If You Are Asked to Take a Drug Test for Your Divorce

 Posted on August 11, 2016 in Child Custody

When a couple with a child divorces, the court must determine the best possible parenting time arrangement for their child by examining various factors at play in the parents' lives. These factors include each parent's income and asset level, the individuals living in each parent's household, and any issues present that could impact the child's health or safety. Drug or excessive alcohol use by a parent is one of these factors.

In contentious divorces, one parent might accuse the other of struggling with drug or alcohol addiction. The court must address this to determine whether it is true, which usually means that the parent accused of having an addiction must undergo a drug test. It is up to the judge to determine whether a divorcing party must take a drug test. Sometimes, the judge does this following a request by one spouse and in other cases, the judge decides this without input from either divorcing party.

Following a Positive Drug Test

If you receive a positive result on your drug test and you know you do not use the drug shown in the results, you can request a re-test. Sometimes, false positives can occur in drug tests. Before taking your initial drug test, discuss the possibility of receiving a false positive and what can make these occur.

If you are determined to be using illegal drugs, the court may order you to undergo treatment to stop using them. You could also be required to undergo regularly-scheduled drug tests and submit the results to the court.

Although you might only use recreational drugs like alcohol and marijuana during the time you do not have your child, a court may use any evidence of drug use as a reason to claim that your home is not safe for your child. In this event, talk to your lawyer about how you can prove that the use does not occur during your parenting time and thus, it does not put your children in danger. It is also important to remember that although alcohol and marijuana are mentioned here together, marijuana is illegal to use and possess without a prescription in Illinois. Having a drug test show that you engage in this illegal activity could have a negative impact on your parenting time agreement. Before agreeing to a drug test, discuss the substances that will be sought through the test.

Work with an Experienced Kane County Divorce Lawyer

You may be asked to do a lot of things as part of the divorce process. Some, you might not agree with and others, you will likely expect and welcome. If you are asked to take a drug test or undergo a psychological evaluation as part of the divorce process, speak with an experienced divorce lawyer to determine whether this is truly necessary and how to adequately prepare for it. Contact our team of experienced Kane County family and divorce lawyers at the Goostree Law Group today to learn more during your legal consultation with us.

Source:

http://www.illinois.gov/gov/mcpp/Pages/default.aspx