Full Text of SB2742 095th General Assembly
SB2742 95TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY
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95TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY
State of Illinois
2007 and 2008 SB2742
Introduced 2/15/2008, by Sen. David Koehler SYNOPSIS AS INTRODUCED: |
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Amends the Illinois Marriage and Dissolution of Marriage Act. Provides that, upon request of either party, the parties' stipulation, or upon the court's own order, the court may appoint a parenting time expeditor or a team of 2 expeditors to resolve parenting time disputes that occur under a parenting time order (with specified exceptions). Contains provisions regarding: appointment of a parenting time expeditor; orders; fees; maintenance of rosters of parenting time expeditors; training and continuing education of parenting time expeditors; agreements between parties and decisions of expeditors; confidentiality; immunity; removal of expeditors; establishment of mandatory parenting time dispute resolution programs; and other matters.
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A BILL FOR
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SB2742 |
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| AN ACT concerning civil law.
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| Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
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| represented in the General Assembly:
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| Section 5. The Illinois Marriage and Dissolution of | 5 |
| Marriage Act is amended by adding Section 607.2 as follows: | 6 |
| (750 ILCS 5/607.2 new) | 7 |
| Sec. 607.2. Parenting time dispute resolution. | 8 |
| (1) Definitions. | 9 |
| (a) "Parenting time dispute" means a disagreement | 10 |
| among parties about parenting time with a child, including | 11 |
| a dispute about an anticipated denial of future scheduled | 12 |
| parenting time. "Parenting time dispute" includes a claim | 13 |
| by a parent that the other parent is not spending time with | 14 |
| a child as well as a claim by a parent that the other | 15 |
| parent is denying or interfering with parenting time. | 16 |
| (b) A "parenting time expeditor" is a neutral person | 17 |
| authorized to use a mediation-arbitration process to | 18 |
| resolve parenting time disputes. A parenting time | 19 |
| expeditor shall attempt to resolve a parenting time dispute | 20 |
| by facilitating negotiations between the parties to | 21 |
| promote settlement and, if it becomes apparent that the | 22 |
| dispute cannot be resolved by an agreement of the parties, | 23 |
| the parenting time expeditor shall make a decision |
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| resolving the dispute. | 2 |
| (2) Parenting time expeditor. Upon request of either party, | 3 |
| the parties' stipulation, or upon the court's own order, the | 4 |
| court may appoint a parenting time expeditor to resolve | 5 |
| parenting time disputes that occur under a parenting time order | 6 |
| while a matter is pending or after a judgment is entered. | 7 |
| (3) Exceptions. A court may not be required to refer a | 8 |
| parenting time dispute to a parenting time expeditor under this | 9 |
| Section if: | 10 |
| (a) one of the parties claims to be the victim of | 11 |
| domestic abuse by the other party; | 12 |
| (b) the court determines there is probable cause that | 13 |
| one of the parties or a child of the parties has been | 14 |
| physically abused or threatened with physical abuse by the | 15 |
| other party; or | 16 |
| (c) the party is unable to pay the costs of the | 17 |
| expeditor, as provided under subsection (5). | 18 |
| If the court is satisfied that the parties have been | 19 |
| advised by counsel and have agreed to use the parenting time | 20 |
| expeditor process and the process does not involve a | 21 |
| face-to-face meeting of the parties, the court may direct that | 22 |
| the parenting time expeditor process be used. | 23 |
| (4) Appointment. | 24 |
| (a) The parties may stipulate to the appointment of a | 25 |
| parenting time expeditor or a team of 2 expeditors without | 26 |
| appearing in court by submitting to the court a written |
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| agreement identifying the names of the individuals to be | 2 |
| appointed by the court; the nature of the dispute; the | 3 |
| responsibilities of the parenting time expeditor, | 4 |
| including whether the expeditor is appointed to resolve a | 5 |
| specific issue or on an ongoing basis; the term of the | 6 |
| appointment; and the apportionment of fees and costs. The | 7 |
| court shall review the agreement of the parties. | 8 |
| (b) If the parties cannot agree on a parenting time | 9 |
| expeditor, the court shall provide to the parties a copy of | 10 |
| the judicial circuit's roster of parenting time expeditors | 11 |
| and require the parties to exchange the names of 3 | 12 |
| potential parenting time expeditors by a specific date. If | 13 |
| after exchanging names the parties are unable to agree upon | 14 |
| a parenting time expeditor, the court shall select the | 15 |
| parenting time expeditor and, in its discretion, may | 16 |
| appoint one expeditor or a team of 2 expeditors. In the | 17 |
| selection process the court must give consideration to the | 18 |
| financial circumstances of the parties and the fees of | 19 |
| those being considered as parenting time expeditors. | 20 |
| Preference must be given to persons who agree to volunteer | 21 |
| their services or who will charge a variable fee for | 22 |
| services based on the ability of the parties to pay for | 23 |
| them. | 24 |
| (c) An order appointing a parenting time expeditor must | 25 |
| identify the name of the individual to be appointed, the | 26 |
| nature of the dispute, the responsibilities of the |
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| expeditor including whether the expeditor is appointed to | 2 |
| resolve a specific issue or on an ongoing basis, the term | 3 |
| of the appointment, the apportionment of fees, and notice | 4 |
| that if the parties are unable to reach an agreement with | 5 |
| the assistance of the expeditor, the expeditor is | 6 |
| authorized to make a decision resolving the dispute which | 7 |
| is binding upon the parties unless modified or vacated by | 8 |
| the court. | 9 |
| (5) Fees. Prior to appointing the parenting time expeditor, | 10 |
| the court shall give the parties notice that the fees of the | 11 |
| expeditor will be apportioned among the parties. In its order | 12 |
| appointing the expeditor, the court shall apportion the fees of | 13 |
| the expeditor among the parties, with each party bearing the | 14 |
| portion of fees that the court determines is just and equitable | 15 |
| under the circumstances. If a party files a pro se motion | 16 |
| regarding a parenting time dispute and there is not a court | 17 |
| order that provides for apportionment of the fees of an | 18 |
| expeditor, the party requesting the appointment of an expeditor | 19 |
| may be required to pay the fees of the expeditor in advance. | 20 |
| Neither party may be required to submit a dispute to a | 21 |
| parenting time expeditor if the party cannot afford to pay for | 22 |
| the fees of an expeditor and an affordable expeditor is not | 23 |
| available, unless the other party agrees to pay the fees. After | 24 |
| fees are incurred, a party may by motion request that the fees | 25 |
| be reapportioned on equitable grounds. The court may consider | 26 |
| the resources of the parties, the nature of the dispute, and |
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| whether a party acted in bad faith. The court may consider | 2 |
| information from the expeditor in determining bad faith. | 3 |
| (6) Roster of parenting time expeditors. Each judicial | 4 |
| circuit shall maintain and make available to the public and | 5 |
| judicial officers a roster of individuals available to serve as | 6 |
| parenting time expeditors, including each individual's name, | 7 |
| address, telephone number, and fee charged, if any. A judicial | 8 |
| circuit shall not place on the roster the name of an individual | 9 |
| who has not completed the training required in subsection (7). | 10 |
| If the use of a parenting time expeditor is initiated by | 11 |
| stipulation of the parties, the parties may agree upon a person | 12 |
| to serve as an expeditor even if that person has not completed | 13 |
| the training described in subsection (7). The court may appoint | 14 |
| a person to serve as an expeditor even if the person is not on | 15 |
| the judicial circuit's roster, but may not appoint a person who | 16 |
| has not completed the training described in subsection (7), | 17 |
| unless so stipulated by the parties. To maintain one's listing | 18 |
| on a judicial circuit's roster of parenting time expeditors, an | 19 |
| individual shall annually submit to the judicial circuit proof | 20 |
| of completion of continuing education requirements. | 21 |
| (7) Training and continuing education requirements. To | 22 |
| qualify for listing on a judicial circuit's roster of parenting | 23 |
| time expeditors, an individual shall complete a minimum of 40 | 24 |
| hours of family mediation training that has been certified by | 25 |
| the Illinois Supreme Court, which must include certified | 26 |
| training in domestic abuse issues. To maintain one's listing on |
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| a judicial circuit's roster of parenting time expeditors, an | 2 |
| individual shall annually attend 3 hours of continuing | 3 |
| education about alternative dispute resolution subjects. | 4 |
| (8) Agreement or decision. | 5 |
| (a) Within 5 days of notice of the appointment, or | 6 |
| within 5 days of notice of a subsequent parenting time | 7 |
| dispute between the same parties, the parenting time | 8 |
| expeditor shall meet with the parties together or | 9 |
| separately and shall make a diligent effort to facilitate | 10 |
| an agreement to resolve the dispute. If a parenting time | 11 |
| dispute requires immediate resolution, the parenting time | 12 |
| expeditor may confer with the parties through a telephone | 13 |
| conference or similar means. An expeditor may make a | 14 |
| decision without conferring with a party if the expeditor | 15 |
| made a good faith effort to confer with the party, but the | 16 |
| party chose not to participate in resolution of the | 17 |
| dispute. | 18 |
| (b) If the parties do not reach an agreement, the | 19 |
| expeditor shall make a decision resolving the dispute as | 20 |
| soon as possible but not later than 5 days after receiving | 21 |
| all information necessary to make a decision and after the | 22 |
| final meeting or conference with the parties. The expeditor | 23 |
| is authorized to award compensatory parenting time under | 24 |
| the expeditor's decision, and may recommend to the court | 25 |
| that the noncomplying party pay attorney's fees, court | 26 |
| costs, and other expenses, if the parenting time order has |
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| been violated. The expeditor shall not lose authority to | 2 |
| make a decision if circumstances beyond the expeditor's | 3 |
| control make it impracticable to meet the 5-day timelines. | 4 |
| (c) Unless the parties mutually agree, the parenting | 5 |
| time expeditor shall not make a decision that is | 6 |
| inconsistent with an existing parenting time order, but may | 7 |
| make decisions interpreting or clarifying a parenting time | 8 |
| order, including the development of a specific schedule | 9 |
| when the existing court order grants "reasonable parenting | 10 |
| time". | 11 |
| (d) The expeditor shall put an agreement or decision in | 12 |
| writing and provide a copy to the parties. The expeditor | 13 |
| may include or omit reasons for the agreement or decision. | 14 |
| An agreement of the parties or a decision of the expeditor | 15 |
| is binding on the parties unless vacated or modified by the | 16 |
| court. If a party does not comply with an agreement of the | 17 |
| parties or a decision of the expeditor, any party may bring | 18 |
| a motion with the court and shall attach a copy of the | 19 |
| parties' written agreement or decision of the expeditor. | 20 |
| The court may enforce, modify, or vacate the agreement of | 21 |
| the parties or the decision of the expeditor. | 22 |
| (9) Other agreements. This Section does not preclude the | 23 |
| parties from voluntarily agreeing to submit their parenting | 24 |
| time dispute to a neutral third party or from otherwise | 25 |
| resolving parenting time disputes on a voluntary basis. | 26 |
| (10) Confidentiality. |
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| (a) Statements made and documents produced as part of | 2 |
| the parenting time expeditor process which are not | 3 |
| otherwise discoverable are not subject to discovery or | 4 |
| other disclosure and are not admissible into evidence for | 5 |
| any purpose at trial or in any other proceeding, including | 6 |
| impeachment. | 7 |
| (b) Sworn testimony may be used in subsequent | 8 |
| proceedings for any purpose for which it is admissible | 9 |
| under the Rules of Evidence. Parenting time expeditors, and | 10 |
| lawyers for the parties to the extent of their | 11 |
| participation in the parenting time expeditor process, | 12 |
| must not be subpoenaed or called as witnesses in court | 13 |
| proceedings. | 14 |
| (c) Notes, records, and recollections of parenting | 15 |
| time expeditors are confidential and must not be disclosed | 16 |
| to the parties, the public, or anyone other than the | 17 |
| parenting time expeditor unless: | 18 |
| (i) all parties and the expeditor agree in writing | 19 |
| to the disclosure; or | 20 |
| (ii) disclosure is required by law or other | 21 |
| applicable professional codes. Notes and records of | 22 |
| parenting time expeditors must not be disclosed to the | 23 |
| court unless after a hearing the court determines that | 24 |
| the notes or records should be reviewed in camera. | 25 |
| Those notes or records must not be released by the | 26 |
| court unless it determines that they disclose |
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| information showing a violation of the criminal law of | 2 |
| this State. | 3 |
| (11) Immunity. A parenting time expeditor is immune from | 4 |
| civil liability for actions taken or not taken when acting | 5 |
| under this Section, except for willful and wanton misconduct. | 6 |
| (12) Removal. If a parenting time expeditor has been | 7 |
| appointed on a long-term basis, a party or the expeditor may | 8 |
| file a motion seeking to have the expeditor removed for good | 9 |
| cause shown. | 10 |
| (13) Mandatory parenting time dispute resolution. A | 11 |
| judicial circuit may establish a mandatory parenting time | 12 |
| dispute resolution program. In a judicial circuit where a | 13 |
| program has been established, parties may be required to submit | 14 |
| parenting time disputes to a parenting time expeditor as a | 15 |
| prerequisite to a motion on the dispute being heard by the | 16 |
| court, or either party may submit the dispute to an expeditor. | 17 |
| A party may file a motion with the court for purposes of | 18 |
| obtaining a court date, if necessary, but a hearing may not be | 19 |
| held until resolution of the dispute with the parenting time | 20 |
| expeditor. The appointment of an expeditor must be in | 21 |
| accordance with subsection (4). Expeditor fees must be paid in | 22 |
| accordance with subsection (5).
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