Recent Blog Posts
What Is the Difference Between Divorce and Legal Separation?
Many married couples experience relationship issues at some point, and while many disagreements can be resolved, others may cause one or both spouses to consider ending their marriage. For some couples, divorce is the best solution, while others may be able to repair their relationship and stay married. However, some people fall somewhere in the middle, where they may be considering getting divorced but do not yet know whether ending their marriage is the right choice. In these cases, a couple may pursue a trial separation while they determine whether to get divorced, or they may make plans to live separately on a more permanent basis without legally ending their marriage. When doing so, it can be beneficial to pursue a legal separation.
What Is Legal Separation?
A temporary or permanent separation will often leave spouses uncertain about their rights, and arguments or disputes may arise over how various issues will be handled, especially if the couple has children. By pursuing a legal separation, a couple can put an agreement in place that will address these issues. In essence, a legal separation can cover most of the issues that would be addressed during a divorce, but the couple will continue to be legally married.
What Are the Benefits of Establishing Paternity for a Child?
According to Illinois law, if a child’s parents are married at the time of birth, the mother’s spouse will be presumed to be the child’s legal parent. However, there are many situations where a child’s parents may be unmarried, and in these cases, paternity will need to be legally established before a man will be recognized as the child’s legal father. This can often be done fairly easily, but some cases may involve complex legal issues, and either or both parents may need to work with a family law attorney to ensure that their rights and their child’s best interests will be protected.
Benefits of Paternity for Children and Parents
If a child’s parents are unmarried, but they agree that a man is the child’s biological father, the parents can fill out and sign a form known as a Voluntary Acknowledgment of Paternity (VAP). This form can usually be obtained from the hospital where a child was born, but it may also be available at a county clerk’s office or the Illinois Department of Human Services, and a VAP can be completed and signed at any time during the child’s life.
Should the Right of First Refusal Be Included in My Parenting Plan?
During the divorce process, married couples who have children will need to address multiple types of legal issues related to child custody. The decisions made will be set down in a document known as a “parenting plan,” which will be part of the couple’s divorce decree. A parenting plan will state how parents will share the responsibility of making decisions about their children’s upbringing, and it will also include a schedule for the parenting time that children will spend with each parent. It can also address any other issues related to the couple’s children and the ways the parties will work together as co-parents. One issue that parents may want to address is the right of first refusal.
What Is the Right of First Refusal?
How Can I Protect My Family Business During My Divorce?
During your divorce, determining how you and your spouse will divide the property you own is going to be a major concern. This is especially true if you are a business owner. Your business not only represents the investment of time and resources needed to make sure it can be successful, but it may also be your main source of income. To avoid losing a business you have put so much of yourself into and being required to find employment elsewhere, you will want to determine how you can maintain ownership of your business and continue to operate it successfully after your divorce.
Business Valuation and Asset Division
One of the most important things you will need to do during the divorce process is to establish the full value of your business assets. With an understanding of how much your business is worth, you can calculate the total value of your marital estate, which includes all the assets and debts you and your spouse have acquired while you were married.
How Long Will Spousal Support Be Paid After My Divorce?
Getting a divorce can lead to a variety of financial difficulties for both you and your spouse. In addition to addressing the costs of the divorce process itself, you will both need to determine how you will be able to meet your needs based on a single income rather than a combined income. This adjustment may be especially difficult for a person who relied on their spouse as the family’s primary income earner. A spouse who is at a financial disadvantage may be able to receive spousal support. In these cases, the parties will want to be sure to understand how the amount of support will be calculated and how long the payments will last.
Determining the Duration of Spousal Support Payments
Illinois law uses the term “spousal maintenance” for payments made by one spouse to the other following their divorce. Typically, spousal maintenance will be awarded if one spouse needs support to ensure that they can maintain the standard of living they had during their marriage. Spouses may agree that spousal support will be paid when they create a divorce settlement, or in cases where litigation will be required to resolve divorce-related issues, a judge may choose to award maintenance to one spouse after considering factors such as the parties’ financial resources and ongoing needs, whether one spouse made sacrifices during their marriage that affected their career, and whether one party helped the other obtain education or otherwise assisted in their career advancement.
Will I Need a QDRO to Divide Retirement Assets During My Divorce?
Married couples who choose to get a divorce will need to address many different legal and financial issues related to the income they earn and the property they own. Determining how to divide marital property can often be a complex process, especially for couples who own significant assets. In addition to dividing physical property and financial accounts, couples may also need to address retirement savings and pension benefits. When dividing certain types of retirement assets, couples will want to use a Qualified Domestic Relations Order (QDRO).
What Is a QDRO?
A Qualified Domestic Relations Order is a court order that instructs the administrator of a retirement plan to make payments to someone other than the plan holder. QDROs can be used to divide the funds in certain types of retirement savings accounts and to allocate pension payments.
Does Cheating Affect How Much Marital Property You Receive in an Illinois Divorce?
When a married couple joins their lives, they also join their finances. If a married couple divorces, they must divide property such as bank account balances, real estate, and business earnings. They will also divide liabilities such as credit card debt. Then the division of marital property and debt can be quite complicated – personally and legally. This is especially true if a spouse spent money on an extramarital affair. Depending on when and how money was spent, the spouse who was cheated on may be entitled to a larger share of marital property in a divorce.
Dissipation of Assets During an Affair
Illinois State does not recognize any fault-based grounds for divorce. Typically, the reason that a marriage is ending has little impact on the outcome of the divorce. However, this is not true if a spouse spent a considerable amount of money to finance an extramarital affair.
Illinois Bill Would Make it a Felony if Police Dog Killed in DUI Crash
Driving under the influence (DUI) is penalized heavily in Illinois – especially if another person is hurt or killed in an accident caused by an intoxicated driver. If great bodily harm results from a DUI car crash, the driver may face felony charges for aggravated DUI and up to three years in prison. If death results from a DUI accident, the driver faces a prison sentence of up to seven years. However, DUI resulting in the death of an animal is not currently an offense under Illinois law. Proponents of House Bill 3019 hope to change this.
Death of Illinois Police Dog Prompts New Bill
Illinois Deputy Robert Rosenkranz was in the middle of a routine traffic stop when an allegedly intoxicated driver struck the back of his police cruiser. The officer’s police K9 “Loki” was in the backseat of the police car. Unfortunately, the dog did not survive the accident. The loss of Loki represented a personal loss to the officers who worked alongside the K9 officer. It also meant losing the many years of training that went into teaching Loki to perform K9 duties. In response to Loki’s death, State Representative Joe Sosnowski filed a bill to make killing a police dog an elevated offense under Illinois law.
My Ex Is Not Paying Child Support. What Can I Do?
Did you know that the total cost of raising a child to adulthood is estimated at over a quarter of a million dollars? Covering housing, food, and other costs without help from the child’s other parent can be extremely difficult if not impossible. Parents have not only an ethical responsibility but also a legal responsibility to financially support their children. Child support is the mechanism through which parents share child-related costs in Illinois. Read on to learn what you can do if your ex is not paying child support.
Establish a Child Support Court Order
Some parents assume that they do not need a formal child support court order, so they make a casual arrangement with the other parent. Perhaps your child’s other parent was giving you funds to help pay for housing or childcare on a weekly or monthly basis but has suddenly stopped. Unfortunately, the court cannot enforce a handshake child support agreement.
Situations in Which DUI Is a Felony Offense in Illinois
The act of drinking and driving is taken seriously by Illinois courts. As a result, the penalties for driving under the influence (DUI) include both administrative and criminal consequences. A first or second DUI is typically a misdemeanor offense in Illinois. While a misdemeanor conviction will still result in heavy fines, a driver’s license suspension of one year, and possibly jail time, felony DUI is punished much more harshly. A third or subsequent conviction for drunk driving or DUI involving certain aggravating factors is considered a felony offense in Illinois. If you are convicted of felony DUI, you could face years in prison and other life-changing consequences.
Receiving a Third, Fourth, or Fifth DUI Conviction
First and second DUIs are typically misdemeanor offenses in Illinois. Many individuals can avoid significant jail time and eventually regain their driving privileges after a first or second DUI. However, if a driver is convicted of driving under the influence for the third time, the penalties increase significantly. A third DUI is a Class 2 felony “aggravated DUI” punishable by three to seven years of imprisonment, a maximum fine of $25,000, and a 10-year driver’s license suspension. A fourth DUI is also punishable by three to seven years in prison and the offense is non-probational. A fifth DUI is a non-probational Class 1 felony punishable by a maximum prison sentence of 15 years. Fourth or fifth DUI convictions also result in a lifetime suspension of the offender’s driving privileges.
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Will County Divorce Attorney, Plainfield Residential Real Estate Lawyer
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