born out of wedlock; or
24        (E) the child is born out of wedlock, the parents are
25    not living together, the petitioner is a paternal
26    grandparent, great-grandparent, or sibling, and the

 

 

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1    paternity has been established by a court of competent
2    jurisdiction.
3    (2) Any visitation rights granted pursuant to this Section
4before the filing of a petition for adoption of a child shall
5automatically terminate by operation of law upon the entry of
6an order terminating parental rights or granting the adoption
7of the child, whichever is earlier. If the person or persons
8who adopted the child are related to the child, as defined by
9Section 1 of the Adoption Act, any person who was related to
10the child as grandparent, great-grandparent, or sibling prior
11to the adoption shall have standing to bring an action pursuant
12to this Section requesting visitation with the child.
13    (3) In making a determination under this subsection (a-5),
14there is a rebuttable presumption that a fit parent's actions
15and decisions regarding grandparent, great-grandparent, or
16sibling visitation are not harmful to the child's mental,
17physical, or emotional health. The burden is on the party
18filing a petition under this Section to prove that the parent's
19actions and decisions regarding visitation times are harmful to
20the child's mental, physical, or emotional health.
21    (4) In determining whether to grant visitation, the court
22shall consider the following:
23        (A) the preference of the child if the child is
24    determined to be of sufficient maturity to express a
25    preference;
26        (B) the mental and physical health of the child;

 

 

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1        (C) the mental and physical health of the grandparent,
2    great-grandparent, or sibling;
3        (D) the length and quality of the prior relationship
4    between the child and the grandparent, great-grandparent,
5    or sibling;
6        (E) the good faith of the party in filing the petition;
7        (F) the good faith of the person denying visitation;
8        (G) the quantity of the visitation time requested and
9    the potential adverse impact that visitation would have on
10    the child's customary activities;
11        (H) whether the child resided with the petitioner for
12    at least 6 consecutive months with or without the current
13    custodian present;
14        (I) whether the petitioner had frequent or regular
15    contact or visitation with the child for at least 12
16    consecutive months;
17        (J) any other fact that establishes that the loss of
18    the relationship between the petitioner and the child is
19    likely to harm the child's mental, physical, or emotional
20    health; and
21        (K) whether the grandparent, great-grandparent, or
22    sibling was a primary caretaker of the child for a period
23    of not less than 6 consecutive months.
24    (5) The court may order visitation rights for the
25grandparent, great-grandparent, or sibling that include
26reasonable access without requiring overnight or possessory

 

 

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1visitation.
2    (a-7)(1) Unless by stipulation of the parties, no motion to
3modify a grandparent, great-grandparent, or sibling visitation
4order may be made earlier than 2 years after the date the order
5was filed, unless the court permits it to be made on the basis
6of affidavits that there is reason to believe the child's
7present environment may endanger seriously the child's mental,
8physical, or emotional health.
9    (2) The court shall not modify an order that grants
10visitation to a grandparent, great-grandparent, or sibling
11unless it finds by clear and convincing evidence, upon the
12basis of facts that have arisen since the prior visitation
13order or that were unknown to the court at the time of entry of
14the prior visitation, that a change has occurred in the
15circumstances of the child or his or her custodian, and that
16the modification is necessary to protect the mental, physical,
17or emotional health of the child. The court shall state in its
18decision specific findings of fact in support of its
19modification or termination of the grandparent,
20great-grandparent, or sibling visitation. A child's parent may
21always petition to modify visitation upon changed
22circumstances when necessary to promote the child's best
23interest.
24    (3) Attorney fees and costs shall be assessed against a
25party seeking modification of the visitation order if the court
26finds that the modification action is vexatious and constitutes

 

 

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1harassment.
2    (4) Notice under this subsection (a-7) shall be given as
3provided in subsections (c) and (d) of Section 601.
4    (b) (1) (Blank.)
5    (1.5) The Court may grant reasonable visitation privileges
6to a stepparent upon petition to the court by the stepparent,
7with notice to the parties required to be notified under
8Section 601 of this Act, if the court determines that it is in
9the best interests and welfare of the child, and may issue any
10necessary orders to enforce those visitation privileges. A
11petition for visitation privileges may be filed under this
12paragraph (1.5) whether or not a petition pursuant to this Act
13has been previously filed or is currently pending if the
14following circumstances are met:
15        (A) the child is at least 12 years old;
16        (B) the child resided continuously with the parent and
17    stepparent for at least 5 years;
18        (C) the parent is deceased or is disabled and is unable
19    to care for the child;
20        (D) the child wishes to have reasonable visitation with
21    the stepparent; and
22        (E) the stepparent was providing for the care, control,
23    and welfare to the child prior to the initiation of the
24    petition for visitation.
25    (2)(A) A petition for visitation privileges shall not be
26filed pursuant to this subsection (b) by the parents or

 

 

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1grandparents of a putative father if the paternity of the
2putative father has not been legally established.
3    (B) A petition for visitation privileges may not be filed
4under this subsection (b) if the child who is the subject of
5the grandparents' or great-grandparents' petition has been
6voluntarily surrendered by the parent or parents, except for a
7surrender to the Illinois Department of Children and Family
8Services or a foster care facility, or has been previously
9adopted by an individual or individuals who are not related to
10the biological parents of the child or is the subject of a
11pending adoption petition by an individual or individuals who
12are not related to the biological parents of the child.
13    (3) (Blank).
14    (c) The court may modify an order granting or denying
15visitation rights of a parent whenever modification would serve
16the best interest of the child; but the court shall not
17restrict a parent's visitation rights unless it finds that the
18visitation would endanger seriously the child's physical,
19mental, moral or emotional health.
20    (d) If any court has entered an order prohibiting a
21non-custodial parent of a child from any contact with a child
22or restricting the non-custodial parent's contact with the
23child, the following provisions shall apply:
24        (1) If an order has been entered granting visitation
25    privileges with the child to a grandparent or
26    great-grandparent who is related to the child through the

 

 

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1    non-custodial parent, the visitation privileges of the
2    grandparent or great-grandparent may be revoked if:
3            (i) a court has entered an order prohibiting the
4        non-custodial parent from any contact with the child,
5        and the grandparent or great-grandparent is found to
6        have used his or her visitation privileges to
7        facilitate contact between the child and the
8        non-custodial parent; or
9            (ii) a court has entered an order restricting the
10        non-custodial parent's contact with the child, and the
11        grandparent or great-grandparent is found to have used
12        his or her visitation privileges to facilitate contact
13        between the child and the non-custodial parent in a
14        manner that violates the terms of the order restricting
15        the non-custodial parent's contact with the child.
16        Nothing in this subdivision (1) limits the authority of
17    the court to enforce its orders in any manner permitted by
18    law.
19        (2) Any order granting visitation privileges with the
20    child to a grandparent or great-grandparent who is related
21    to the child through the non-custodial parent shall contain
22    the following provision:
23        "If the (grandparent or great-grandparent, whichever
24    is applicable) who has been granted visitation privileges
25    under this order uses the visitation privileges to
26    facilitate contact between the child and the child's

 

 

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1    non-custodial parent, the visitation privileges granted
2    under this order shall be permanently revoked."
3    (e) No parent, not granted custody of the child, or
4grandparent, or great-grandparent, or stepparent, or sibling
5of any minor child, convicted of any offense involving an
6illegal sex act perpetrated upon a victim less than 18 years of
7age including but not limited to offenses for violations of
8Article 12 of the Criminal Code of 1961, is entitled to
9visitation rights while incarcerated or while on parole,
10probation, conditional discharge, periodic imprisonment, or
11mandatory supervised release for that offense, and upon
12discharge from incarceration for a misdemeanor offense or upon
13discharge from parole, probation, conditional discharge,
14periodic imprisonment, or mandatory supervised release for a
15felony offense, visitation shall be denied until the person
16successfully completes a treatment program approved by the
17court.
18    (f) Unless the court determines, after considering all
19relevant factors, including but not limited to those set forth
20in Section 602(a), that it would be in the best interests of
21the child to allow visitation, the court shall not enter an
22order providing visitation rights and pursuant to a motion to
23modify visitation shall revoke visitation rights previously
24granted to any person who would otherwise be entitled to
25petition for visitation rights under this Section who has been
26convicted of first degree murder of the parent, grandparent,

 

 

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1great-grandparent, or sibling of the child who is the subject
2of the order. Until an order is entered pursuant to this
3subsection, no person shall visit, with the child present, a
4person who has been convicted of first degree murder of the
5parent, grandparent, great-grandparent, or sibling of the
6child without the consent of the child's parent, other than a
7parent convicted of first degree murder as set forth herein, or
8legal guardian.
9    (g) (Blank).
10    (h) Upon motion, the court may allow a parent who is
11deployed or who has orders to be deployed as a member of the
12United States Armed Forces to designate a person known to the
13child to exercise reasonable substitute visitation on behalf of
14the deployed parent, if the court determines that substitute
15visitation is in the best interest of the child.
16(Source: P.A. 96-331, eff. 1-1-10.)
 
17    (750 ILCS 5/610)  (from Ch. 40, par. 610)
18    Sec. 610. Modification.
19    (a) Unless by stipulation of the parties or except as
20provided in subsection (a-5), no motion to modify a custody
21judgment may be made earlier than 2 years after its date,
22unless the court permits it to be made on the basis of
23affidavits that there is reason to believe the child's present
24environment may endanger seriously his physical, mental, moral
25or emotional health.

 

 

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1    (a-5) A motion to modify a custody judgment may be made at
2any time by a party who has been informed of the existence of
3facts requiring notice to be given under Section 609.5.
4    (b) The court shall not modify a prior custody judgment
5unless it finds by clear and convincing evidence, upon the
6basis of facts that have arisen since the prior judgment or
7that were unknown to the court at the time of entry of the
8prior judgment, that a change has occurred in the circumstances
9of the child or his custodian, or in the case of a joint
10custody arrangement that a change has occurred in the
11circumstances of the child or either or both parties having
12custody, and that the modification is necessary to serve the
13best interest of the child. The existence of facts requiring
14notice to be given under Section 609.5 of this Act shall be
15considered a change in circumstance. In the case of joint
16custody, if the parties agree to a termination of a joint
17custody arrangement, the court shall so terminate the joint
18custody and make any modification which is in the child's best
19interest. The court shall state in its decision specific
20findings of fact in support of its modification or termination
21of joint custody if either parent opposes the modification or
22termination.
23    (c) Attorney fees and costs shall be assessed against a
24party seeking modification if the court finds that the
25modification action is vexatious and constitutes harassment.
26    (d) Notice under this Section shall be given as provided in

 

 

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1subsections (c) and (d) of Section 601.
2    (e) (Blank). A party's absence, relocation, or failure to
3comply with the court's orders on custody, visitation, or
4parenting time may not, by itself, be sufficient to justify a
5modification of a prior order if the reason for the absence,
6relocation, or failure to comply is the party's deployment as a
7member of the United States Armed Forces.
8    (f) A court may only provide for a temporary modification
9of a custody or visitation order during a period of a parent's
10deployment by the United States Armed Forces in order to make
11reasonable accommodations necessitated by the deployment. The
12temporary order shall specify that deployment is the basis for
13the order and shall include provisions for:
14        (1) custody or reasonable visitation during a period of
15    leave granted to the deployed parent if the custody or
16    reasonable visitation is in the child's best interest;
17        (2) the court's reservation of jurisdiction to modify
18    or terminate the temporary modification order upon the
19    termination of the deployed parent's deployment upon such
20    terms and conditions as the court may deem necessary to
21    serve the child's best interest at the time of the
22    termination of the deployment.
23    (g) A party's past, current, or possible future absence or
24relocation, or failure to comply with the court's orders on
25custody, visitation, or parenting time may not, by itself, be
26sufficient to justify a modification of a prior order if the

 

 

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1reason for the absence, relocation or failure to comply is the
2party's deployment as a member of the United States Armed
3Forces.
4(Source: P.A. 96-676, eff. 1-1-10.)