This Best Interest of the Child Standard requires that judges consider all relevant factors including the children’s needs and wishes, the parents’ wishes, the parents’ prior agreements about caretaking, the willingness of the parents to cooperate, the history of domestic violence, and other factors.

The “Best Interests” factors are set forth in Illinois law for parental responsibilities: decision making abilities at 750 ILCS 5/602.5 and for parental responsibilities: parenting time 750 ILCS 5/602.7.

Decision making abilities include the following:

• Education – including the choice of schools and tutors;
• Health- including all decisions relating to the medical, dental, and psychological needs of the child and to the treatments arising or resulting from those needs
• Religion- subject to the following provisions:
  • The child’s religions upbringing in accordance with any express or implied agreement between the parties
  • In the absence of an express or implied agreement evidence of the parents’ past conduct as to the child’s religious upbringing in allocation decision-making responsibilities with demonstrated past conduct
  • The court shall not allocate any aspect of the child's religious upbringing if it determines that the parents do not or did not have an express or implied agreement for such religious upbringing or that there is insufficient evidence to demonstrate a course of conduct regarding the child's religious upbringing that could serve as a basis for any such order.
• Extracurricular activities

Illinois law says Judges must take the following best interest factors into consideration when determining decision making abilities. Decision-making abilities is commonly referred to as custody

        (1) the wishes of the child, taking into account the child's maturity and ability to express reasoned and independent preferences as to decision-making;

        (2) the child's adjustment to his or her home, school, and community;

        (3) the mental and physical health of all individuals involved;

        (4) the ability of the parents to cooperate to make decisions, or the level of conflict between the parties that may affect their ability to share decision-making;

        (5) the level of each parent's participation in past significant decision-making with respect to the child;

        (6) any prior agreement or course of conduct between the parents relating to decision-making with respect to the child;

        (7) the wishes of the parents;

        (8) the child's needs;

        (9) the distance between the parents' residences, the cost and difficulty of transporting the child, each parent's and the child's daily schedules, and the ability of the parents to cooperate in the arrangement;

        (10) whether a restriction on decision-making is appropriate under Section 603.10;

        (11) the willingness and ability of each parent to facilitate and encourage a close and continuing relationship between the other parent and the child;

        (12) the physical violence or threat of physical violence by the child's parent directed against the child;

        (13) the occurrence of abuse against the child or other member of the child's household;

        (14) whether one of the parents is a sex offender, and if so, the exact nature of the offense and what, if any, treatment in which the parent has successfully participated; and

        (15) any other factor that the court expressly finds to be relevant.

Illinois law says Judges must take the following best interest factors into consideration when determining parenting time. Parenting time is commonly referred to as visitation)

        (1) the wishes of each parent seeking parenting time;

        (2) the wishes of the child, taking into account the child's maturity and ability to express reasoned and independent preferences as to parenting time;

        (3) the amount of time each parent spent performing caretaking functions with respect to the child in the 24 months preceding the filing of any petition for allocation of parental responsibilities or, if the child is under 2 years of age, since the child's birth;

        (4) any prior agreement or course of conduct between the parents relating to caretaking functions with respect to the child;

        (5) the interaction and interrelationship of the child with his or her parents and siblings and with any other person who may significantly affect the child's best interests;

        (6) the child's adjustment to his or her home, school, and community;

        (7) the mental and physical health of all individuals involved;

        (8) the child's needs;

        (9) the distance between the parents' residences, the cost and difficulty of transporting the child, each parent's and the child's daily schedules, and the ability of the parents to cooperate in the arrangement;

        (10) whether a restriction on parenting time is appropriate;

        (11) the physical violence or threat of physical violence by the child's parent directed against the child or other member of the child's household;

        (12) the willingness and ability of each parent to place the needs of the child ahead of his or her own needs;

        (13) the willingness and ability of each parent to facilitate and encourage a close and continuing relationship between the other parent and the child;

        (14) the occurrence of abuse against the child or other member of the child's household;

        (15) whether one of the parents is a convicted sex offender or lives with a convicted sex offender and, if so, the exact nature of the offense and what if any treatment the offender has successfully participated in; the parties are entitled to a hearing on the issues raised in this paragraph (15);

        (16) the terms of a parent's military family-care plan that a parent must complete before deployment if a parent is a member of the United States Armed Forces who is being deployed; and

        (17) any other factor that the court expressly finds to be relevant.

Child’s Wishes and Preferences

The judge may consider the child’s wishes and preferences when determining parenting time and decision-making responsibility (also known as visitation and custody), but the child’s wishes are considered in relation to the child’s age, developmental stage, and ability to express a preference. The child’s wishes are not the only factor the judge must consider when making decisions about visitation and custody, but instead one of many factors that will be considered.

An attorney may be able to help you if you have questions about what the above Best Interest Factors mean. If you can not afford an attorney, the following local resources may be able to assist:

Prairie State Legal Services

NIU College of Law Zeke Giorgi Legal Clinic

Winnebago County Bar Association