I live in the state of Illinois
I am the mother to my two girls whom I have joint custody with thier father, however it was court ordered that they reside with me. They are 10 years old and the court ordered custody agreement was established in 2001 right before the girls turned 2 years old.
Thier father is a good father to them. My girls love thier dad and enjoy spending time with him, and have consistent visitations with him. He has however had a past criminal record which involved drugs (meth), and multiple DUI's. He finally got off probation in 2006. He has also been jailed several times for the drug and alchohol use as well as for being behind SEVERAL times on child support. He doesnt have a steady work history and lives with his girlfriend who are on and off.
I have no criminal record and have always provided my girls with a loving, safe and consistent home. They get excellent grades in school. We live 20 minutes from thier father so they are in a different school district then he lives, and they have been since kindergarten. I also am married and have to younger children now and I would hate for them to be seperated from thier brothers who they are very close to.
Recently he has filed a motion to get physical custody of the girls, and even though I know I am a good mother and have provided for them and given them everything they need to thrive, I am scared.
My question is, in the end, does his history that I have stated above matter in all of this? Could he still get custody even though I in no way can be proven as an unfit mother? I know he will go into court lying, but he has no proof that the girls are not thriving and happy unless he is coercing them into thinking that they would be happier with him.
Will it matter that living with him would change what school they would go to? Will it matter to the court that he doesnt have a good history at all and has documented major financial troubles, whereas I do not? What does he need to prove to change a custody order that had been in effect since the girls were babies? And do you think he has a good chance considering his history and present situations?
I am the mother to my two girls whom I have joint custody with thier father, however it was court ordered that they reside with me. They are 10 years old and the court ordered custody agreement was established in 2001 right before the girls turned 2 years old.
Thier father is a good father to them. My girls love thier dad and enjoy spending time with him, and have consistent visitations with him. He has however had a past criminal record which involved drugs (meth), and multiple DUI's. He finally got off probation in 2006. He has also been jailed several times for the drug and alchohol use as well as for being behind SEVERAL times on child support. He doesnt have a steady work history and lives with his girlfriend who are on and off.
I have no criminal record and have always provided my girls with a loving, safe and consistent home. They get excellent grades in school. We live 20 minutes from thier father so they are in a different school district then he lives, and they have been since kindergarten. I also am married and have to younger children now and I would hate for them to be seperated from thier brothers who they are very close to.
Recently he has filed a motion to get physical custody of the girls, and even though I know I am a good mother and have provided for them and given them everything they need to thrive, I am scared.
My question is, in the end, does his history that I have stated above matter in all of this? Could he still get custody even though I in no way can be proven as an unfit mother? I know he will go into court lying, but he has no proof that the girls are not thriving and happy unless he is coercing them into thinking that they would be happier with him.
Will it matter that living with him would change what school they would go to? Will it matter to the court that he doesnt have a good history at all and has documented major financial troubles, whereas I do not? What does he need to prove to change a custody order that had been in effect since the girls were babies? And do you think he has a good chance considering his history and present situations?