Child Law

(Noland, D-Elgin) codifies by statute the Uniform Law Commission’s proposed alternative dispute resolution for family law cases that is now being done by private agreement between litigants. It includes a variety of process requirements such as treatment of settlement communications as confidential, establishment of an evidentiary privilege for settlement discussions, lawyer disqualification if the process fails, and informal discovery procedures. House Bill 1029 and 1239 are identical bills.

(Delgado, D-Chicago) terminates the appointment of a short-term guardian if a temporary custodian for a minor is appointed under certain provisions of the Juvenile Court Act of 1987. Just introduced.

(Raoul, D-Chicago) requires the Illinois Law Enforcement Training Standards Board to develop and adopt uniform policies and guidelines for conducting identification procedures (lineups and photo spreads) that are based on best practices and to be followed by all local government and State law enforcement. Not later than 6 months after the Board has developed and adopted policies and guidelines for conducting identification procedures, requires each police and sheriff department to adopt procedures in accordance with the policies and guidelines adopted by the Board. Makes other changes. Just introduced.

(Raoul, D-Chicago) presumes to be inadmissible as evidence any oral, written, or signed language statement of an accused made as a result of a custodial interrogation at a police station or other place of detention as evidence against the accused in any criminal or juvenile court proceeding in which the accused is charged with the commission of an offense that is a homicide or a Class 1 felony or a Class X felony (rather than a homicide offense or a DUI offense in which the DUI was the proximate cause of death) unless: (1) an electronic recording is made of the custodial interrogation; and (2) the recording is substantially accurate and not intentionally altered. Allows the admissibility of a statement given at a time when the interrogators are unaware that the offense could be charged as a homicide or as a Class 1 felony or Class X felony. Just introduced.

(Burke, D-Evergreen Park) rewrites the Illinois Marriage and Dissolution of Marriage Act. It is the work of the Illinois Family Law Study Committee. Just introduced.

(Link, D-Lake Bluff) repeals the current statute of limitations for civil actions for damages for personal injury based on childhood sexual abuse so that an action may be commenced at any time. These changes m apply to actions pending on the effective date of the Act and to actions commenced on or after that date.

(Burke, D-Evergreen Park) repeals the Illinois Parentage Act and the Illinois Parentage Act of 1984 and replaces them with the Illinois Parentage Act of 2013. Just introduced.

(McGuire, D-Joliet) removes current language providing that an income-withholding notice must include the date that withholding for current support terminates. This date is the date of termination of the current-support obligation set forth in the order for support. Just introduced.

(Tyron, R-Crystal Lake) deletes current statutory language that allows the payor a fee not to exceed $5 per month to be taken from the obligor’s income for the payor’s services in withholding child support. Just introduced.