A divorce is the end of a marital relationship, but if you have children, your final court date is most likely not the last you will see of your ex-spouse. Though you and your spouse may not live together anymore, you still have to figure out how you will share parenting responsibilities and duties. These tips can help you increase your chances of successful co-parenting after a divorce:

Tip #1: Keep Your Emotions Under Control

If you are recently divorced, it is not unusual for you to still have lingering emotions about the end of your marriage, but it is important that you put those emotions aside for the benefit of your children. Anger, resentment, and jealousy have no place when it comes to parenting your children. Keeping a level head is one key to successful co-parenting.

Tip #2: Improve Communication With Your Ex-Spouse

Though it can seem impossible, making sure you have healthy communication with your spouse is crucial to co-parenting success. Treat your new relationship like a business partnership and meet or correspond consistently with your ex-spouse to discuss your children and make sure that you are both in the loop about what is going on in their lives.

After your divorce, if certain circumstances change with regards to your co-parent, you might want to consider the modification of child custody orders. However, doing something like petitioning for sole custody of your children or significantly altering parenting time, child visitation rights, allocation of parental responsibilities, or parenting plans can often be a contentious and complex legal issue. You need to be sure you have a strong case to request such modifications. Below are some signs it might be time for you to request modifications of child custody orders or other orders pertinent to parenting.

5 Warning Indicators That Child Custody Modification Is a Good Idea

While many indications that you might need to assume sole custody of your children are more obvious than others, there are still plenty of warning signs—both blatant and subtle—that now might be the right time to take legal action. Overall, the most important thing to consider with any order modifications related to your kids is whether making such changes will be in your children’s best interests. Here are some of the most significant reasons to seek such modifications:

1. You suspect your co-parent is abusing your children, be it physically, sexually, or in any other way that causes harm to them. In most cases, if your children are found to be in immediate harm’s way, this will expedite such modification orders.

   ...

If you have kids from a prior marriage, then you know that the divorce proceedings are hardly the last time you will hear from your former spouse. There are all sorts of things that you two must continue to work through, especially if your children are under the age of 18, including child support, parenting time, parental responsibilities, spousal support, and much more. But how will this change if you decide to remarry? Will your new spouse be responsible for any of the parental responsibilities or child support? How will spousal support change? While at one time there was a clear-cut answer to all of these questions, in recent years, there is much more gray area when making some of these determinations in Illinois. The following is a look at how remarriage can change things after your divorce.

Remarriage and Its Impact on Divorce Obligations

With regards to spousal maintenance, the following is true in Illinois:

Over the last few months, it may have become increasingly difficult for you and your co-parent to properly follow your court-approved parenting plan. You both want to fulfill your parental responsibilities and ensure that you can spend a fair amount of parenting time with your kids, but you also do not want to put anyone’s health or safety at risk. Conflicts in these areas may be even worse if you and your co-parent have different philosophies regarding the Illinois Stay-at-Home Order. Governor Pritzker deemed from the beginning of the order that it is essential for parents to honor their court-ordered parenting commitments, but under certain circumstances, doing so might not be a good idea. Here are some things to consider while you both adapt to the “new normal” as co-parents during a crisis:

What to Consider When Addressing Co-Parenting Conflicts

Perhaps your co-parent refuses to wear a mask in public as ordered by the governor, or your co-parent has accused you of not keeping your home sanitary enough during these challenging times. Before getting into a heated argument about these issues, you may want to consider some of these main points when addressing each grievance:

• Remain calm. Heated arguments will not do anyone any good. During a crisis such as this, contentious disputes can be even more detrimental than under normal circumstances. It certainly will not help your children if they witness any of that behavior, since they likely already dealing with enough stress.

  ...

These days, with the world at your fingertips through the Internet, it is easier than ever to find a new job or locate a new house, making parental relocation even more likely than it might have been in the past. Unfortunately, after divorce, if you or your ex-spouse decides to relocate, this can further complicate parental responsibilities and parenting time. In fact, custodial issues surrounding relocation require courtroom proceedings in which the ex-spouse requesting a move must demonstrate that the relocation is in the best interest of the child. If any of this is the case with you or your ex-spouse, consider this advice to make sure you and your children continue to have a positive relationship despite the move.

What Happens if You or Your Ex-Spouse Decides to Relocate

Overall, parental relocation usually requires modification of child custody orders and changes to a parenting plan. Relocation often leads to drastic changes in parenting time, and while many couples prefer to simply agree to the terms of these agreements and plans verbally, these types of oral declarations are not enforceable by law. In order to ensure that the rights of all parties are protected, it is usually best to seek the assistance of a lawyer and develop a legally binding agreement. Relocation is especially challenging if one of you wants to move out of state, much farther away from the other ex-spouse and the child’s current location.

What Happens When the Court Gets Involved in Relocation Plans

Parental relocation—and child relocation in particular—might require courtroom intervention. Usually, the parent requesting relocation strongly believes the move will greatly benefit the child, while the other parent may worry that his/her relationship with the child will be adversely affected by the move. In situations like these, it is reasonable for you, your ex-spouse, and your respective lawyers to seek the counsel and subsequent decision of a judge.