When you enter into a new relationship post divorce, you may be faced with making an important decision: Do you involve your new partner during your parenting time with your child?
Going through a divorce can be a difficult transition period for both you and your child—children often struggle with their parents living in separate places and being involved in new relationships. Hence, once you and your former spouse have separate family time, the decision to have your new partner present while you spend time with your child is a critical decision to make.
If you decide to include your new partner during parenting time, make sure that your child is comfortable with the situation as the court’s determination of parenting time is based on your child’s best interests. Once you have confirmed that you child is accepting of spending time with your new partner, you can then schedule time to share together.
Make a plan that includes your new partner—sit down and discuss what activities you all would enjoy together. It may be beneficial to consider choosing an activity that your child enjoys and finds comfort in doing so as not to put any unnecessary pressure on your child.
Remember, parenting time is all about your child—this is your allotted parenting time and the focus still needs to be on maintaining a quality relationship with your child. Therefore, you may want to reconsider your decision to include your new partner if having him or her involved takes away from that quality time. Moreover, this new person in your life should be a positive influence on your child.
Finally, it would be in the best interest of your child to not deny him or her the right to see his or her other parent’s new partner as well. Unless there is a legitimate issue that would justify your reasoning, allowing your child to also spend time with your ex's new partner can help your child transition into the new family situation.
If you are going through a divorce, or have family law related questions regarding the involvement of your new partner during parenting time, please contact an experienced DuPage County family law attorney. Call Roscich & Martel Law Firm, LLC at (630) 793-6337 to schedule a confidential consultation today.
Source:
http://www.ilga.gov/legislation/ilcs/ilcs4.asp?ActID=2086&ChapterID=59&SeqStart=8300000&SeqEnd=10000000