When parents decide to proceed with a divorce, many changes to the family occur. From dividing assets to child support, a divorce decree is set to ensure that both spouses continue their financial obligations to the family. Child support orders are set based on the financial health of both parents during the time of the marriage dissolution. However, finances, jobs, and spending habits change over the course of a person’s life. If a change in your financial situation has left you unable to afford your child support payments, you may be eligible to alter your child support order. 

Step 1: Find a Skilled Family Attorney 

Changing a child support order can be a difficult process. A divorce decree is a legally binding document, so a person cannot just hold off on making payments that align with a court order. When a person becomes unable to afford their child support, it is important to first reach out to a family attorney who can walk a parent through the process of petitioning for a change. A lawyer can help navigate the legal process of modifying child support in a timely and legally correct manner. 

Step 2: Prepare Your Financials 

If you are looking to petition for a change in child support and have found a trustworthy lawyer that you are prepared to work with, the next step is to prepare your financial documentation. The court will need to see proof of your financial change that resulted in an inability to afford payments. A lawyer can be handy during this process. Your lawyer will be able to help select the best documentation that represents your case and file it correctly during your petition. Were you fired from your job? Did you suffer from a recent salary cut? Do you have new expenses such as medical payments that prevent you from affording your child support? There must be documentation to show the situation at hand clearly. 

 The process of adopting a child can be one of the most rewarding experiences of a family’s life. The potential for adding to your family is both exciting and stressful, especially considering the many difficulties of navigating the adoption process. Due to the significance of adopting a child, the state and adoption agencies may require prospective adoptive families to undergo studies and tests to ensure that the adoptive child is the best fit for that family, including a home study on the family members. Here are some of the most common reasons a family may not pass the home study during an adoption. 

A Parent Has a Criminal History 

During the home study, adoption agencies are looking for parents who will be the best role models for their kids. Although a criminal history, including felony or misdemeanor convictions, is not always representative of who a person is, an adoption agency may feel that a parent with a criminal background is not the best fit for a child. As long as a parent is truthful regarding their background, most minor charges will not prevent them from adopting. However, adoption is usually prohibited for people with convictions for sex crimes involving a child or child abuse charges. 

Other Family Members in the Home 

The state and agencies consider all family members living in the home during the home study. This can include other children, aunts, uncles, nannies, or grandparents. It is important to take into account the entire dynamic of a home before another child is added into the equation. For example, if there are other children in the family that express an inability to accept an adoptive sibling, or if another person in the home has a criminal background, adoption agencies may feel it would be in the child’s best interest to be placed elsewhere. 

When a parent-child relationship is officially established through birth or a paternity action, the parent gains parental rights. Among these rights are the right to seek parental responsibilities and parenting time. In some situations, these rights are terminated either voluntarily or involuntarily. Illinois courts consider the parent-child relationship to be one the most sacred relationships in a child’s life. Because all child-related family law decisions are made with the child’s best interests at heart, parental rights are only terminated in a narrow set of circumstances.

Giving Up Your Parental Rights Voluntarily

Voluntary termination of parental rights usually coincides with an adoption case. Children may only have two parents. If a stepparent, grandparent, or other adult wishes to adopt a child, the child’s parent may need to give up his or her parental rights to allow the adoption to proceed. Once parental rights are terminated, the parent loses the right to parenting time with the child. The parent is also absolved of his or her child support obligation.

Involuntary Termination of Parental Rights Due to Parental Unfitness

Parental rights may be terminated against a parent’s will if the parent is found to be “unfit.” This is considered a last resort. Parents are only declared unfit if it can be demonstrated that the parent having contact with the child is not in the child’s best interests. There must be ample evidence of a parent’s inability to care for the child and keep the child safe.

In Illinois, both spouses have a right to a fair share of any property considered marital property. In most cases, the marital home is considered marital property. It can be difficult to know what to do with your house or condo during divorce. Should you fight to keep the home in order to retain some sense of normalcy? Should you sell the home and use the proceeds to benefit your post-divorce life? Should one spouse buy out the other spouse’s share of the home? If you are unsure of what to do with the marital home during your divorce, ask yourself the following questions.

What is My Home Worth?

If you are getting divorced and you are unsure of how to address the marital home, the first step is to get the home professionally appraised. You cannot make a sound decision about what to do until you know what the home is worth.

Can I Afford to Keep the Home?

Once you know what your home is worth, you can start to consider what it would cost to maintain the home. Can you afford to maintain the house and yard? What about the property taxes, HOA fees, and insurance? Does the home have roof damage or other problems that will need to be repaired in the next several years?

When a woman gives birth to a baby, she automatically becomes the child’s mother in the eyes of the law. However, the same is not true for fathers. In many cases, a father is not considered a child’s legal parent until paternity is established. You cannot put a father’s name on a birth certificate until paternity is established either through a VAP or other means. If you are a mother who wants to seek child support from the father, you will need to establish paternity before you can do so. One of the easiest ways to establish paternity is to sign a Voluntary Acknowledgement of Paternity (VAP).

What is a VAP?

A Voluntary Acknowledgement of Paternity (VAP) is a document that confirms paternity, or the legal parent relationship between a child and the father. Both parents must sign the VAP in front of a witness for it to be valid. If one of the parents refuses to sign the VAP document, it may not be used to establish paternity.