Every day the Cook County courts are open, child support orders are entered against Chicago parents, many of whom are unable to retain an attorney prior to the child support hearing. If you are one of those parents, this article is for you.

Individuals who represent themselves are expected to know the rules of the court system and follow them. While some judges give leniency to self-represented litigants, many do not. In either case, if you come to your hearing prepared, knowledgeable about the rules, and essentially able to do what an attorney would do for you, you will put yourself in a much better position to get a fair outcome.

Determining Each Parent's Income for Child Support Calculations-

Illinois courts are required to set child support amounts by using an income-sharing formula that factors in both parties’ gross incomes, except in rare occasions where a “deviation” is allowed under the law. The Illinois Department of Healthcare and Family Services (HFS) maintains a website online where you can run your own child support numbers. It is essential that both parents accurately report their gross incomes to the court and to each other in advance of the hearing.

Sometimes it’s easy to determine each party’s gross income. Sometimes it’s not. It’s easy when the parent is a full-time W2 employee and regularly files their tax returns. It can be difficult when the parent works multiple W2 positions, has seasonal employment, is self-employed, gets paid in cash, works side jobs, or simply reports no income. When you are unable to rely on W2s, paystubs, and tax records, you should also demand production of bank statements. Bank statements provide the most thorough record of someone’s financial transactions.

You should not assume that these documents will be provided to you without you demanding them, legally. There are a few ways to do this. At your first court date, you can request that the other party provide you with a financial affidavit and supporting documents in advance of the hearing. Judges routinely grant this request. You can also issue your own notice to produce as a self-represented party. If you plan on issuing a notice to produce, do it well in advance of your hearing date, since the other parent will get 28 days under the law to provide the documents requested. Lastly, you can issue a subpoena through the Clerk’s office directly to a bank or other third party. You can use the subpoena form provided by Cook County and attach a rider with the specific documents you are requesting.

As you approach your hearing, you are going to need to run your own support calculations. When you do this, use the gross monthly income amounts that you think the court should use when running numbers. You should be prepared to support the numbers you are using with the documents referenced above (i.e., W2s, tax returns and/or bank statements) and your own sound reasoning. If you do not have any of the documents referenced above, you may be able to file a motion to request a continuance of the hearing due to the missing documents, but you should still be prepared to go to hearing if your request for a continuance is denied.  If that happens, do your best with what you have and what you know. Use the records you have and what you already know about the other parent to make your best reasoned argument. Did the other parent work when you were together? How much did he/she earn? What was his/her hourly rate or annual salary? If you can come up with a well-supported hourly rate for the other parent, you can figure out the other parent’s earning potential from there. Just perform the following calculation: ($Hourly Rate X 40) X 4.333 = $Gross Monthly Income.

Courts are likely to have a lot of questions if you or other party report no income. When one party who is physically able to work nonetheless reports no income, judges will often “impute” an income to that individual based on their earning potential. If there isn’t a clear history of income, the courts are likely to impute an income based on the individual working full-time at a minimum wage rate. In Chicago (in September of 2025), the monthly full-time minimum wage income is as follows: ($16.60 X 40) X 4.33 = $2,877/mo.). If there is a record of income, you can take the average of the other parent’s last three years of gross annual income to determine their earning potential.

Proving Disability-

Most judges will accept a disability finding by the Social Security Administration, the Veterans Administration, or an independent medical evaluation, as a good reason for a parent to be out of work and not earning income through employment. However, not all disabilities completely prohibit an individual’s ability to work and a court still find that a disabled individual is able to earn some form of income.

If you are disabled, you need to be prepared to present your disability finding to the court along with proof of any disability benefits you currently receive. If you do not have a finding from the Social Security Administration or the Veterans Administration, you need to be prepared to present the disability findings in your medical records. You can ask the custodian of records for your medical provider to sign a Certification of Records verifying the accuracy of your medical records. If you have specific medical records indicating that you are unable to work, or specifying your workplace restrictions, be prepared to provide those as well.
 
Requesting an Adjustment to the Guideline Support Number-

At your child support hearing, you can request certain adjustments under the law that are frequently accepted by judges, if there is a proper basis.

The first, and the most common, is if you are currently paying for the minor child(ren)’s health insurance premiums. HFS’ child support calculator has a section where you can insert the amount paid towards monthly premiums. If you are the one paying the premiums through your employment, this amount should be factored into the support calculations and result in a downward adjustment of your final child support obligation. If you are making this request, be prepared to show proof of what you are paying each month towards your monthly premiums. This is usually found on your paystub. You can also contact the HR/Payroll department at your employment to request documents/information about your health insurance plan, including the cost of premiums.

The other commonly used adjustment is the multi-family adjustment. If you have a child(ren) with another individual and you are currently responsible for financially supporting that other child(ren), then you can request a multi-family adjustment to your child support obligation. If you are making this request, be prepared to show proof that you are the biological parent of the other child(ren) (i.e., a birth certificate, voluntary acknowledgment of paternity, or paternity finding), as well as proof that you financially support that other child(ren) (i.e., proof that the child(ren) live with you, or that you are paying child support).

Preparing for Your Hearing –

Most child support hearings are short, lasting between 15-30 minutes. Because of that, do not expect to get a lot of time to plead your case. You should plan on having a 3-5 minute prepared argument detailing the gross monthly income you think the court should use for you, the gross monthly income you think the court should use for the other parent, how you calculated these incomes, whether you are requesting any adjustments, whether there are any limitations on your ability to work, and what your child support calculations say the final monthly support amount should be. You should send in your child support worksheet and any exhibits (i.e., proof of income for you and the other parent) you’d like the court to consider in a “Courtesy Copies” email sent to the Judge’s coordinator at least 5 days before the hearing.
 
​Written by Brian Gilbert, Chicago Advocate Legal, NFP Co-Founder and Financial Director.

It’s time for Illinois legislators, judges and legal practitioners to drastically reform Illinois’ guardian ad litem system for child custody cases.
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Courthouses across Illinois appoint attorneys on a routine basis in custody cases when two parents are unable to agree on a parenting plan for their child(ren).  This court-appointed attorney, known as a guardian ad litem, is given the important task of investigating what is in the best interests of the child(ren).  Their recommendation can be powerful and can help dictate who gets custody.  

Guardian ad litems are supposed to provide the court with a neutral recommendation of what’s in the best interests of the child(ren). Unfortunately, in practice, the system is ripe with perverse incentives that can lead to severe financial and emotional harm to Illinois families. Legal practitioners and Illinois legislators need to inject a major shift into this dysfunctional, yet very needed, cottage industry.

It can happen fast and without much, if any, advanced notice

The appointment of a guardian ad litem in a child custody case is common and can happen quickly. Illinois judges, especially in high population areas where court dockets are overwhelming, are heavily reliant on guardian ad litems to resolve the disputes of parents stepping up before them. If two parents are unable to agree on a parenting plan at mediation or in the early stages of their case, a judge is likely to appoint a guardian ad litem to act as the “eyes and ears of the court” and make a recommendation to the court regarding parenting time and decision-making rights over the child(ren). Except in rare cases where a public guardian or pro bono attorney is available, these unwitting parents find themselves having to pay a private, billable-hour attorney for their child(ren) in addition to paying for their own attorneys.

Cases are frequently delayed due to non-payment

Problems can occur almost immediately after the appointment if one or both parents are unable to pay the guardian ad litem’s retainer fee, which typically ranges from $1,000-$2,000 for each parent. Judges do not expect the attorney they appointed to work for free, so if the retainer is not paid it can put the entire case on hold. Urgent child-related disputes (i.e., where the child(ren) should go to school, the correct treatment for a child’s recent medical diagnosis, whether one parent is trying to turn the child(ren) against the other parent) will just have to wait.

For low and middle-income individuals – who are already going through a divorce or custody dispute, just paid to retain their own lawyer, and maybe just found out they have to pay temporary support to their spouse - this can, and often is, the bill that breaks the camel’s back. And it’s just the first of many more guardian ad litem bills to come.

Guardian ad litems are unregulated, allowing conflicts to flourish

The more manipulative of guardian ad litems are allowed to maneuver, without serious regulation, in a divide-and-conquer environment that is easily used to coerce vulnerable families. The more conflict between the parents, the more hours billed for the guardian ad litem, and the more the guardian ad litem gets paid.  Cases often succumb to this dynamic, leaving our courts with a pay-to-play, cash-for-kids element lingering underneath the surface of far too many contested custody battles.

To make matters even worse, the savviest of guardian ad litems have also managed to weaponize well-intentioned interdisciplinary associations of family law judges, attorneys, psychologists, counselors. These associations purport that they are collaborating to resolve family conflict and protect the interests of families and children, but for the parents (and the attorneys representing them) it is hard to ignore that our judges and guardian ad litems are now serving on boards, co-hosting panels, and attending galas with many of the "independent" medical and therapeutic professionals they are appointing to resolve custody disputes.

When they really want to throw the book at a parent, a guardian ad litem will recommend to the court that their favorite local doctor perform a “604.10(b)” or “Rule 215” evaluation. Illinois statute allows judges to appoint independent medical and therapeutic professionals to further assist them when making final custody decisions. The cost for a full custody evaluation, after all collaterals are contacted and the final written report is produced, will tack on another $20,000-$30,000 for the family. It will also delay any movement in the case by several months, prolonging already protracted litigation.

​Guardian ad litems are then allowed to have multiple conversations with their hand-selected medical evaluator before the final report is produced to the judge, despite having a pre-existing professional relationship with the evaluator and a pre-existing opinion about each parent. Turning a blind eye to these obvious conflicts, our judges and lawyers allow these interdisciplinary partnerships to expand at the expense of Illinois families.

The current system is harming the circuit court’s credibility

The harm to the circuit court’s credibility, caused by this systemic dysfunction, is palpable. This unchecked power bubble erodes the trust of a system that has little to spare. Most of our clients express a deep distrust of the family law system and believe it is broken. Their goal is to survive their case, not to achieve positive outcomes through it. Some resign to apathy, while others fall into despair. That should cause alarm to legal practitioners. Instead, it is mostly business as usual in the courtroom throughout the State.

There are without question guardian ad litems who are excellent attorneys, charge reasonable rates, perform thorough investigations and make quality recommendations to the courts even when they are owed money. If all the guardian ad litems in the State acted like this, maybe the current system would work. But that is not the world we live in nor is it one we should expect to live in. As a result, the good guardian ad litems fill up quickly, are overworked, at capacity, and often unable to take on new cases. When they do take on a new case, they are too busy to get it done expeditiously and the delays can be just as harmful in other ways.

Possible reforms for legislators, judges and attorneys

There are a multitude of actions that legislators, judges and attorneys can make, in their respective positions, to alter or eliminate these dynamics and create a healthier process for the resolution of custody cases for the people of this State. This includes initiating far more rigorous training requirements for attorneys who want to become guardian ad litems, warning parents in advance of the consequences of failing to agree on a full parenting plan at mediation, limiting the number and types of cases where guardian ad litems are appointed, establishing internal quality review systems to hold guardian ad litems to account for unethical behavior, expanding public guardian programs across the state, and strengthening existing legislation to curb the role of guardian ad litems and their billing practices.   

But first we need to agree that the current guardian ad litem system is dysfunctional and that fixing it is a top priority for the legal profession.

Written by Brian Gilbert, Chicago Advocate Legal, NFP Co-Founder and Financial Director.

This Article is broken into two parts. The first part contains three “Preventative” Steps that do not assume active involvement with our state government and county circuit court child support systems. The second contains seven “Proactive” Steps that assume active involvement with these child support systems.

Part 1 – Preventative Steps to Avoid Court-Involvement

There are no laws in Illinois requiring parents to submit themselves to county and state child support systems. Many individuals involuntarily become involved in these systems. Others voluntarily submit themselves, not knowing the full extent to which they are becoming involved. However, if both parents choose not to be involved, they can usually avoid these systems altogether.

For those attempting to avoid county and state child support systems altogether, here are three Preventative Steps for staying in “good standing” on your child support obligation(s):

A. Create an out of court child support agreement.

Parents end up becoming systems-involved when they are unable to agree on how to financially support their child(ren). Financial disputes are also often inextricably tied to disputes over parenting time and child-related decision-making. A written agreement is a useful tool to help parents avoid the type of disputes that result in one parent filing for child support. When determining the right support amount for their child(ren), parents may still want to rely on the Illinois State’s child support calculator and some of the standard language and agreements used in court judgments. Parents can start by running child support calculations using the State’s child support guidelines to get an idea of what a reasonable amount should be. This is merely a starting point though and parties can deviate based on the needs of the child(ren) and financial resources of each parent..

While an Out of Court Child Support Agreement is not enforceable in the way that a court ordered child support obligation is, parties are far more likely to avoid disputes if they sit down in advance of litigation, put a concrete roadmap in place, and see if they can meet certain agreed upon goals on their own before calling in and retaining attorneys. A written agreement also documents each parties’ stated promises to each other and the child(ren) at one point in time, which helps to avoid confusion later on over who agreed to do or pay what.

B. Mediate before you litigate.

Mediation has caught on as a common tool for middle-and-upper class families going through divorce. The reason: it’s more cost effective to mediate your family disputes because, if done well, you can end up with substantially the same results while avoiding the costs of litigation. The trend has caught on to a lesser extent among low-to-middle income families going through divorce and hardly at all among unmarried couples who just need a parenting plan and child support agreement.

Consider hiring an attorney or trained mediator to mediate your child support dispute prior to filing a case in court or through HFS. Mediation can be a helpful tool when it’s too emotionally charged between you and the other parent and you just need a third-party to help conduct your discussion. It’s even more helpful if this third-party is a lawyer or trained mediator who can draw on their experiences in court and mediating prior couples while guiding your settlement discussion.

C. Avoid the entryways of the dual child support system.

The best way to prevent yourself from getting caught up in child support systems: do not walk in one of the many entryways. We use the term “systems”, instead of “court”, because Illinois has a dual child support system. There is an administrative process operated by the State and a circuit court process operated by each county across the State. A parent can request child support through the Illinois Department of Healthcare and Family Services (HFS). A parent can also request child support by asking the State’s Attorney at their local county attorney’s office, or a private attorney, to file a child support case in the circuit court on their behalf. A parent’s request for State benefits can also trigger the State or a local county to request child support on the child’s behalf. Lastly, on many occasions, when one party files in court for one issue (i.e., child support), it will cause the other party to file in court for another issue (i.e., parenting time).

Before you go down one of the entryways described above, you should weigh all the potential issues that may come up in your case and consider consulting with an attorney about how your case may play out in court and in your day-to-day life. As discussed above, also consider creating an out of court child support agreement and/or mediating your financial disputes prior to initiating a formal child support process.   

Part II – Proactive Steps while Court-Involved

For those parties who are already involved in government and court child support systems, or end up involved in them despite their best efforts, here are our seven Proactive Steps for staying in good standing on your child support obligation.

A. Ask your employer to place you on payroll if you aren’t already on it.

The best way to pay child support is to have it garnished from your paycheck. That way, the recordkeeping is done by your employer and the Illinois State Disbursement Unit (SDU) without you having to do anything. This ensures there will be clear proof of payment on your paystubs and with the SDU. It’s incredibly important to keep records of every child support payment you make. Our legal system places the burden of proof on the person who is paying child support not the person who is receiving it. That means, if the other parent goes to court and accuses you of failing to pay child support, it’s your responsibility to bring to the court the evidence showing that you paid. There is no statute of limitations on child support obligations either, so the other parent could go to court 10 or more years after your child is emancipated and accuse you of owing child support, and you’ll still have to bring the receipts.

B. As a follow up to Step 1, make sure a Notice of Income Withholding is completed and sent to your employer’s payroll department.

Typically, when the court orders a child support obligation, it enters an order called a Uniform Order for Support. Most circuit courts have their own version of this form, but the Illinois Supreme Court has also created a version for statewide use. You can find that form here. This order, however, does not automatically get sent to your employer. One of the parties or their attorneys needs to complete a Notice of Income Withholding for Support and send it to the employer. There is also a statewide version of this Notice, which you can find here.

If the State’s Attorney is involved in the case, they will send out the Notice. If there are private attorneys involved in the case, or no attorneys at all, this final step can get missed and the garnishments for support payments get delayed as a result. While it used to be customary for the attorney for the party receiving the child support payments to prepare this Notice, this custom seems to be fading away. 

​If the garnishments don’t occur on time, and you don’t pay the amount on your own, you could be accused of violating the court order and being in contempt of court. If you are held in contempt of court, you can be fined or even sentenced to jail. Don’t assume that this step has been completed before getting confirmation. If needed, you should even reach out to your employer’s payroll department and ask if they have a copy of the most recent child support order.

C. Make your payments through ExpertPay or by mailing in a check to SDU if you fall behind on support or your wages aren’t being garnished.

If your wages aren’t being garnished, you need to make alternative arrangements for your payments to be made. To make sure your payments are recorded by the SDU, you can mail a check into SDU or make an electronic payment through ExpertPay (https://www.expertpay.com/). ExpertPay payments are also sent to the SDU, and if you don’t have a checkbook, want a more convenient payment method, or need to put the payment on a credit card, ExpertPay is a helpful tool. There is a transaction fee for paying through it though.

D. If you lose your job or your income changes by a large amount, file a motion to modify the child support amount.

Your court ordered child support amount will remain fixed unless you go to court and ask for it to be modified. The formal way to do this is to file a Motion to Modify Child Support. If you lose your job or get a new job with a lower income, and you are worried about making your upcoming support payment, you should ask the court to reduce the support amount while you look for a new job (keep in mind, the court is likely going to require that you keep a job diary).  You can find a free sample Notice of Motion and Motion to Modify Child Support on our website.

D. If one of your older children becomes emancipated, file a motion to modify the child support amount.

Once again, your court ordered child support amount will remain fixed unless you go into court and ask for it to be modified. If you have two or more children, and one of your older children graduates from high school, you will continue paying child support for that child until you go to court and ask for the child support order to be modified. Your child support obligation will only automatically terminate when your youngest child is emancipated.

E. If you lose your job, keep records of your termination and a job diary of your job search.

If you lose your job and subsequently file a Motion to Modify Child Support, it’s common for the other parent’s attorney to question the reason for the termination of employment and to demand a new job search. The courts tend to share the same concerns and routinely order that parties create job diaries.

To get ahead of the ball, make sure to get documentation to show why your prior employment ended. If you don’t already have documentation, you can ask your employer to write a letter explaining why you were let go. Finally, don’t wait for the court to order you to complete a job diary. We recommend our clients start doing one on their own as soon as they become unemployed. A template job diary, created by HFS, can be found here.

F. If you lose your job, file for unemployment while you are looking for a new job and ask for a dependency allowance.

If you lose your job and are eligible for unemployment income, make sure to get your unemployment application submitted as quickly as possible. Keep the other parent informed of your attempts to do so. When you apply for unemployment income, request a dependency allowance. Typically, we recommend that our clients pay the dependency allowance to the other party while they search for new employment. However, this should not be done without also filing a Motion to Modify Child Support.