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Chicago Dad and daughter reunited after ex moved daughter away
By Laura Reichel
What good is having parenting time on paper, if dad and his child can’t see each other in real life? This is the dilemma a concerned father faced after his ex refused to keep her word and interfered with dad’s court ordered parenting time. Terrified of losing his daughter forever, dad called attorney Jeffery Leving for help, and he got it. The Leving team fought for him and his daughter in court and won.
Chicago matrimonial attorney Jeffery Leving, President of the Law Offices of Jeffery M. Leving Ltd. will talk about this important case on the Dads’ Rights Legal Hour, 9-10 a.m. CST Saturday, February 15th on Power 92.3 FM. This show segment will be available for download on the Dads’ Rights Legal Hour Spotify page on dadsrights.com
The Chicago father of a high-school-age daughter was awarded court ordered weekly parenting time after his divorce. When the mother wished to move to a different state, dad only agreed to the move on the condition that his ex promised that she would take full responsibility for transporting the young girl to and from dad’s home each week, so he could spend time with his daughter and not lose her. The ex didn’t do what she promised.
According to court documents, after the move, the mother then refused to transport the girl, breaching her agreement. Without her compliance, visitation for dad would be impossible. The mother had moved too far for dad to be able to visit his daughter without the mother’s cooperation, and even if dad was able to borrow money to make the trip, the transportation itself would cut into a large part of dad’s parenting time. At best, dad’s time with his daughter would be cut in half, violating his court ordered parenting time and severely impacting his loving relationship with his daughter. At worst, he would never see his own daughter again.
Desperate not to lose his daughter, dad tried to come to a compromise with his ex. He offered to meet her halfway to pick up his daughter, willing to try to borrow money to cover the cost to see his daughter. But the mother refused any type of compromise. That’s when dad decided he’d had enough, and he called and retained the Leving team, which was a wise decision.
The Leving legal team immediately went to court, presented Dad’s case to the judge and won. They argued that by refusing to uphold her end of the agreement, the mother was in violation of the parenting time court order and deliberately interfered with dad’s time with his own daughter – endangering the bond between father and daughter. The judge ordered and forced the mother to keep up her end of the agreement, so that dad could see his daughter every week and not lose her.
This is an important court victory, modified for publication, which rights a wrong. Dad was very satisfied with the result, and his mind is finally at ease, knowing he’ll see his daughter every week, and not lose her.
Meanwhile, it’s still Black History Month and attorney Jeffery Leving will talk about his old neighbor and friend, one of the world’s greatest boxers, Muhammad Ali, this week on the Dads’ Rights Legal Hour, 9 -10 a.m. CST this Saturday February 15th on Power 92.3 FM. You can check out OurBlackHeritage.com, a website attorney Leving created that features historical photos and important articles about African American history, especially in Chicago.
Matrimonial attorney Jeffery M. Leving is the recipient of the U.S. President’s Lifetime Achievement Award. In addition, the Illinois House of Representatives has honored Leving “for his work in safeguarding the rights of fathers and protecting the welfare of children and families in this State,” and the Illinois Senate issued a proclamation recognizing his efforts on behalf of fathers.
To learn more about law and fatherhood, follow the Law Offices of Jeffery M. Leving Ltd. on Facebook and X.
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Hanania was named "Best Ethnic American Columnist" by the New America Media in November 2007, and is the 2009 recipient of the SPJ National Sigma Delta Chi Award for column writing.
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