Posted on January 11, 2016 in Child Custody

Most parents choose a child's religion before the child is born. For many, the religion in which their children will be raised is determined before the couple marries – this, along with plans regarding whether one parent will stay home with the children and whether to home school or send the children to public school, can be a divisive factor to the point that it becomes a deal breaker for some couples.

Under the changes to the Illinois Marriage and Dissolution of Marriage Act that went into effect on January 1st, handling a child's religious upbringing is one of the parental responsibilities that the court assigns during a divorce proceeding. The parent who is granted this responsibility may then choose how the child is raised religiously, such as whether the child will attend regular church services or participate in certain religious traditions. When a couple of different faiths divorces, their child's religious upbringing can be a source of conflict. Work with a family law attorney to minimize this conflict in your divorce and subsequent relationship with your former spouse.

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 Posted on January 06, 2016 in Property Division

Big changes have come to the Illinois Marriage and Dissolution of Marriage Act, effective January 1, 2016. These changes include new rules regarding child custody, property division, grounds for divorce, and the period of time a couple must be separated from each other before they may file for divorce.

Property Will be Valued by its Market Value Standard

Under the changes to the law, the court will determine the value of a couple's property by applying the fair market value standard. This means that a couple's property will be appraised according to its worth on the date that the court handles the couple's property division, rather than by considering factors like the property's cost and potential for depreciation. If necessary, the court can bring in an outside financial expert to appraise a couple's property. The divorcing couple may be held responsible for the cost of the professional appraiser.

What Is Marital Property?

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 Posted on January 04, 2016 in Child Custody

When the court determines a custody or visitation schedule for a child, it does so with the child's best interests in mind. The court weighs not only which parent is best equipped to provide for the child financially, physically, and emotionally, but also whether the child could potentially be in danger in either parent's household. If the court feels that there could be any room for the child to be harmed in a parent's home, it could give that parent supervised or restricted visitation with the child. What this basically means is that the court puts restrictions on the parent and child's visits in place to prevent the child from being harmed.

It is rare that a parent has his or her parental rights completely terminated. This generally happens if the parent poses an immediate, serious danger to the child. Restricted and supervised visitation are a way to ensure that even when a parent is not considered to be fit to parent his or her child alone, he or she can still maintain a relationship with the child after he or she divorces from the child's other parent.

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 Posted on December 30, 2015 in Divorce

Abandonment of one's spouse for a period of one year or longer is currently grounds for divorce in Illinois. If your spouse simply left your home and has not returned or even attempted to contact you for a period of one year or longer, you have the right to divorce him or her. But what if you cannot find your spouse?

You can still divorce your spouse even if you do not know his or her current location. This is true for any type of divorce, grounds or no-fault. But you will need to take extra steps to be able to either locate your spouse or reasonably make an attempt to make him or her aware of your intention to end your marriage. If you are unable to locate your spouse, certain portions of the divorce process must be put on hold until he or she is located.

Serving Divorce Papers

Currently, when an individual files for divorce, he or she must serve his or her spouse with the divorce papers. This means that he or she must provide his or her spouse with documentation that he or she has filed for divorce so the spouse can seek legal aid and prepare for the divorce.

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 Posted on December 28, 2015 in Child Custody

As our society progresses, our laws need to change to reflect these changes. Decades ago, Illinois' divorce and child custody laws included a provision known as the tender years doctrine, which awarded custody of young children primarily to their mothers on the basis that a mother could care for a young child better than a father could. This was done away with as gender roles changed and the court recognized that fathers can be as capable of caring for their children as mothers. Similar changes are coming to the Illinois Marriage and Dissolution of Marriage Act come January 1st, 2016 through Senate Bill 57.

These changes include many new developments to Illinois' child custody laws. In fact, one of these changes is the deletion of the term “custody.” To learn more about the changes that are coming and what they could mean for you and your family law case, contact an experienced Illinois family attorney for guidance.

New Terms Replace Old Terms

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 Posted on December 23, 2015 in Child Custody

In Illinois, reports of child abuse and neglect are handled by the Illinois Department of Children and Family Services (DCFS). Allegations of child abuse and neglect are taken very seriously. All calls to the department are screened by trained social workers who can determine the correct action to take – not all calls warrant full in-home investigations. But when a report is made about an individual or family, that call is recorded and can haunt the parent in future interactions with the court and his or her former partner.

If you have had to interact with DCFS in any way, whether you were the subject of a report or you have had to report your former partner, tell your attorney. This will have an impact on your child custody or visitation order and your attorney will be able to determine the steps you need to make to ensure that that impact is a productive, healthy one.

Your Custody Order Could be Changed

If DCFS finds that your child is in danger in your household, it could recommend that the court modify your custody or visitation agreement. This might mean changing your visitation agreement so all visits happen in your child's custodial parent's home or, in the most egregious cases of abuse or neglect, cease contact between you and your child.

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 Posted on December 21, 2015 in Domestic Violence

As a parent, one of your greatest goals in life is to keep your child safe. Family attorneys and the Illinois Department of Children & Family Services (DCFS) share this goal. Sometimes, keeping a child safe requires DCFS to remove a child from his or her parent's home or create a set of rules that the parent must follow to prevent the child from being harmed by his or her parent or any other individual present in that parent's home.

You might be asked to work with DCFS to create a safety plan for your child. Do not panic or become combative with the party asking you to agree to this plan – it is not an indictment against you as a parent, but a way DCFS can work to protect your child from a potentially-harmful situation. Work with your attorney and DCFS to create a safety plan that works for your child and you.

What Is a Safety Plan?

A safety plan is a set of actions that a child is to take if he or she feels he or she is in danger of harm. If DCFS determines during its investigation that a child cannot successfully carry out the actions of a safety plan, it might opt to remove the child from a household altogether. Examples of provisions that may be included in a safety plan include:

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 Posted on December 16, 2015 in Divorce

In the United States, every individual has the right to work with an attorney. For those who can not afford attorney fees, low-cost and even pro bono attorneys are available to represent their rights and interests in court. Despite the availability of low and no-cost divorce attorneys, some individuals still choose to represent themselves in court. These individuals are known as "pro se" litigants. Although you are certainly within your right to go to court as a pro se litigant, it is not in your best interest to do so. An experienced divorce attorney can explain all of your rights, your legal obligations, and the court processes that you will have to work through to you. Work with a divorce attorney to make the divorce process as smooth as possible.

You Do Not Know What to Say or How to Say It

Obviously, you need to tell the truth when you are under oath. You are under oath in all court hearings, depositions, and documents filed with the court. But when you are under oath, the statements that you make can sometimes be used against you. Your attorney can coach you about the difficult questions you might face and how to answer them without incriminating or misrepresenting yourself.

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 Posted on December 14, 2015 in Child Custody

Many individuals who work or interact with children are mandated reporters. This means that as part of their positions, they are required to report any suspicions of child abuse or neglect to the Illinois Department of Children & Family Services (DCFS). These individuals are held to this responsibility by the Abused and Neglected Child Reporting Act. Having DCFS investigate a report of suspected child abuse or neglect involving you can be at best, embarrassing and frustrating. At worst, it can be used to permanently alter you child custody or visitation order. Preserve your relationship with your child by having your case fairly represented in court by an experienced family attorney.

Mandated Reporters Include the Following:

Most individuals who work in health care, social work, education, and law enforcement are mandated reporters under Illinois law. The list of positions that require individuals to report cases of suspected child neglect and abuse included in the law is fairly exhaustive and includes, but is not limited to, the following positions:

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 Posted on December 09, 2015 in Child Custody

The prospect of a teenage son or daughter becoming a parent raises questions for an entire family. Where will the baby live? How will the baby's parents support him or her? And for many, who makes important financial, medical, and lifestyle decisions on the infant's behalf when his or her parents are minors themselves? Child custody decisions, whether they are in regard to your child or your grandchild, can be complicated.

Even Teen Parents Have Full Parental Rights for Their Children Unless These Rights Are Terminated by the Court

Even if your child is under the age of 18 and unable to make legal decisions for him- or herself, he or she has full parental rights to his or her child. These rights include the right to consent to medical care throughout the pregnancy and birth, the right to make medical decisions for the baby after it is born.

If the baby's parents do not live together, either may go to the court to seek a custody arrangement. Like all other custody arrangements, the court determines the best place for the baby to live according to multiple factors, such as:

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