Jeffery Leving’s accomplished career has earned him recognition for both his prowess as an attorney and his dedicated advocacy of custodial equality. Drawing on more than three decades of experience as a lawyer, Leving possesses extensive expertise in family and matrimonial law, particularly with fathers’ rights in divorce and child custody cases. In addition to his contributions to the laity understanding of custody procedures through the publication of several books on the topic, including his newest book, How to Be a Good Divorced Dad, which garnered praise from President Barack Obama and an endorsement from Francis Cardinal George of the Archdiocese of Chicago, who said, “This is a pain-filled book that offers good advice about how to preserve a family born of a marriage that has failed. It’s a book that is, unfortunately, more and more needed.” Jeffery Leving has also made legislative reform of the process his personal crusade.
Licensed to practice in various jurisdictions of Illinois, as well as the U.S. Seventh Circuit of Appeals and the Supreme Court, Jeffery Leving has been recognized by his professional peers on several occasions. The recipient of the Illinois State Bar Association’s Recognition and Commendation Award for Meritorious Service to the Public and Legal Community, Leving has also been named as one of the state’s top lawyers by his colleagues. Jeffery Leving has additionally received accolades from the American Bar Association’s Young Lawyers Division, which awarded him a National Certificate of Recognition. A member of eight national, state, city, and county bar associations, he is also affiliated with the Federal Trial Bar and the Decalogue Society of Lawyers.
Beyond the extensive professional achievements earned within his field, Jeffery Leving has also attracted considerable acclaim for his civic efforts. The Chicago City Council chose to memorialize Leving’s contributions to men’s rights by naming the intersection of Madison Street and LaSalle Street adjacent to the courthouse Honorary Jeffery M. Leving Way. Leving’s volunteer work in the realm of children’s social services garnered him the prestigious President’s Volunteer Service Award for his efforts to help solve key national social problems, and he has been chosen by the White House Office of Faith-Based and Neighborhood Partnerships to provide input in the first Town Hall Meeting on Responsible Fatherhood and Healthy Families in Chicago. In addition to his endeavors as a volunteer, he operates as President Emeritus of Chicago’s Fatherhood Educational Institute and as publisher of Leving’s Divorce Magazine.
Illinois Father Reunited with Children Facing Abuse in Texas
Attorney Jeffery Leving has over 30 years of experience as an advocate for fathers’ rights. The president of an eponymous law office, Leving led a case that rescued two children from a reportedly abusive home in Texas, leading to their safe return to their father in Illinois.
In this case, the father lived with his wife, his son and infant daughter in Chicago. One day, his wife went to visit her family in Texas and took the children along with her. After spending some time there, she called her husband and told him that she would never return to Illinois and neither would their children. In addition, she moved in with a boyfriend in Texas who reportedly physically abused the boy and neglected the girl’s medical needs.
Distraught, the father approached Leving and his legal team for help recovering his children. The firm tasked detective Wayne Halick with locating the children. The detective was able to find them the same day that Leving and his team appealed to the courts for an immediate order returning the children to their father. The court ruled in their favor and gave custody to the father while denying the mother visitation rights. The children were physically recovered and are now living happily with their father in Illinois.
