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| Public Act 097-0047
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| SB1753 Enrolled | LRB097 00137 AJO 47183 b |
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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 |
Marriage Act is amended by changing Section 604 as follows:
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(750 ILCS 5/604) (from Ch. 40, par. 604)
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Sec. 604.
Interviews.) (a) The court may interview the |
child in chambers
to ascertain the child's wishes as to his |
custodian and as to visitation.
Counsel shall be present at the |
interview unless otherwise agreed upon by
the parties. The |
court shall cause a court reporter to be present who shall
make |
a complete record of the interview instantaneously to be part |
of the
record in the case.
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(b) The court may seek the advice of professional |
personnel, whether or
not employed by the court on a regular |
basis. The advice given shall be
in writing and made available |
by the court to counsel. Counsel may examine,
as a witness, any |
professional personnel consulted by the court, designated
as a |
court's witness. Professional personnel consulted by the court |
are subject to subpoena for the purposes of discovery, trial, |
or both. The court shall allocate the costs and fees of those |
professional personnel between the parties based upon the |
financial ability of each party and any other criteria the |