Parenting Coordination: Further Legitimization Of Alternative Dispute Resolution Tools

Effective immediately, on May 24, 2023 the Illinois Supreme Court adopted Rule 909 (“SCR 909”) which allows for each judicial circuit to adopt rules for the conduct and role of a Parenting Coordinator (“PC”)

A PC is an Alternative Dispute Resolution (“ADR”) tool designed to assist co-parents engaged in high conflict co-parenting. Usually, PCs are mental health or family law professionals experienced in promoting safe, healthy, and meaningful parent-child relationships. PCs assist co-parents with implementing and complying with the parenting plan orders, exploring opportunities for compromise while reducing misunderstandings, educating parents on their child(ren)’s needs so they can make timely and appropriate decisions, and timely addressing and resolving conflicts that arise related to the parenting plan.

A PC can be appointed before or after a judgment is entered. The court can appoint a PC when it is deemed in the best interest of the child(ren). SCR 909 provides examples of when appointing a PC is in the best interest of the children such as when the co-parents have failed to adequately cooperate and communicate issues surrounding the children or are unable to implement a parenting plan or schedule, if mediation has not been successful, by agreement of the co-parents, or for other reasons deemed by the court. The co-parents are to follow the PC’s recommendation until or unless the court issues a ruling otherwise.

            The duties of a PC include:

a) Monitoring parental behavior,

b) Mediating and making recommendations in the event of disputes between co-parents,

c) Make recommendations to the co-parents for outside resources,

d) Recommending guidelines for communications,

e) Document allegations of noncompliance; and

f) Make recommendations to the court.