Grandparents often play a crucial in the care and development of their grandchildren, but their rights in terms of being involved in the lives of these children have been historically underrepresented in the courts. In terms of family law, public awareness of the roles held by grandparents in family court cases has increased in recent years. On January 1, 2016, new laws have gone into effect that help to protect and support those rights. For grandparents throughout the state, this...

The new year brought sweeping changes that will undoubtedly affect the lives of many Illinois residents. In all, over 237 laws were changed and rewritten in 2015 with changes taking effect on January 1, 2016. Some of the biggest changes occurred in rewrites of the state family law statutes. These changes made headlines throughout the state. Some of the more extensive rewrites were made to the Illinois Marriage and Dissolution of Marriage Act, which governs divorce. As of the beginning...