Orders of protection are a useful legal tool for people who feel threatened by a family or household member. According to the Illinois Attorney General, protection orders might impact child custody. If you lose your temper or demonstrate erratic behavior, you might temporarily lose the right to see your children.
Even if you technically do not have legal restrictions against seeing your children, the difficulty comes with the exchange period and other visitation times. You may not be able to legally get close enough to your spouse to pick up your children.
Temporary orders of protection
It is not unheard of for the court to put temporary orders of protection during a divorce. It may be difficult for you to see your children during this period. This is frustrating, but if you do not give the courts a reason to extend the order, you will see your children again.
Permanent orders of protection
Permanent orders of protection present a much more difficult obstacle to overcome. In this case, you must petition the court to allow visitation. Unfortunately, if you already established visitation time, an order of protection exceeds your parental rights. Do not attempt to see your children because you have a previous visitation plan. After the court files an order of protection, you must make new visitation arrangements.
If the court does not judge you as a threat to your children, you should be able to see your children even with an order of protection. Just prepare for required supervision or other restrictions. Protection orders can change if you continue to work with the courts and demonstrate you do not pose a threat.
