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Recent Blog Posts
Building Your Parenting Plan During a Kane County Divorce
When parents get divorced, they are encouraged to work together to build a parenting plan that describes child custody arrangements. Parents who negotiate an agreement about the allocation of parental responsibilities and parenting time can avoid the stress and expense of child custody litigation. If you are getting divorced and you and your spouse are struggling with custody decisions, consider working with a mediator or family law attorney who can help you negotiate an agreement.
Parenting Agreements in Illinois
There is no one-size-fits-all parenting plan, but there are certain elements that are typically included in Illinois parenting plans. These elements can help ensure that the plan is comprehensive and meets the needs of both parents and children.
A comprehensive parenting plan should address:
- Allocation of parental responsibilities - Parental responsibilities refer to the parents' authority to make decisions about the child's education, extracurricular activities, healthcare, and religious upbringing. In some cases, one parent has full authority to make any and all significant decisions about the child, such as where the child goes to school or the types of medical treatments the child receives. In other cases, parents divide or share parental responsibilities. For example, one parent may make decisions about the child's education while the other parent makes decisions about the child's healthcare.
What Happens to the Family Business in an Illinois Divorce?
According to national statistics, approximately 90 percent of businesses in the United States are family-owned. These businesses are often the heart of communities, providing jobs and revenue sources, as well as services and products. Unfortunately, with the divorce rate as high as it is, when a couple who own a business decide to end their marriage, the impact their divorce can have on the business can be a significant one. This is why it is critical to have a skilled divorce attorney representing you if a family business is part of your martial estate.
Asset Division in a Divorce
Under Illinois divorce law, when a couple divorces, their martial estate is divided in an “equitable” manner. This is different from community property states that divide a couple’s assets 50/50. With equitable division, each spouse will receive an equitable share of their estate, although the dollar amount will not necessarily be exactly the same.
What Happens to My Estate Plan During and After My Illinois Divorce?
It is recommended that every adult have an estate plan in place, no matter what their financial status is. An estate plan stipulates what the person’s wishes are when it comes to the distribution of their assets when they die. There are different tools that can be incorporated into an estate plan, including wills and trusts. Unfortunately, one of the things that often get overlooked during and after a divorce is updating an estate plan. So what happens to these plans while the divorce is going on and once it is complete?
What Happens to the Will?
Under Illinois law, just because a spouse has filed a petition for divorce, there is no impact that filing on the estate plan while the process is playing out. This means that a spouse remains the beneficiary of a will until the court has entered a divorce decree. If a spouse was named the executor of the will, that too would remain in effect.
The last thing many people who have filed for divorce would want is their spouse to have control and/or to inherit from their estate should they die while the divorce is pending. But this is exactly what can happen if a divorce is not going to resolve quickly.
When Will a Court Appoint a Parenting Coordinator in an Illinois Custody Case?
By the time a couple has decided to get a divorce, the acrimony between them is often high. It is not uncommon for the contention between the two spouses to be so thick that they are even unable to have a civil conversation with each other. This can make negotiating divorce issues difficult. If the couple has children, this tension between them can make co-parenting impossible. In these situations, the court may decide to appoint a parenting coordinator.
Parenting Plan
When a divorcing couple does have children, a major part of the divorce settlement is the allocation of parental responsibilities and parenting time (previously referred to as child custody and visitation). In many divorces, the couple is able to civilly work through and come up with an agreeable parenting plan, usually with the help of their divorce attorneys. But if they cannot get to this point, the court will intervene.
How Are Assets and Property Divided in an Illinois Divorce?
One of the main components of a divorce is to divide the assets and property the couple have acquired during their marriage. Under Illinois law, this is done via “equitable distribution.” This means that the court will distribute the assets between the spouses in an equitable manner. Unlike community property states, which split the marital estate 50/50, Illinois courts focus on the division being a “fair” one, not necessarily and equal one.
Marital Property
Under the Illinois Marriage and Dissolution of Marriage Act, the state defines marital property as any property that is acquired by either spouse during the marriage, excluding inheritances or gifts. Other definitions of non-martial property under the law include:
- Any property that is acquired by a spouse after the court has entered a legal separation judgment.
- Any property that is specifically included by a legal agreement, such as documented in a prenuptial or postnuptial agreement.
New Report Reveals Troubling Domestic Violence Statistics in Illinois
The results of a new study released last week reveal that the number of calls to the Illinois Domestic Violence Hotline continues to increase each year while the number of domestic violence survivors reaching out to police for help has decreased. The study was conducted by The Network: Advocating Against Domestic Violence. The organization gathered data from a variety of sources, including public agencies, service providers, law enforcement, the Illinois Domestic Violence Hotline, the Department of Children and Family Services, and interviews with survivors.
Serious Statistics
According to the data collected, there were more than 32,000 calls made to the Illinois Domestic Violence Hotline, up by 9 percent from the year before. Although there was an increase in hotline contacts, the number of domestic violence survivors reaching out to police decreased by 5 percent. The reasons cited for that decline by survivors are alarming. Many said that there is a lack of support from law enforcement, including being met with denial by police and even accused of lying.
What Is the Best Interest of the Child in an Illinois Custody Case?
One of the main factors the court will use when deciding child custody in a divorce is what arrangement is in the best interest of the child. Over the past few decades, society’s – and the courts – have changed their understanding of what those best interest actually are. Although there is no “official” legal checklist the court checks off to meet that standard, there are elements the judge will look for when making his or her final decision.
The Age of the Child
The first thing the court will consider is the age of the child. The younger the child, the more “hands-on” care they need. In especially young children, the court may look at which parent has been the primary caretaker thus far, evaluating what type of bond has been established with each parent. In older children, the court may consider what type of arrangement the child prefers.
Parenting Ability
Another element the court will examine is the ability of each of the parents to meet not only the child’s physical needs – such as food, housing, clothing, etc. but also the child’s emotional needs. If a parent has issues with their emotional or physical health, the court may weigh that as well, if the issue would interfere with the parent’s ability to care for the child.
What Are Temporary Orders in an Illinois Divorce?
If you are thinking about ending your marriage – or have already made the decision to do so – there are likely many questions and concerns you have regarding the divorce process and what will happen during this process. For example, you may be worried about your spouse removing all the funds from any joint bank accounts you have. If you have children and the divorce is contentious, you may be concerned about your spouse making decisions about your children – such as changing their schools or even where they live – without consulting with you first.
In these situations, it is not uncommon for a judge to enter temporary orders in order to prevent either spouse from taking these types of actions without the other spouse’s knowledge.
What Types of Issues Can Temporary Orders Be Issued For?
Either party may request temporary orders – also referred to as temporary relief – regarding property or children. When the court approves a petition for temporary orders, the orders take effect immediately and remain in effect until the court either changes the orders or the divorce is finalized. It is important to remember that just because the judge issues a temporary order, this does not mean that what is in the order will be the same in the final divorce decree.
Protecting Your Finances in an Illinois Gray Divorce
One of the fastest-growing groups of people who divorce are those 50 years of age or older. Divorce involving older adults is commonly referred to as “gray divorce.” According to national statistics, since 1990, the rate of gray divorce has doubled. Currently, approximately 25 percent of all divorces that are filed each year in the U.S are by couples who fall into the gray divorce category. It is predicted that by the year 2030, there will be more than 828,000 gray divorces each year.
Impact of Gray Divorce
Unfortunately, study after study reveals that when an older person divorces, the emotional and financial impact of the marriage ending can be even more significant than for their younger counterparts. Older individuals are often left feeling they wasted their lives with the wrong spouse and fear they will end up living what is left of their life alone. Studies show that the levels of depression are higher for a person going through a gray divorce than it is for a person whose spouse has died.
My Ex Says I Have to Pay For Our Child’s College, Even if I Do Not Want To. Is This True?
A common frustration for many divorced parents in Illinois is the unavoidable fact that they can be ordered by an Illinois family law judge to pay child support for their adult child’s college expenses. While some parents are happy to support their children while they attend college, other parents might disagree with their child’s choice of major, the rising expense of college, or the idea of college as necessary in the first place. Other parents may be justifiably concerned that an ex is encouraging an adult child to attend university against the child’s wishes because they want to get under the other parent’s skin.
If you are divorced in Illinois and have questions about adult children and child support for educational expenses, read on and then contact a Kane County child support attorney who can help.
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