What do you have to address in an Illinois parenting plan?

When the romantic relationship between you and your child’s other parent ends, you may need the state of Illinois to allocate parenting time and parental responsibilities on your behalf. When the state hears a parental responsibilities case, it asks each parent involved in the matter to submit something called a parenting plan.

According to the Illinois General Assembly, most parenting plans contain language and information specific to parenting time, decision-making responsibilities or both. What sorts of specifics might you want to outline when creating your own parenting plan?

Comprehensive information about parenting time

While you want to outline your general parenting time agreement in your parenting plan, you may also want to cover how you plan to share the child during holidays, school vacations, summer break and other special occasions. You may, too, want to address who transports the child from one home to the next and when.

Comprehensive information about decision-making responsibilities

It may also help prevent future conflicts between you and your child’s other parent if you dictate how you plan to raise your child with regard to religion, education and other matters one or both of you may feel strongly about. You may also want to cover who maintains decision-making responsibility when it comes to your child’s education, religious upbringing and medical care and when. For example, you may state that both parents must communicate before making any major decisions in any of these areas.

If you and your ex are able to agree to the terms of your parenting plan before presenting it, you may be able to submit one plan between you. Otherwise, you must each submit your own proposed parenting plan.