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18 Barrister 23 (1991-1992)
Our Court Systems are Biased against Men

handle is hein.journals/barraba18 and id is 137 raw text is: OUR COURT SYSTEMS ARE BIASED AGAINST MEN That's why they have lost their rights, says Jeffery Leving, who might be the only lawyer in America fighting on their behalf BARRISTER Interview by Vicki Quade Nothing much happens to %'omen who violate court-ordered visitation decrees, but a father who is late in making child support payments will be prosecuted by the state's attor. ney's office in a heartbeat, says Jef- fery Leving. He also believes thqt: a Fathers are reluctant to press for cnstody of their children because the court system in America is over- whelningly pro-femnale, and they know they'll spend a lot of money and still lose their fight. 0 Most lawyers, even if they're rep- resenting the father in a divorce case, are actually on the side of the mother. * Abortion is ivrongfully viewed as an issue that pits the rights of the child against the rights of the mother. No- body seems to consider the rights of the father. Whether you agree with him or not, Leving, a Chicago lawyer specializ- ing in divorce cases, has made a ca. reer as one of the few mouthpieces for men's rights in this country. Born in Chicago, Leving is a grad. itate of 1IT-Chicago Kent College of Law. He started his law career in 1979 at the Chicago Volunteer Legal Services before going solo two years later. At first he specialized in criminal defense, but says he found the work unfulfilling. He switched to family law and quickly found himself rep- resenting mostly men. Divorce is often an ugly and vio- lent thing. Leving tells what hap- pened to one of his clients: I represented a father whose daughter was being concealed by the mother out of state. This guy was my client for a long time, and I found where this child was concealed. I got Ihim visitation rights. The father was really straightening his life out, he had a fiancee, and everthing was going w'ell. I was ready to go to his wedding. One day he ivent with his fiancee to visit his daughter, and his ex-wife's father shot and killed the two of them. In 1985, he contributed to the drafti,.g of the Illinois Joint Custody Law, then pushed to get it through the Illinois GeneralAssembly. He has also pushed for liberalizing visitation rights for grandparents, and believes that a father should have the right to save the life of his umborn child and raise the child. Leving has one of the most recog- nizable names ,,nong Chicago law- yers. His ardi.,ies, letters to the editor, and cohmrns ha ve appeared in nearly every Chicago-based publication from Playboy to Today's Chicago Woman. He sends out regular press releases commenting on how men are affected by a local ruling or divorce- related incident. He also advertises his services on YOUNG LAWYERS DIVISION 23 'Peatml

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