Is a Parent’s Mental Illness a Barrier to Custody in Illinois?

 Posted on March 25, 2025 in Family Law

A staggering one in four adults in the United States will experience some level of mental illness during any given year, while one in 20 (about 13.1 million) live with a serious mental illness like schizophrenia or bipolar disease. There are currently more than 200 classified forms of mental illness, many of which do not affect a person’s capabilities as a parent.

If you are a parent with a mental illness, even if it is mild or well-controlled with medication and/or therapy, and you are going through a divorce that involves the allocation of parental responsibilities, you may be concerned that your diagnosis could affect your parenting time. Being diagnosed with a mental illness is rarely enough to cause a parent to lose parenting time.

The way you treat and manage your mental illness can have an impact on the outcome of a parental responsibilities allocation decision. If you are worried about losing precious time with your children, it is wise to seek legal guidance from an experienced Bloomingdale, IL family law attorney.  

What Factors Determine Illinois Allocation of Parental Responsibilities?

When a judge determines the allocation of parental responsibilities and parenting time, many factors are considered. The goal is always to make decisions in the child’s best interests, so while the judge will listen to the parents' wishes regarding these issues, their wishes are not the primary concern.

The judge will look at a parent’s mental illness in much the same way he or she will look at a parent’s drug addiction. Has the mental illness placed the child’s safety or health in jeopardy in the past? How severe is the mental illness, and is it being controlled with medication and therapy?

Does the parent with the mental illness carefully follow his or her treatment plan, or have there been multiple instances of the parent’s failure to do so? Has the parent turned to self-medicating with drugs or alcohol as a result of the mental illness? Does the child currently have a close relationship with the parent who has a mental illness?

Awarding Supervised Parenting Time to a Parent with a Mental Illness

If there have been multiple instances where the parent with a mental illness failed to take his or her medication, refused to follow a treatment plan, or turned to self-medication with drugs or alcohol, or there have been instances in which the child’s safety was at risk because of the mental illness, a judge may order supervised parenting time. Courts rarely terminate parental rights unless the parent has shown they are clearly a danger to the child.

Since many mental illnesses are treatable, the court is more likely to require a third party to be present during parenting time. The parent and child will usually meet at someone else’s home or in a public place. The parent who has supervised parenting time can later ask for that to change if it can be shown that there are significant improvements in his or her mental health.

In the end, well-managed depression, anxiety, or PTSD is unlikely to have much, if any, impact on the allocation of parental responsibilities. Mental illness does not have the social stigma it once had, and courts know that many high-functioning adults manage these conditions well. A more serious mental illness that causes a parent to behave in ways that can upset the child or that could otherwise harm the child is more concerning.

Contact a DuPage County, IL Family Lawyer

If you are facing an uphill battle regarding parental responsibilities and parenting time, a Naperville, IL parental responsibilities attorney from Mevorah & Giglio Law Offices can help. Our firm is large enough to provide our clients with a wide array of resources. We have more than 175 years of combined experience and offer highly client-focused service and frequent communication. To schedule your free consultation, call 630-932-9100.