When parents with shared minor children divorce, they usually share custody afterward. In Illinois, the state refers to as the shared allocation of parental rights and responsibilities.
Parents typically need to follow a court-approved schedule for parenting time. They also need to communicate with one another about the children and potentially cooperate when making major decisions about the children.
Which parent typically has the authority to decide where their children attend school, what medical care they receive and what religion they observe?
Shared legal authority is common
If parents share physical custody or parenting time, they are also likely to share legal custody or the right to make decisions. In a shared legal custody case, both parents can make simple, short-term decisions about the children during their parenting time.
However, they often need to discuss any significant decisions with long-term implications with one mother. Both parents may need to consent to a change of school enrollment or to non-emergency medical interventions.
In scenarios where parents find themselves disagreeing about what is in the best interests of their children, disputes about major decisions may require the intervention of a family law judge. A judge can either resolve the dispute by making a decision for the family or can modify the custody order to reallocate legal custody and prevent similar disputes in the future.
Knowing what the law requires from parents who share custody can help people create more effective parenting arrangements and assert themselves appropriately during a co-parenting dispute. A lawyer familiar with complicated custody cases can help parents when they need to enforce or modify a custody arrangement due to a dispute about decision-making authority.
