Illinois parents want the best for their children, but they can disagree as to how much they should pay in child support. Courts use basic factors to calculate child support amounts, such as the child’s needs and financial resources; the parents’ financial resources...
family law
How courts determine parenting time in Illinois?
During a divorce, couples need to make major decisions regarding how their lives will look after the marriage ends. For parents, some of the most important ones involve how parental responsibilities are divided between the two parents. There are two different parts of...
Understanding your parenting plan
Custody cases are now referred to as parental responsibilities cases in Illinois. As part of your parental responsibilities case, you may have to draft a parenting plan. The purpose of a parenting plan is to lay out how you and your co-parent will share responsibility...
How to deal with social media in your divorce
Depending on the legal issues that you’re facing in your divorce, you might have to deal with a lot of kinds of evidence. You might have to put forth documentation and testimony to establish the marital standard of living, present evidence as to which assets are...
Domestic violence can become child abuse
For most of us, we believe that when a domestic abuse victim takes that momentous step to leave, we also believe that they are now safe. Unfortunately, according to recent research, fewer than 10% of domestic violence (DV) victims experience such safety. Indeed,...
When can you move with your child?
Divorced or separated parents may not always have the ability to exercise independence when they have children and there is an ongoing court case. Failure to comply with Illinois custody and visitation laws can have serious consequences. Moving allowed Illinois...
What is legal separation in Illinois?
Like many other states, Illinois has a formal process of legal separation. A legal separation involves a married couple who wishes to part ways going to court and asking for legal separation, rather than divorce. Unlike some states, in Illinois, legal separation does...
What impact does divorce have on your will?
You’ll have immediate concerns on your mind when you embark upon a divorce. Things like child custody and property division are likely to be among your priorities. Estate planning may not be at the forefront of your mind but it’s important to understand that the...
Divorce: the advantage of mediation for property division
Once a couple makes the decision to divorce, they’ll have a lot of issues to deal with. One of the more complex issues can be property division. If the divorce is contested, there may be disagreement and anger over who gets what or how much. But if the couple chooses...
Why is a financial affidavit important in an Illinois divorce?
During an Illinois divorce, people will likely understand the most prominent issues and topics that could lead to dispute. That might include spousal maintenance (also called alimony), child support, child custody, parenting time and property division. However, in...