Posted on January 23, 2017 in Child Support

While very few people would dispute the appropriateness or the need for child support, there are differing opinions regarding how support payments should be determined. For many years, Illinois law based child support calculations primarily on the income of the supporting parent and the number of children needing support. Beginning next summer, however, the state’s approach will be changing to one that is seen by many as more equitable since it accounts for both parents’ income and the actual cost of raising a child.

Income Shares Child Support Model

Last summer, Illinois Governor Bruce Rauner signed a measure several years in the making. The new law provides a totally updated model for determining a parent’s child support obligation. The method is known as “income shares” and is currently in use in more than three dozen other states. According to the income shares model, the combined income of both parents is used to determine a “basic support amount,” or the amount that the couple would spend on raising their child if they had remained in the same household. The Illinois Department of Healthcare and Family Services has been tasked with developing a table for determining this amount as a percentage of the parents’ combined income.

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 Posted on January 20, 2017 in Divorce

Throughout the country, divorce has become a common enough occurrence that many people speak of the process very casually. The seriousness of divorce, as a result, is frequently underestimated. For example, in the 2011 film Crazy Stupid Love, the main character’s work colleagues laugh and celebrate when they discover that he is "merely" getting a divorce and does not have cancer. Such a casual attitude leads many to believe that when a marriage is experiencing problems, it is easy to ask the court to dissolve the relationship. The reality, however, is rather different.

Irreconcilable Differences

According to Illinois law, a judgment of divorce will only be granted on the grounds that "irreconcilable differences have caused the irretrievable breakdown of the marriage." The law goes on to say that the court must also determine that attempts to save the marriage have failed or that future efforts toward reconciliation would be unreasonable and not in the family’s best interests. But, what does that mean?

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 Posted on January 18, 2017 in Prenuptial & Postnuptial Agreements

When you were growing up, did you have fantasies about what your wedding day would look like? If you are like most people, the answer is probably yes. Once a couple gets engaged, they often spend months choosing dresses, flowers, and all of the accessories that will make their wedding perfect. With so much focus on the marriage ceremony and reception, far fewer couples spend adequate time preparing for the marital relationship itself. They tend to assume that loving one another is enough and everything else can be addressed when the time comes. Many marriages, however, are too complicated to leave to chance, and a prenuptial agreement could provide a measure of security for both spouses.

The Basics of Prenuptial Agreement

A prenuptial agreement is a type of contract between two people who are planning to marry one another. Your agreement may contain as few or as many provisions needed to address whatever concerns may be applicable to your situation. Most people think of prenuptial agreements as a form of insurance in case of divorce, and in some ways, that thought is rather accurate, but they can be used for other purposes. A prenuptial agreement can also contain terms that address each spouse’s responsibilities during the marriage as well as contingencies for the untimely death of one spouse.

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 Posted on January 13, 2017 in Property Division

Issues of money and property are often among the most contested elements in any divorce situation. A couple who has spent many years building a life together frequently have trouble disengaging from one another, at least in regard to their assets and debts. When divorcing spouses cannot reach a negotiated agreement regarding how their property will be divided, the court will make such decisions for them. The Illinois Marriage and Dissolution of Marriage Act (IMDMA) provides fairly straightforward guidelines for the distribution of marital property which must be followed by the court.

What Property Will Be Divided?

Before any assets can be distributed, the court must first identify the property that is subject to division. Only assets and debts that are considered marital property will be divided between the spouses. The full listing of a couple’s marital property is sometimes referred to as the “marital estate.” According to Illinois law, the marital estate consists of virtually all property—including assets and debts—acquired by either spouse during the marriage. Very limited exceptions may be made for assets acquired during the marriage as a gift or inheritance to one spouse. Assets that were owned before the marriage are considered non-marital and are not subject to division.

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 Posted on January 11, 2017 in Property Division

When you are going through a divorce, it is imperative for you and your spouse to be completely forthcoming about your respective financial situations. Without full transparency, it is impossible for you and your spouse—or the court, when necessary—to properly divide the marital estate in accordance with Illinois law. In many cases, unfortunately, one spouse will look to manipulate the division of assets by hiding property and income streams to avoid having to share them with his or her partner. While it is often possible to address such behavior before the divorce proceedings are finalized, hidden assets may go undiscovered until after the divorce judgment has been entered. If you recently discovered that your former spouse was hiding assets during your divorce, it is not too late to take action.

Reopening Your Divorce

The first thing you should do if you have reason to believe that your ex-spouse hid assets during your divorce is to contact an experienced attorney. Your lawyer will work with you in filing a request for relief from the divorce judgment. Reopening your case is often easier if you file your motion within 30 days of the judgment being entered, but there is no statutory timeframe that limits your rights.

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 Posted on December 30, 2016 in Alimony / Maintenance

The financial implications of a divorce cannot be overstated. This reality is especially true for those that put a career on hold to raise a family or to advance the professional aspirations of their spouse. Even in marriages where both spouses work, one often makes much less than the other and could face financial hardships following divorce. These individuals may need some measure of spousal support to meet necessary expenses.

Earlier this year, the Illinois Legislature enacted a number of significant changes to the divorce laws, including provisions related to spousal support. These changes reflect efforts to make it to easier to get divorced and to give the outcome of divorce cases more predictability. On the issue of spousal support, predictability is extremely important to parties that do not earn a lot of money and must worry about paying the bills on one income following a divorce.

Deciding When Spousal Support Is Appropriate

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 Posted on December 28, 2016 in Divorce

Has your spouse recently filed for divorce? If so, he or she was able to choose the county in which the petition was filed and in which the proceedings are to be held. It may come as a surprise to learn that you are not necessarily bound by your spouse’s choice. While he or she may have filed first, you have the right to object to the chosen venue, but the law in Illinois requires you to act quickly.

What is Venue?

In the legal realm, the term “venue” refers to the county or district court system in which a case will be heard. For the purposes of divorce in Illinois, proceedings are generally held in the county circuit court. According to the Illinois Marriage and Dissolution of Marriage Act, it is presumed that a couple’s divorce will be heard in the county of residence of at least of the parties. For example, if a husband and wife have separated, and the husband lives in DuPage County while the wife resides in Kane County, the law expects that the couple will file their petition for divorce in one of those two counties. A non-residential county may be chosen if there is a valid justification for doing so.

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 Posted on December 22, 2016 in Child Support

In almost every aspect of a divorce proceeding, you and your spouse have the freedom to reach an agreement on your own, without interference from the court. There are certain elements, such as the allocation of parental responsibilities and child support, that the court will review before the agreement is entered as part of the judgment, but the court will only make changes if necessary. Once an agreement has been approved and entered by the court, you cannot change your mind about the agreed upon terms. As a Knox County woman recently discovered, it is vitally important to be certain that your agreement meets your needs before it is signed and presented to the court.

In re Marriage of Eastburg

The Third District Court Appellate Court in Illinois released its ruling last week on a case involving a child support agreement between divorcing parents. Shortly after their divorce in December 2006, the couple in question originally agreed that the father would pay $511 bimonthly in child support, allegedly equal to 28 percent of his net income. As time went on, the mother would petition for an increase in payment to correlate to the father’s increase in income. Most recently, in May 2015, the couple agreed that, based on the father’s 2014 income, he should pay $721 bimonthly.

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 Posted on December 19, 2016 in Children and Divorce

When you are a divorced parent, figuring out how to divide holiday parenting time can be very difficult. It is especially challenging if you and the other parent are not able to communicate effectively. Any parent who has a healthy relationship with their child, however, will want to spend time together during important family holidays like Christmas. Doing so is possible with some advance planning and cooperation between you and your ex-spouse.

You and your former partner may already have an agreement in place regarding where your child will spend Christmas Eve and Christmas Day. A holiday parenting schedule is often included in a court-approved parenting plan. In many situations, parents—especially those who live relatively far from one another—will enjoy Christmas parenting time in alternating years. For example, your child may spend Christmas with you this year and, next year, he or she will spend Christmas with the other parent.

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 Posted on December 15, 2016 in Children and Divorce

When you are a divorced parent, it can be very difficult to find the time to do things that interest you. Between your obligations for work and caring for your children, it may seem impossible to pursue hobbies or spend time with friends. Your own health, however, depends on you being able to develop an identity as an individual with interests outside of your children. One of the biggest challenges that divorced parents often face is finding a babysitter or someone to care for their children when such care is needed. If you need child care arrangements, your parenting plan may dictate that your first call must be to the child’s other parent.

The Right of First Refusal

The Illinois Marriage and Dissolution of Marriage Act Provides that a parenting plan may include what is known as the right of first refusal if the parents agree or if ordered by the court. The right of first refusal refers to an arrangement in which a parent requiring child care must first offer the other parent the opportunity for additional parenting time before seeking alternate arrangements. While this may sound complicated, the right of first refusal is often fairly straightforward in practice.

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