When you are preparing for a divorce, parental responsibilities proceeding, or any other matter of family law, the attorney you choose can absolutely affect the outcome of your case. You need a lawyer who is not only knowledgeable and well-versed in the law, but also shares your values and who can incorporate them in advocating on your behalf. To find the right attorney, you will need to consider a number of factors. Before making a final decision, interview several potential candidates and do not be afraid to ask lots of questions such as:

What is your experience?

Does the attorney practice primarily family law or is he or she a personal injury lawyer that sometimes handles divorce cases? The level of commitment you can expect is often evident in the answer to this question.

How many cases do you handle and how many go to trial?

Some attorneys thrive on litigation, while others see the courtroom as a battlefield of last resort. A high rate of litigated cases can mean one of two things: the attorney accepts a large number of clients who stubbornly refuse to negotiate; or the lawyer may struggle with finding mutually acceptable solutions.

When you are involved in a dispute over parental responsibilities or other concerns related to your children, it can be difficult to maintain objectivity, especially if the relationship between you and the other party is not ideal. Divorce situations are especially prone to acrimony and contentiousness, and unfortunately, the best interests of the child can be somewhat lost among the myriad of other considerations. A court-appointed attorney known as a guardian ad litem, however, can help refocus the proceedings on the child’s well-being, thanks to provisions offered by Illinois law.

What is a Guardian ad Litem?

Unlike other types of guardianship, such as those covered by the Illinois Probate Act, which provide far-reaching authority over another person’s interests for an indefinite period of time, the guardian ad litem, or GAL, is appointed for the specified proceeding. In fact, the Latin phrase “ad litem” translates to English as “for the suit.” While GALs may serve similar purposes in other areas of law, they are most commonly utilized in family law situations on behalf of a child’s interests. In Illinois, a GAL is required to be a licensed attorney, properly trained and qualified to serve in such a capacity.

The Duties of the Guardian ad Litem

The most important thing for parents to keep in mind when a guardian ad litem has been appointed to their case is that the GAL works as extension of the court. He or she has no interest in who “wins” or “loses,” but is instead focused on determining the outcome that would best serve the child. The GAL is required to conduct an investigation into the child’s living and family situation to identify best practices and area of concern. In doing so, he or she may interview the child, parents, and other relevant family members or individuals, review previous court proceedings, and observe the child’s home, school and community environments.

If you and your spouse are at the point where divorce has transformed from a possibility to a near-certainty, it is time to start thinking about the road ahead. Obviously, it is important to consider your post-divorce life, including where you might live and restructuring your household budget to account for your changing financial circumstances. However, the divorce process itself requires a significant amount of planning and consideration, and being intentional about it can help reduce your stress and confusion.

Deciding to Work Together

A divorce does not need to be nasty and chaotic. In fact, Illinois law includes a number of provisions that encourage divorcing spouses to negotiate, cooperate, and develop workable agreements. If you hope to do so, you and your spouse will need to decide early on that this is what you want. By committing to cooperation, your informal conversations can start right away, and the conclusions that you reach can be later captured in your formal agreement. Of course, your initial commitment is just the first step. You might need to remind yourself repeatedly that cooperation is better than months of drawn-out bitterness.

Taking Stock

As soon as you realize that a divorce is likely, you can begin taking notes about what your ideal divorce settlement might look like. Make a list of everything that you and your spouse own, including physical assets like your home, vehicles, or furniture, as well as your investments and any debts. It is also a good idea to think about possible parenting arrangements for your children if you have any. Even if your final agreement turns out to be much different than you expect, your initial notes can provide a starting point for negotiations.

There are many different reasons that a child may require additional financial support from a parent. If a child’s parents were not married or together when the child was born, child support helps distribute the child’s expenses between both parents. This helps safeguard against one parent being saddled with the entirety of the financial burden associated with raising a child.

Child support also acts as a way of holding parents’ accountable for paying their fair share of costs like tuition, child care, housing, food, clothing, and others. The courts can help parents reach a child support arrangement which is reasonable and fair for both parents. The court also has the authority to intervene when a parent is not living up to the agreed upon child support commitment.

Some unmarried parents try to arrange an informal child support plan. They exchange money intended to help support the child outside of the rules and regulations of the courts. Unfortunately, this often results in unreliable child support payments, support nonpayment, ineffective parent-to-parent communication, and a generous amount of stress for everyone involved.

Prior to 2016, the excessive use or abuse of alcohol or illegal drugs by one spouse was a valid grounds for divorce in Illinois. When all fault grounds were eliminated in the state in 2016, irreconcilable differences became the only official reason for which a couple could seek a divorce. The reality, however, is that substance abuse is a real problem in many marriages, especially if the couple has children together. In the wake of a divorce, drug abuse can and may continue to affect parental responsibilities and each parent’s right to parenting time.

Dividing Parental Responsibilities

When you, as a parent, get divorced, you and the other parent are expected by law to come up with a reasonable agreement regarding parenting your child. Before your agreement will be approved, the court will read it over and decide whether the terms reflect the child’s best interests. If the court does not approve the proposal, or if you the parents cannot reach an agreement, the court will determine how parental responsibilities will be allocated. In doing so, the court must consider many different factors and create an arrangement to meet the needs of the child.

It is at this point that you should bring up any concerns related to your former partner’s drug or alcohol use. If you can show that the other parent’s drug abuse—including prescription drugs—or excessive alcohol use presents a physical, emotional, or moral danger to the child, the court will take that into consideration. The same is true if alcohol or drugs prevents the other parent from carrying out his or her assigned parental duties. In most cases, this would result in fewer parental responsibilities being given to parent with a substance abuse problem.