# Illinois divorce mediation and settlement agreements

> Is mediation required for divorce in Illinois? For parenting issues, yes. How mediation works, what it costs, and what makes a settlement agreement stick.

Illinois treats mediation differently depending on what you are arguing about. For the children, it is close to mandatory and it is built into the court rules and the calendar. For the money, it is voluntary, and it is where most Illinois divorces are actually resolved anyway.

## Is mediation required for divorce in Illinois?

For parenting issues, effectively yes.

[Section 602.10(c)](https://www.ilga.gov/legislation/ILCS/details?ActID=2086&ChapterID=59&ChapAct=750%2BILCS%2B5%2F&SeqStart=8675000&SeqEnd=12200000) says the court shall order mediation to assist the parents in formulating or modifying a parenting plan, or in implementing one, unless the court determines that impediments to mediation exist.

Behind that sits a court rule with statewide reach. [Rule 905](https://www.illinoiscourts.gov/resources/c6c9f299-e480-4f91-a442-02e169ffe2c8/file) requires every judicial circuit to establish a program providing mediation for cases involving allocation of parental responsibilities, relocation of a child, and parenting time, and a second program for dissolution and paternity cases raising those same issues. Local circuit rules have to cover mandatory training and expertise for mediators, how cases get referred, and when the court can excuse a referral because an impediment exists.

Referral happens on a schedule. Under [Rule 923(a)](https://www.illinoiscourts.gov/resources/6c65c4fe-27c1-474e-a855-7f1eff29b8e5/file), at the initial case management conference, held no later than 90 days after service, the court schedules the matter for mediation if the parents have no agreement on parental responsibilities or a parenting plan. A full case management conference follows no later than 30 days after mediation is completed.

For money, mediation is voluntary. There is no statute or rule directing a court to send a property dispute to a mediator, though many judges will suggest it and some counties have programs.

## What does divorce mediation cost in Illinois?

It depends on the circuit, and the statute makes the cost movable. [Section 501(e)](https://www.ilga.gov/legislation/ILCS/details?ActID=2086&ChapterID=59&ChapAct=750%2BILCS%2B5%2F&SeqStart=6200000&SeqEnd=8675000) says the fees or costs of mediation are borne by the parties and may be assessed by the court as it deems equitable without prejudice, subject to reallocation at the conclusion of the case.

Section 602.10(c) adds that costs are allocated under the applicable statute or Supreme Court Rule. Some circuits run free or subsidized programs, others use a roster of private mediators charging an hourly rate. Ask the circuit clerk which model your county uses before you budget for it.

Mediation can also happen remotely. Rule 905(d) lets a program use remote video conferencing to improve accessibility and widen the pool of available mediators, and the court has to provide language or communication assistance at no cost to a litigant who needs it.

## What does a mediator actually do in an Illinois divorce?

Helps you write a parenting plan, and nothing more than that in a court-annexed program. Rule 905 limits circuit mediation programs to child custody, allocation of parental responsibilities, relocation, visitation and parenting time issues, in as many words.

A mediator does not decide anything, does not represent either of you, and does not report a recommendation to the judge. Private mediators handling the financial side of a case can go further by agreement, but the court-annexed program is scoped to the children.

## What makes an Illinois settlement agreement stick?

Four things, and [section 502](https://www.ilga.gov/legislation/ILCS/details?ActID=2086&ChapterID=59&ChapAct=750%2BILCS%2B5%2F&SeqStart=6200000&SeqEnd=8675000) supplies all of them.

- **It has to be in writing.** Any agreement under section 502 must be in writing, except for good cause shown with the court's approval, before proceeding to an oral prove-up.
- **It binds the judge unless it is unconscionable.** The terms bind the court unless it finds, after considering the parties' economic circumstances and any other relevant evidence, that the agreement is unconscionable. If the court so finds, it may ask for a revised agreement or, after a hearing, decide the terms itself.
- **It beats your testimony.** Where the agreement incorporated into the judgment conflicts with testimony at an uncontested prove-up on the grounds or the substance of the agreement, the terms of the agreement control.
- **The children's terms are never binding on the court.** Child support and the allocation of parental responsibilities are always the court's to approve, because those provisions belong to the child rather than to either parent.

An agreed parenting plan gets similar treatment on its own track. Under section 602.10(d), a written plan signed by both parents binds the court unless it finds the agreement is not in the child's best interests, and the court must make express findings of its reasons for refusing to approve one.

## What can a settlement agreement cover in Illinois?

More than most people put in one. Section 502(a) allows provisions for the disposition of any property owned by either party, maintenance of either party, support and the allocation of parental responsibilities for the children, support of children after they reach majority under sections 513 and 513.5, and ownership of and responsibility for a companion animal.

The terms are set out in the judgment and the parties are ordered to perform them, unless the agreement says its terms should not appear in the judgment, in which case the judgment identifies the agreement and states that the court approved its terms. Either way, the terms are enforceable by every remedy available for enforcing a judgment, including contempt, and are enforceable as contract terms.

## What is modifiable after an Illinois settlement?

The line is sharp and worth knowing before you trade anything away.

- **Property provisions are never modifiable.** Not on a change in circumstances, not on a market crash, not on anything.
- **Maintenance is modifiable unless you agree otherwise.** The parties may provide that maintenance is non-modifiable in amount, duration, or both. Without that language, it stays modifiable on a substantial change of circumstances.
- **Child support and parental responsibilities are always modifiable.** On a showing of a substantial change in circumstances, and no agreement can close that door.

That asymmetry is why Illinois settlements often trade a larger share of the property for a smaller maintenance number, or the reverse. One of those numbers is permanent and the other one is not. The [spousal maintenance chapter](https://www.counselpro.ai/divorce-guide/illinois/spousal-maintenance) covers how the guideline figure gets calculated before anyone starts trading against it.

## How do you prepare for divorce mediation in Illinois?

For a parenting mediation, bring the schedule you actually want, in writing, day by day. The statute requires a parenting plan to set out either a schedule naming which parent's home the child is in on given days, or a formula detailed enough to be enforced later. Vague agreements to be flexible do not satisfy that and do not survive a bad month.

For a financial mediation, bring documents rather than positions. A mediator cannot help you split assets nobody has valued, and a session spent arguing about whether the brokerage account holds $180,000 or $260,000 is a wasted afternoon. Pull complete statements, get a real number on the house, and know which assets you think are non-marital and why. The [property division chapter](https://www.counselpro.ai/divorce-guide/illinois/property-division) covers how that classification argument works, and the [financial affidavit chapter](https://www.counselpro.ai/divorce-guide/illinois/financial-affidavit-and-discovery) covers the documents behind it.

## What happens if mediation fails in Illinois?

The case goes back on the court's calendar. The full case management conference happens no later than 30 days after mediation is completed, and at it the court considers whether to appoint an attorney for the child, a guardian ad litem, or a child representative under section 506.

Failing to reach an agreement in mediation is not a failure of the case. It narrows what is left, and most Illinois divorces that do not settle in mediation settle later, at a pretrial conference where a judge gives both sides a candid read of where they are heading.

Source: https://www.counselpro.ai/divorce-guide/illinois/mediation-and-settlement