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1 | AN ACT concerning visitation.
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2 | Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois, | ||||||
3 | represented in the General Assembly:
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4 | Section 5. The Illinois Marriage and Dissolution of | ||||||
5 | Marriage Act is amended
by changing Section 607 as follows:
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6 | (750 ILCS 5/607) (from Ch. 40, par. 607)
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7 | Sec. 607. Visitation.
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8 | (a) A parent not granted custody of the child
is entitled | ||||||
9 | to reasonable visitation rights unless the court finds,
after a | ||||||
10 | hearing, that visitation would endanger seriously the child's
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11 | physical, mental, moral or emotional health. If the custodian's | ||||||
12 | street
address is not identified, pursuant to Section 708, the | ||||||
13 | court shall require
the parties to identify reasonable | ||||||
14 | alternative arrangements for visitation
by a non-custodial | ||||||
15 | parent, including but not limited to visitation of the
minor | ||||||
16 | child at the residence of another person or at a local public | ||||||
17 | or
private facility.
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18 | (a-5)(1) Except as otherwise provided in this subsection | ||||||
19 | (a-5), any grandparent, great-grandparent, or sibling may file | ||||||
20 | a
petition for
visitation rights to a minor child if there is | ||||||
21 | an unreasonable denial of visitation and at least one
of the
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22 | following conditions exists: | ||||||
23 | (A) one parent of the child is incompetent as a matter | ||||||
24 | of law or deceased or has been sentenced to a period of | ||||||
25 | imprisonment for more than 1 year; | ||||||
26 | (B) the child's mother and father are divorced or have | ||||||
27 | been legally separated from
each other during the 3 month | ||||||
28 | period prior to the filing of the petition and at least one | ||||||
29 | parent does not object to the grandparent, | ||||||
30 | great-grandparent, or sibling having visitation with the | ||||||
31 | child. The visitation of the grandparent, | ||||||
32 | great-grandparent, or sibling must not diminish the |
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1 | visitation of the parent who is not related to the | ||||||
2 | grandparent, great-grandparent, or sibling seeking | ||||||
3 | visitation; | ||||||
4 | (C) the court has terminated a parent-child | ||||||
5 | relationship and the grandparent, great-grandparent, or | ||||||
6 | sibling is the parent of the person whose parental rights | ||||||
7 | have been terminated, except in cases of adoption. The | ||||||
8 | visitation must not be used to allow the parent who lost | ||||||
9 | parental rights to unlawfully visit with the child; | ||||||
10 | (D) the child resided in the home of the grandparent, | ||||||
11 | great-grandparent,
or
sibling for a period of 6 consecutive | ||||||
12 | months or more and the grandparent, great-grandparent, or | ||||||
13 | sibling was the primary caregiver for the child within the | ||||||
14 | 2 years prior to the filing of the petition; | ||||||
15 | (E) the child is illegitimate, the parents are not | ||||||
16 | living together, and the petitioner is a maternal | ||||||
17 | grandparent, great-grandparent, or sibling of the | ||||||
18 | illegitimate child; or | ||||||
19 | (F) the child is illegitimate, the parents are not | ||||||
20 | living together, the petitioner is a paternal grandparent, | ||||||
21 | great-grandparent, or sibling, and the paternity has been | ||||||
22 | established by a court of competent jurisdiction. | ||||||
23 | (2) The grandparent, great-grandparent, or sibling of a | ||||||
24 | parent whose parental rights have been terminated through an | ||||||
25 | adoption proceeding may not petition for visitation rights.
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26 | (3) In making a determination under this subsection (a-5), | ||||||
27 | there is a
rebuttable
presumption that a fit parent's actions | ||||||
28 | and decisions regarding grandparent,
great-grandparent, or | ||||||
29 | sibling visitation are not harmful to the child's mental, | ||||||
30 | physical, or emotional health. The
burden is on the
party | ||||||
31 | filing a petition under this Section to prove that the
parent's | ||||||
32 | actions and
decisions regarding visitation times are harmful to | ||||||
33 | the child's mental, physical, or emotional health. | ||||||
34 | (4) In determining whether to grant visitation, the court | ||||||
35 | shall consider the following:
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36 | (A) the preference of the child if the child is |
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1 | determined to be of sufficient maturity to express a | ||||||
2 | preference; | ||||||
3 | (B) the mental and physical health of the child; | ||||||
4 | (C) the mental and physical health of the grandparent, | ||||||
5 | great-grandparent, or sibling; | ||||||
6 | (D) the length and quality of the prior relationship | ||||||
7 | between the child and the grandparent, great-grandparent, | ||||||
8 | or sibling;
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9 | (E) the good faith of the party in filing the petition;
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10 | (F) the good faith of the person denying visitation; | ||||||
11 | (G) the quantity of the visitation time requested and | ||||||
12 | the potential adverse impact that visitation would have on | ||||||
13 | the child's customary activities; | ||||||
14 | (H) whether the child resided with the petitioner for | ||||||
15 | at least 6 consecutive months with or without the current | ||||||
16 | custodian present; | ||||||
17 | (I) whether the petitioner had frequent or regular | ||||||
18 | contact with the child for at least 12 consecutive months; | ||||||
19 | and
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20 | (J) any other fact that establishes that the loss of | ||||||
21 | the relationship between the petitioner and the child is | ||||||
22 | likely to harm the child's mental, physical, or emotional | ||||||
23 | health. | ||||||
24 | (5) The court may order visitation rights for the | ||||||
25 | grandparent, great-grandparent, or sibling that include | ||||||
26 | reasonable access without requiring overnight or possessory | ||||||
27 | visitation.
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28 | (a-7)(1) Unless by stipulation of the parties, no motion to | ||||||
29 | modify a grandparent, great-grandparent, or sibling visitation | ||||||
30 | order may be made earlier than 2 years after the date the order | ||||||
31 | was filed, unless the court permits it to be made on the basis | ||||||
32 | of affidavits that there is reason to believe the child's | ||||||
33 | present environment may endanger seriously the child's mental, | ||||||
34 | physical, or emotional health. | ||||||
35 | (2) The court shall not modify a prior grandparent, | ||||||
36 | great-grandparent, or sibling visitation order unless it finds |
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1 | by clear and convincing evidence, upon the basis of facts that | ||||||
2 | have arisen since the prior visitation order or that were | ||||||
3 | unknown to the court at the time of entry of the prior | ||||||
4 | visitation, that a change has occurred in the circumstances of | ||||||
5 | the child or his or her custodian, and that the modification is | ||||||
6 | necessary to protect the mental, physical, or emotional health | ||||||
7 | of the child. The court shall state in its decision specific | ||||||
8 | findings of fact in support of its modification or termination | ||||||
9 | of the grandparent, great-grandparent, or sibling visitation. | ||||||
10 | (3) Attorney fees and costs shall be assessed against a | ||||||
11 | party seeking modification of the visitation order if the court | ||||||
12 | finds that the modification action is vexatious and constitutes | ||||||
13 | harassment. | ||||||
14 | (4) Notice under this subsection (a-7) shall be given as | ||||||
15 | provided in subsections (c) and (d) of Section 601.
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16 | (b) (1) (Blank.)
The court may grant reasonable visitation | ||||||
17 | privileges to a
grandparent, great-grandparent, or sibling of | ||||||
18 | any minor child upon petition
to the court by the grandparents | ||||||
19 | or great-grandparents or on behalf of the
sibling, with notice | ||||||
20 | to the parties required to be notified under Section
601 of | ||||||
21 | this Act, if the court determines that it is in the
best | ||||||
22 | interests and welfare of the child, and may issue any necessary | ||||||
23 | orders
to enforce such visitation privileges. Except as | ||||||
24 | provided in
paragraph (2) of this subsection (b), a petition | ||||||
25 | for visitation
privileges may be filed under this paragraph (1)
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26 | whether or not a
petition pursuant to this Act has been | ||||||
27 | previously filed or is
currently pending
if one or more of the | ||||||
28 | following circumstances exist:
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29 | (A) the parents are not currently cohabiting on a | ||||||
30 | permanent or an
indefinite basis;
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31 | (B) one of the parents has been absent from the marital | ||||||
32 | abode for more
than one month without the spouse knowing | ||||||
33 | his or her whereabouts;
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34 | (C) one of the parents is deceased;
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35 | (D) one of the parents joins in the petition with the | ||||||
36 | grandparents,
great-grandparents, or sibling; or
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1 | (E) a sibling is in State custody.
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2 | (1.5) The Court may grant reasonable visitation privileges | ||||||
3 | to a stepparent
upon petition to the court by the stepparent, | ||||||
4 | with notice to the parties
required to be notified under | ||||||
5 | Section 601 of this Act, if the court determines
that it is in | ||||||
6 | the best interests and welfare of the child, and may issue any
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7 | necessary orders to enforce those visitation privileges.
A | ||||||
8 | petition for visitation privileges may be filed under this | ||||||
9 | paragraph (1.5)
whether or not a petition pursuant to this Act | ||||||
10 | has been previously filed or is
currently pending if the | ||||||
11 | following
circumstances are met:
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12 | (A) the child is at least 12 years old;
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13 | (B) the child resided continuously with the parent and | ||||||
14 | stepparent for at
least 5 years;
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15 | (C) the parent is deceased or is disabled and is unable | ||||||
16 | to care for the
child;
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17 | (D) the child wishes to have reasonable visitation with | ||||||
18 | the stepparent;
and
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19 | (E) the stepparent was providing for the care, control, | ||||||
20 | and welfare to the
child prior to the initiation of the | ||||||
21 | petition for visitation.
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22 | (2)(A) A petition for visitation privileges shall not be | ||||||
23 | filed pursuant
to this subsection (b) by the parents or | ||||||
24 | grandparents of a putative father
if the paternity of the | ||||||
25 | putative father has not been legally established.
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26 | (B) A petition for visitation privileges may not be filed | ||||||
27 | under
this subsection (b) if the child who is the subject of | ||||||
28 | the
grandparents' or great-grandparents' petition has been | ||||||
29 | voluntarily
surrendered by the parent or parents, except for a | ||||||
30 | surrender to the
Illinois Department of Children and Family | ||||||
31 | Services or a foster care
facility, or has been previously | ||||||
32 | adopted by an individual or individuals
who are not related to | ||||||
33 | the biological parents of the child or is the
subject of a | ||||||
34 | pending adoption petition by an individual or individuals who
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35 | are not related to the biological parents of the child.
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36 | (3) (Blank).
When one parent is deceased, the surviving |
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1 | parent shall not
interfere with the visitation rights of the | ||||||
2 | grandparents.
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3 | (c) The court may modify an order granting or denying | ||||||
4 | visitation
rights of a parent whenever modification would serve | ||||||
5 | the best interest of
the child;
but the court shall not | ||||||
6 | restrict a parent's visitation rights unless it
finds that the | ||||||
7 | visitation would endanger seriously the child's physical,
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8 | mental, moral or emotional health.
The court may modify an | ||||||
9 | order granting, denying, or limiting visitation
rights of a | ||||||
10 | grandparent, great-grandparent, or sibling of any minor child
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11 | whenever a change of circumstances has occurred based on facts | ||||||
12 | occurring
subsequent to the judgment and the court finds by | ||||||
13 | clear and convincing evidence
that the modification is in the | ||||||
14 | best interest of the minor child.
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15 | (d) If any court has entered an order prohibiting a | ||||||
16 | non-custodial parent
of a child from any contact with a child
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17 | or restricting the non-custodial parent's contact with the | ||||||
18 | child, the
following provisions shall apply:
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19 | (1) If an order has been entered granting visitation | ||||||
20 | privileges with the
child to a grandparent or | ||||||
21 | great-grandparent who is related to the child through
the | ||||||
22 | non-custodial parent, the visitation privileges of the | ||||||
23 | grandparent or
great-grandparent may be revoked if:
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24 | (i) a court has entered an order prohibiting the | ||||||
25 | non-custodial parent
from any contact with the child, | ||||||
26 | and the grandparent or great-grandparent is
found to | ||||||
27 | have used his or her visitation privileges to | ||||||
28 | facilitate contact
between the child and the | ||||||
29 | non-custodial parent; or
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30 | (ii) a court has entered an order restricting the | ||||||
31 | non-custodial parent's
contact with the child, and the | ||||||
32 | grandparent or great-grandparent is found to
have used | ||||||
33 | his or her visitation privileges to facilitate contact
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34 | between the child and the non-custodial parent in a | ||||||
35 | manner that violates the
terms of the order restricting | ||||||
36 | the non-custodial parent's contact with the
child.
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1 | Nothing in this subdivision (1) limits the authority of | ||||||
2 | the court to
enforce its orders in any manner permitted by | ||||||
3 | law.
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4 | (2) Any order granting visitation privileges with the | ||||||
5 | child to a
grandparent or great-grandparent who is related | ||||||
6 | to the child through the
non-custodial parent shall contain | ||||||
7 | the following provision:
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8 | "If the (grandparent or great-grandparent, whichever | ||||||
9 | is applicable) who has
been granted visitation privileges | ||||||
10 | under this order uses the visitation
privileges to | ||||||
11 | facilitate contact between the child and the child's
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12 | non-custodial parent, the visitation privileges granted | ||||||
13 | under this order shall
be permanently revoked."
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14 | (e) No parent, not granted custody of the child, or | ||||||
15 | grandparent, or
great-grandparent, or stepparent, or sibling | ||||||
16 | of any minor child, convicted
of any offense
involving an | ||||||
17 | illegal sex act perpetrated upon a victim less than 18 years of
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18 | age including but not limited to offenses for violations of | ||||||
19 | Article 12 of the
Criminal Code of 1961, is entitled to | ||||||
20 | visitation rights while incarcerated
or while on parole, | ||||||
21 | probation, conditional discharge, periodic
imprisonment, or
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22 | mandatory supervised release for that offense, and upon | ||||||
23 | discharge from
incarceration for a misdemeanor offense or upon | ||||||
24 | discharge from parole,
probation, conditional discharge, | ||||||
25 | periodic imprisonment,
or mandatory supervised release for a | ||||||
26 | felony offense, visitation shall be
denied until the person | ||||||
27 | successfully completes a treatment program approved
by the | ||||||
28 | court.
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29 | (f) Unless the court determines, after considering all | ||||||
30 | relevant factors,
including but not limited to those set forth | ||||||
31 | in Section 602(a), that it would
be in the best interests of | ||||||
32 | the child to allow visitation, the court shall not
enter an | ||||||
33 | order providing visitation rights and pursuant to a motion to | ||||||
34 | modify
visitation shall revoke visitation rights previously | ||||||
35 | granted to any
person who would otherwise be entitled to | ||||||
36 | petition for visitation rights under
this Section who has been |
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1 | convicted of first degree murder of the parent,
grandparent, | ||||||
2 | great-grandparent, or sibling of the child who is the subject | ||||||
3 | of
the order. Until an order is entered pursuant to this | ||||||
4 | subsection, no person
shall visit, with
the child present, a | ||||||
5 | person who has been convicted of first degree murder of
the | ||||||
6 | parent, grandparent, great-grandparent, or sibling of the | ||||||
7 | child
without the consent of the child's parent, other than a | ||||||
8 | parent convicted of
first degree murder as set forth herein, or | ||||||
9 | legal
guardian.
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10 | (g) If an order has been entered limiting, for cause, a | ||||||
11 | minor child's
contact or
visitation with a grandparent, | ||||||
12 | great-grandparent, or sibling on the grounds
that it was in the | ||||||
13 | best interest of the child to do so, that order may be
modified | ||||||
14 | only upon a showing of a substantial change in circumstances | ||||||
15 | occurring
subsequent to the entry of the order with proof by | ||||||
16 | clear and convincing
evidence that modification is in the best | ||||||
17 | interest of the minor child.
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18 | (Source: P.A. 90-782, eff. 8-14-98; 90-801, eff. 6-1-99; | ||||||
19 | 91-357, eff.
7-29-99; 91-610, eff. 8-19-99 .)
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