Under the current a statute, a parent who has been allocated either equal or a majority of the parenting time with a child and lives in Cook, DuPage, Kane, Lake, McHenry or Will counties must adhere to new procedures if he or she intends to move more than 25 miles from the current residence with the child.
Procedural Requirement. A parent intending a move or relocation must provide Written Notice of the relocation to the other parent under the Parenting Plan or Allocation Judgment and that Notice must be filed with the clerk of circuit court. The parent intending relocation must provide at least 60 days Written Notice before the relocation unless such notice is impracticable or unless otherwise ordered by the court. The Written Notice must provide the following details: the intended date of the parent’s relocation; the address if the parent’s intended new residence; and the length of time the relocation will last, if the relocation is not for an indefinite or permanent period.
A court may consider a parent’s failure to comply with the Notice requirements to be without good cause (i) as a factor in determining whether the parent’s relocation is in good faith; and (ii) as a basis for awarding reasonable attorneys’ fees and costs resulting from the parent’s failure to comply with these provisions.
If the non-relocating parent signs the Written Notice and the relocating parent files the Written Notice with the court, relocation shall be allowed without any further court action. The court shall modify the Parenting Plan or Allocation Judgment to accommodate a parent’s relocation as agreed by the parents, as long as the agreed modification is in the child’s best interests.
However, if the non-relocating parent objects to the relocation, fails to sign the Written Notice, or the parents cannot agreed on modification of the parenting plan or allocation judgment, the parent seeking relocation must file a petition with the circuit court seeking permission to relocate.
If a parent moves a child within 25 miles or less from the child’s current primary residence to a new primary residence outside Illinois, then Illinois continues to be the home state of the minor child and future litigation regarding the child will be conducted in Illinois.