Parenting time is a major concern when parents in Illinois split up. After the relationship has concluded, many cases will involve disagreements regarding custody and visitation. As always, the best interests of children take precedence, but it is also important to keep track of trends regarding how parenting time is allocated. One recent study indicates that fathers in Illinois are close to last in the U.S. for the amount of time they get with their children.
In Illinois, fathers have slightly more than 23 percent of parenting time, ahead of only Mississippi, Oklahoma and Tennessee. A company in Utah that provides software designed to assist parents to share custody of children formulated these conclusions. The statistics stem from surveys and judicial standards. Included are cases in which both parents are seeking custody without any extenuating circumstances involved in the case.
A growing number of states have sought to provide fathers with a larger share of time with children, with 40 percent seeking to allocate equal time for the parents. Other studies have shown that this research compares to other studies regarding divorces and how parenting time is allocated. Strategies that have proven effective are focusing on the children, avoiding having the children be “go-betweens” in lingering animosity between the parents and maintaining consistency in how the children are dealt with. The courts in Illinois have yet to take the steps to ensure that there is equal parenting time and this is reflected in the percentages and its place across the nation.
The various issues that are inevitable with child custody can be complex and the foundation for disagreements. This goes beyond fathers wanting more time with their children and can extend into many other areas. The research into parenting time for fathers is still important when trying to determine child custody and how much time the child spends with each parent. With any case, it is critical to have legal assistance from a law firm that is experienced in parenting time and other family law situations.