Bill Text: IL HB0984 | 2011-2012 | 97th General Assembly | Introduced

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Bill Title: Amends the Illinois Marriage and Dissolution of Marriage Act. Makes a technical change in a Section concerning visitation.

Sponsorship: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1)

Status: (Failed) 2013-01-08 - Session Sine Die [HB0984 Detail]

Download: Illinois-2011-HB0984-Introduced.html

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97TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY State of Illinois 2011 and 2012 HB0984 Introduced , by Rep. Michael J. Madigan SYNOPSIS AS INTRODUCED:
750 ILCS 5/607 from Ch. 40, par. 607
Amends the Illinois Marriage and Dissolution of Marriage Act. Makes a technical change in a Section concerning visitation.
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A BILL FOR
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AN ACT concerning civil law.
Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
represented in the General Assembly:
Section 5. The Illinois Marriage and Dissolution of
Marriage Act is amended by changing Section 607 as follows:
(750 ILCS 5/607) (from Ch. 40, par. 607)
Sec. 607. Visitation.
(a) A parent not granted custody of the the child is
entitled to reasonable visitation rights unless the court
finds, after a hearing, that visitation would endanger
seriously the child's physical, mental, moral or emotional
health. If the custodian's street address is not identified,
pursuant to Section 708, the court shall require the parties to
identify reasonable alternative arrangements for visitation by
a non-custodial parent, including but not limited to visitation
of the minor child at the residence of another person or at a
local public or private facility.
(1) "Visitation" means in-person time spent between a
child and the child's parent. In appropriate
circumstances, it may include electronic communication
under conditions and at times determined by the court.
(2) "Electronic communication" means time that a
parent spends with his or her child during which the child

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is not in the parent's actual physical custody, but which
is facilitated by the use of communication tools such as
the telephone, electronic mail, instant messaging, video
conferencing or other wired or wireless technologies via
the Internet, or another medium of communication.
(a-3) Grandparents, great-grandparents, and siblings of a
minor child, who is one year old or older, have standing to
bring an action in circuit court by petition, requesting
visitation in accordance with this Section. The term "sibling"
in this Section means a brother, sister, stepbrother, or
stepsister of the minor child. Grandparents,
great-grandparents, and siblings also have standing to file a
petition for visitation and any electronic communication
rights in a pending dissolution proceeding or any other
proceeding that involves custody or visitation issues,
requesting visitation in accordance with this Section. A
petition for visitation with a child by a person other than a
parent must be filed in the county in which the child resides.
Nothing in this subsection (a-3) and subsection (a-5) of this
Section shall apply to a child in whose interests a petition is
pending under Section 2-13 of the Juvenile Court Act of 1987 or
a petition to adopt an unrelated child is pending under the
Adoption Act.
(a-5)(1) Except as otherwise provided in this subsection
(a-5), any grandparent, great-grandparent, or sibling may file
a petition for visitation rights to a minor child if there is

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an unreasonable denial of visitation by a parent and at least
one of the following conditions exists:
(A) (Blank);
(A-5) the child's other parent is deceased or has been
missing for at least 3 months. For the purposes of this
Section a parent is considered to be missing if the
parent's location has not been determined and the parent
has been reported as missing to a law enforcement agency;
(A-10) a parent of the child is incompetent as a matter
of law;
(A-15) a parent has been incarcerated in jail or prison
during the 3 month period preceding the filing of the
petition;
(B) the child's mother and father are divorced or have
been legally separated from each other or there is pending
a dissolution proceeding involving a parent of the child or
another court proceeding involving custody or visitation
of the child (other than any adoption proceeding of an
unrelated child) and at least one parent does not object to
the grandparent, great-grandparent, or sibling having
visitation with the child. The visitation of the
grandparent, great-grandparent, or sibling must not
diminish the visitation of the parent who is not related to
the grandparent, great-grandparent, or sibling seeking
visitation;
(C) (Blank);

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(D) the child is born out of wedlock, the parents are
not living together, and the petitioner is a maternal
grandparent, great-grandparent, or sibling of the child
born out of wedlock; or
(E) the child is born out of wedlock, the parents are
not living together, the petitioner is a paternal
grandparent, great-grandparent, or sibling, and the
paternity has been established by a court of competent
jurisdiction.
(2) Any visitation rights granted pursuant to this Section
before the filing of a petition for adoption of a child shall
automatically terminate by operation of law upon the entry of
an order terminating parental rights or granting the adoption
of the child, whichever is earlier. If the person or persons
who adopted the child are related to the child, as defined by
Section 1 of the Adoption Act, any person who was related to
the child as grandparent, great-grandparent, or sibling prior
to the adoption shall have standing to bring an action pursuant
to this Section requesting visitation with the child.
(3) In making a determination under this subsection (a-5),
there is a rebuttable presumption that a fit parent's actions
and decisions regarding grandparent, great-grandparent, or
sibling visitation are not harmful to the child's mental,
physical, or emotional health. The burden is on the party
filing a petition under this Section to prove that the parent's
actions and decisions regarding visitation times are harmful to

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the child's mental, physical, or emotional health.
(4) In determining whether to grant visitation, the court
shall consider the following:
(A) the preference of the child if the child is
determined to be of sufficient maturity to express a
preference;
(B) the mental and physical health of the child;
(C) the mental and physical health of the grandparent,
great-grandparent, or sibling;
(D) the length and quality of the prior relationship
between the child and the grandparent, great-grandparent,
or sibling;
(E) the good faith of the party in filing the petition;
(F) the good faith of the person denying visitation;
(G) the quantity of the visitation time requested and
the potential adverse impact that visitation would have on
the child's customary activities;
(H) whether the child resided with the petitioner for
at least 6 consecutive months with or without the current
custodian present;
(I) whether the petitioner had frequent or regular
contact or visitation with the child for at least 12
consecutive months;
(J) any other fact that establishes that the loss of
the relationship between the petitioner and the child is
likely to harm the child's mental, physical, or emotional

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health; and
(K) whether the grandparent, great-grandparent, or
sibling was a primary caretaker of the child for a period
of not less than 6 consecutive months.
(5) The court may order visitation rights for the
grandparent, great-grandparent, or sibling that include
reasonable access without requiring overnight or possessory
visitation.
(a-7)(1) Unless by stipulation of the parties, no motion to
modify a grandparent, great-grandparent, or sibling visitation
order may be made earlier than 2 years after the date the order
was filed, unless the court permits it to be made on the basis
of affidavits that there is reason to believe the child's
present environment may endanger seriously the child's mental,
physical, or emotional health.
(2) The court shall not modify an order that grants
visitation to a grandparent, great-grandparent, or sibling
unless it finds by clear and convincing evidence, upon the
basis of facts that have arisen since the prior visitation
order or that were unknown to the court at the time of entry of
the prior visitation, that a change has occurred in the
circumstances of the child or his or her custodian, and that
the modification is necessary to protect the mental, physical,
or emotional health of the child. The court shall state in its
decision specific findings of fact in support of its
modification or termination of the grandparent,

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great-grandparent, or sibling visitation. A child's parent may
always petition to modify visitation upon changed
circumstances when necessary to promote the child's best
interest.
(3) Attorney fees and costs shall be assessed against a
party seeking modification of the visitation order if the court
finds that the modification action is vexatious and constitutes
harassment.
(4) Notice under this subsection (a-7) shall be given as
provided in subsections (c) and (d) of Section 601.
(b) (1) (Blank.)
(1.5) The Court may grant reasonable visitation privileges
to a stepparent upon petition to the court by the stepparent,
with notice to the parties required to be notified under
Section 601 of this Act, if the court determines that it is in
the best interests and welfare of the child, and may issue any
necessary orders to enforce those visitation privileges. A
petition for visitation privileges may be filed under this
paragraph (1.5) whether or not a petition pursuant to this Act
has been previously filed or is currently pending if the
following circumstances are met:
(A) the child is at least 12 years old;
(B) the child resided continuously with the parent and
stepparent for at least 5 years;
(C) the parent is deceased or is disabled and is unable
to care for the child;

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(D) the child wishes to have reasonable visitation with
the stepparent; and
(E) the stepparent was providing for the care, control,
and welfare to the child prior to the initiation of the
petition for visitation.
(2)(A) A petition for visitation privileges shall not be
filed pursuant to this subsection (b) by the parents or
grandparents of a putative father if the paternity of the
putative father has not been legally established.
(B) A petition for visitation privileges may not be filed
under this subsection (b) if the child who is the subject of
the grandparents' or great-grandparents' petition has been
voluntarily surrendered by the parent or parents, except for a
surrender to the Illinois Department of Children and Family
Services or a foster care facility, or has been previously
adopted by an individual or individuals who are not related to
the biological parents of the child or is the subject of a
pending adoption petition by an individual or individuals who
are not related to the biological parents of the child.
(3) (Blank).
(c) The court may modify an order granting or denying
visitation rights of a parent whenever modification would serve
the best interest of the child; but the court shall not
restrict a parent's visitation rights unless it finds that the
visitation would endanger seriously the child's physical,
mental, moral or emotional health.

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(d) If any court has entered an order prohibiting a
non-custodial parent of a child from any contact with a child
or restricting the non-custodial parent's contact with the
child, the following provisions shall apply:
(1) If an order has been entered granting visitation
privileges with the child to a grandparent or
great-grandparent who is related to the child through the
non-custodial parent, the visitation privileges of the
grandparent or great-grandparent may be revoked if:
(i) a court has entered an order prohibiting the
non-custodial parent from any contact with the child,
and the grandparent or great-grandparent is found to
have used his or her visitation privileges to
facilitate contact between the child and the
non-custodial parent; or
(ii) a court has entered an order restricting the
non-custodial parent's contact with the child, and the
grandparent or great-grandparent is found to have used
his or her visitation privileges to facilitate contact
between the child and the non-custodial parent in a
manner that violates the terms of the order restricting
the non-custodial parent's contact with the child.
Nothing in this subdivision (1) limits the authority of
the court to enforce its orders in any manner permitted by
law.
(2) Any order granting visitation privileges with the

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child to a grandparent or great-grandparent who is related
to the child through the non-custodial parent shall contain
the following provision:
"If the (grandparent or great-grandparent, whichever
is applicable) who has been granted visitation privileges
under this order uses the visitation privileges to
facilitate contact between the child and the child's
non-custodial parent, the visitation privileges granted
under this order shall be permanently revoked."
(e) No parent, not granted custody of the child, or
grandparent, or great-grandparent, or stepparent, or sibling
of any minor child, convicted of any offense involving an
illegal sex act perpetrated upon a victim less than 18 years of
age including but not limited to offenses for violations of
Article 12 of the Criminal Code of 1961, is entitled to
visitation rights while incarcerated or while on parole,
probation, conditional discharge, periodic imprisonment, or
mandatory supervised release for that offense, and upon
discharge from incarceration for a misdemeanor offense or upon
discharge from parole, probation, conditional discharge,
periodic imprisonment, or mandatory supervised release for a
felony offense, visitation shall be denied until the person
successfully completes a treatment program approved by the
court.
(f) Unless the court determines, after considering all
relevant factors, including but not limited to those set forth

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in Section 602(a), that it would be in the best interests of
the child to allow visitation, the court shall not enter an
order providing visitation rights and pursuant to a motion to
modify visitation shall revoke visitation rights previously
granted to any person who would otherwise be entitled to
petition for visitation rights under this Section who has been
convicted of first degree murder of the parent, grandparent,
great-grandparent, or sibling of the child who is the subject
of the order. Until an order is entered pursuant to this
subsection, no person shall visit, with the child present, a
person who has been convicted of first degree murder of the
parent, grandparent, great-grandparent, or sibling of the
child without the consent of the child's parent, other than a
parent convicted of first degree murder as set forth herein, or
legal guardian.
(g) (Blank).
(Source: P.A. 96-331, eff. 1-1-10.)