When Violating Court Orders Becomes the Norm: How Cook County Courts Undermine Their Own Authority

Court orders are not suggestions. Or at least, they shouldn’t be.

Yet in Cook County Family Court, parenting time orders are being violated so frequently—and with so little consequence—that their meaning is beginning to erode entirely. What was designed to provide structure, stability, and protection for children has become, in practice, a piece of paper easily ignored by those who choose not to comply.

That is not a legal system. It is legal theater.

Over the past three years, I’ve watched my family—and many others—navigate a custody process riddled with inaction, delay, and disregard for the very orders the courts issue. Parenting schedules, meant to ensure that children have meaningful relationships with both parents, are violated repeatedly. The court is notified. Motions are filed. Documentation is presented.

And still, nothing happens.

When Orders Aren’t Enforced, They Stop Meaning Anything

A court order is supposed to carry the weight of law. It exists not just to set expectations, but to provide a remedy when those expectations aren’t met. Without enforcement, there is no remedy. And without a remedy, there is no rule of law—just a growing message to parents and children alike: follow the rules if you want, but don’t expect anyone else to.

In our own case, court-ordered parenting time has now been denied 78 times.

That number should be shocking. But what’s more shocking is the court’s response: silence. No enforcement. No sanctions. No effort to correct the violation or even acknowledge it. Repeated requests for intervention have been ignored or delayed, and those delays send a clear and dangerous signal—that court orders, especially in family court, are optional.

The Dangerous Double Standard in Family Law

In most areas of law, repeated violations of a court order would trigger action: fines, contempt charges, enforcement by law enforcement. In family court? Those tools exist—but they are rarely used.

Instead, parents who follow court orders are left in a perpetual holding pattern: documenting violations, filing motions, paying attorneys, and attending hearings, often just to be told to “work it out.” Meanwhile, those who violate the orders often suffer no consequence.

This double standard punishes the parent who plays by the rules and rewards the one who ignores them. It creates a perverse incentive to disregard the law—and it turns courtrooms into revolving doors of unresolved conflict.

The Children Are Not Protected in This System

Let’s be clear: this is not about parental pride or winning custody. This is about children losing time, connection, and stability—because the legal system refuses to act.

When parenting time is maliciously withheld again and again, it fractures the parent-child bond. It destabilizes the child's sense of security. And it places children in the middle of ongoing conflict—exactly what the courts are supposed to help prevent.

Children are not protected when orders aren’t enforced. They are left confused, stressed, and in many cases, alienated from one of their parents. That’s not a failure of paperwork—it’s a failure of purpose.

What Needs to Change: A Clear, Consistent Standard of Enforcement

This isn’t just about one case, or one family. It’s a systemic problem—and it demands systemic reform. Here’s where change must begin:

✅ Enforce Parenting Orders as Legal Mandates

Violating parenting time should be treated like violating any other legal order—with immediate, meaningful consequences. Repeated violations should trigger a clear legal response.

✅ Establish Automatic Review Thresholds

If a parent violates a parenting order multiple times, the case should automatically be flagged for judicial review. This removes the burden from the compliant parent to continuously chase enforcement.

✅ Require Timely Court Response to Filed Violations

Family courts should operate on a timeline, just as criminal and civil courts do. When a motion is filed over a missed parenting day, the court should be required to hear it promptly—not months later.

✅ Create a Penalty Framework for Repeat Offenders

Judges need tools to impose sanctions—not just reminders. That could include financial penalties, mandatory mediation, or even changes to custody arrangements when a pattern of defiance is proven.

This Is a Crisis of Credibility

When family courts allow their orders to be ignored without consequence, they lose the trust of the very people they serve. Parents begin to lose faith in the system. Children learn that the rules don’t apply equally. And society absorbs the cost—through prolonged conflict, emotional harm, and unstable family structures.

Judges have the tools. The law has the language. What’s missing is the will to act—and the systemic structures to ensure action happens consistently and fairly.

Families Deserve a System That Works

No parent should have to file motion after motion just to see their child. No child should miss weeks or months of parenting time because the court cannot or will not intervene. The law must mean something—or it means nothing at all.

We can fix this. But we have to stop tolerating inaction as acceptable. We must treat violations of parenting orders with the seriousness they deserve. And we must rebuild a court system that protects families through enforcement—not just intent.