If you have been ordered to have supervised visitation in Illinois, someone must monitor you when you visit your child. Sometimes, the chaperone can be a parent or friend. In other cases, it can be a social worker or someone you must pay for the service.
Supervised visitation means you are not allowed to be with the child alone. If the family court finds out you were with the child without supervision, it could end your visitation rights. Learn below why supervised visitation is ordered in Illinois, then contact Naperville child custody lawyers at Keller Legal Services for assistance.
Under Illinois law, your parenting time after divorce will not be supervised unless the family court finds you are an endangerment to the child. To get a supervised visitation order in Illinois, the parent requesting it has a high burden of proof to show the visitation endangers the child’s mental, physical, or emotional health. This is difficult to prove and is only granted in limited circumstances.
The family court judge decides on supervised visitation after hearing evidence and determining whether the parent can parent the child safely. If supervised visitation is ordered, parenting is done in a controlled setting to ensure the child’s safety. For example, you may meet your child and the supervisor in a parking or restaurant.
If the court orders supervised visitation, you have no choice in the matter; it is the only way you can see your children. However, a parent may agree to supervised visitation unnecessarily, which often causes stress and grief. In this situation, the other parent did not have to prove you were a danger to the child. So, you should not agree to it.
However, some cases have supervised visitation as the only option. For example, the other spouse may tell you the supervised setting is only for the short term. However, Naperville supervised visitation attorneys say you should not believe this. It almost always takes years to get rid of the order.
This could be the case even if the other side did not prove anything bad about you. But the judge will assume the supervised parenting situation is because of bad things you have done. Ensure that you do not agree to supervised visitation unless it is essential to see your child.
The family court decides how long supervised visitation lasts. It may be ‘temporary’ while the guardian ad litem looks into the issue. But even a ‘short’ order can take months to eliminate. So, attorneys say, you should not agree in most cases to accept this situation. A common situation is where there is a temporary supervised visitation order that lasts six months or a year. When the period expires, the other parent alters the custody agreement because they had the children for that long.
If you are fortunate, having a family member or close friend oversee visitation is possible. When there is family in the area, you will not have to pay for supervision. Otherwise, you need to hire a qualified person to do it.
If you are the parent who wanted your ex supervised, it is essential to make sure the supervisor looks out for your child’s interests and not the parent’s. The supervisor promises to oversee the child, and if it is determined they are not overseeing the child, the court can remove visitation rights.
You must comply with the parenting order. First, be sure you are always on time for your parenting sessions and that they end on time. Next, avoid any negative behaviors that led to the order in the first place. For example, many parents have alcohol or drug problems. Get in a treatment program and abstain from those substances. It helps to show the judge that you are in treatment and taking steps to correct the problem.
If you need to pay someone to supervise the sessions, be polite to the person. They will probably report your interactions with your children to the family court. Remember that the situation is not the supervisor’s fault, and being rude only hurts your case.
It is difficult to get rid of a supervised visitation order in Illinois, and it will be difficult to do on your own. As a result, most parents with a supervision order turn to a qualified attorney to help them. While there is an expense involved in hiring a lawyer, most parents find it worth the cost so they can parent their children without supervision.
Supervised visitation is challenging for you and your family. You should not enter a supervised visitation arrangement unless there is no other option. Supervised visitation s rent because it can take years to get rid of the order, it is recommended to have your parents serve as the supervisor; this will avoid compensating a visitation supervisor. This lets you see the child more and avoids financial problems by paying for a supervisor.
Note that the family court will not order supervised visitation unless they see you as a danger to the child. So, obtaining qualified legal advice from a Naperville visitation lawyer is essential to determine your best options. Please contact Keller Legal Services today to discuss supervised visitation and other common divorce subjects.
Our Naperville divorce attorneys also represent clients in Elmhurst, Downers Grove, Aurora, Wheaton, Woodridge, Geneva, Elgin, Glen Ellyn, Orland Park, Joliet, and Tinley Park.
