While a Guardian Ad Litem may not be necessary in every divorce case, they are sometimes needed to ensure that the best interests of children are preserved during proceedings. Should you request one, and how do you deal with it if your spouse or the courts have brought on into your Illinois divorce case? The following information explains, and it provides information on how a seasoned divorce lawyer can assist with the process.

What is a Guardian Ad Litem?

Guardian Ad Litems are court-appointed unbiased third parties that look out for children in legal proceedings, such as divorce. They do not take sides. Instead, they interview all involved parties along with other individuals in the child’s life (i.e. teachers, grandparents, etc.). They then make a recommendation to the court, based on the evidence they have found. Mostly, they are looking for signs of abuse or neglect that could potentially endanger the child, and they make recommendations to protect the child from such issues.

While even happily married parents can disagree over the best interests of their child, those who are going through a divorce are far more likely to argue excessively over the matter. Sometimes this is because there truly is a risk to the child’s well-being, but other times, it can be related to a vindictive or alienating spouse. Learn more about what happens in these situations, and discover how a seasoned divorce lawyer can help you mitigate against such issues. 

Parents Disagree Over Child’s Football Career

In an unprecedented Pennsylvania divorce case, two parents are fighting over whether their son should be allowed to continue his football career. At age 17, he has already suffered three previous concussions. His mother has not questioned their son’s doctors, who say there is no reason why he cannot continue playing. His father says he is concerned that continuing to play could cause severe permanent damage. He is filing suit against the mother as a way to advocate for his son, but he fears that his concerns will be dismissed. 

Most parents know that their child needs to be protected during a divorce, but there are a few that will use their child as a weapon. Unfortunately, such actions can cause long-term damage. The following information can help you learn how to mitigate against the possible effects of parental alienation, and it describes how an attorney can assist with your divorce case.

Signs and Symptoms of Parental Alienation

In the early stages of parental alienation, parents may not notice any signs and symptoms. However, there may be details about the divorce that start to emerge. For example, your child might ask why you stopped loving the other parent, or why it is that you refused to forgive them for a mistake they made. As time passes, additional signs and symptoms may start to surface, including:

It seems like, at every turn, parents are told that divorce will harm their children, perhaps irreversibly so. Yet, each year, some 1.5 million children go through the separation process. Are they all doomed, their fate forever sealed by the choices their parents have made? Will their immune systems take a hit? Can they ever recover, or will they be forever scarred by this one traumatic event? Rest assured: though divorce can have a negative effect on children, most do ultimately recover – and sometimes the outcome is far better than if their parents had stayed together.

Examining the Potentially Negative Effects of Divorce

Children, like adults, can experience negative emotions during divorce. A few examples include sadness, self-blame, anger, and confusion. Stress is also common among children of divorce, and it can lead to all sorts of negative effects, such as bedwetting, clinginess, problems in school, withdrawal from family or friends, and it may even lead to more illnesses since the immune system can be weakened by stress. However, these effects are generally temporary. Most children overcome them and, in time, find a new version of “normal.”

In the beginning of the year, Illinois got rid of the family law terms “custody” and “visitation.” Now the law that governs who children will live with after a divorce and who has the power to make decisions for the children, the Illinois Marriage and Dissolution of Marriage Act, uses the terms “parenting time” and “allocation of parental responsibilities” instead. Though these terms have been in use since the beginning of the year, many people still may be confused about what the change means and the reasons for the change. This article discusses what the changes mean for couples struggling with child custody and visitation issues.

Definitions of the New Terms

While the terms “parenting time” and “allocation of parental responsibilities” are similar to “visitation” and “custody,” they actually divide up parenting concepts in different ways. Custody generally referred to who the children lived with and also who had the power to make decisions on behalf of the children. Visitation meant the legally protected right of the parent who the kids do not live with to spend time with the children. Now, instead of having one parent who the kids live with and who makes decisions, parenting time and allocation of parental responsibilities divides the rights in a different way.