Posted on June 21, 2023 in Family Law

When couples enter into a prenuptial agreement, they often want to include provisions related to property division and spousal support. However, some couples may also want child custody and visitation provisions. In Illinois, the state’s family law statutes do not allow couples to include child custody provisions in prenuptial agreements. If you need legal assistance in ensuring your prenuptial agreement is legally binding, contact a family lawyer to ensure you can create an ironclad prenup void of costly errors. 

How Are Child Custody Matters Handled in Illinois? 

Under Illinois law, decisions concerning child custody must be made with the best interests of the child in mind. The court has various considerations when making a custody determination, such as the child’s current relationship with their parents, the parent’s ability to care and provide for the child’s needs, and the age and gender of the child, among other things. While prenuptial agreements are designed to allow couples to make their own decisions about property rights and other financial matters when it comes to anything related to children, the law has determined this is an area that needs to be decided on an individual basis and, according to the child’s needs.

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 Posted on June 16, 2023 in Divorce

The divorce process in Illinois is both complex and emotional. Understanding the state's divorce requirements is important to navigate it effectively. Separation is a significant requirement, but it is often misinterpreted.

Requirement for Separation

Illinois law mandates that spouses either live apart for six months in separate homes or declare that their marriage has broken down irretrievably; all reconciliation attempts have failed, and any future attempts would not be in the family's best interest. This rule is intended to allow spouses to reconsider and potentially reconcile before proceeding with the divorce. The six-month rule does not mean that the parties must remain apart for six months before filing for divorce. It means that they must have been living separately for six months before the date of filing.

Grounds for Divorce

In January 2016, Illinois introduced a new law that only accepts "irreconcilable differences" as a reason for divorce. Earlier, fault-based divorces were allowed on grounds like adultery. In Illinois, the only grounds for divorce are irreconcilable differences, which means that the marriage has experienced an irretrievable breakdown. The judge will assume irreconcilable differences have been met if the spouses have lived separately for six consecutive months before the divorce judgment.

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 Posted on June 07, 2023 in Family Law

High-asset divorce cases are divorce cases involving significant wealth. These types of divorces are often much more complicated than a typical divorce. Property division, spousal maintenance, and other financial issues are often a significant source of this complication. However, child-related issues can also be difficult to handle in a high-asset divorce.

Maintaining a Child’s Lifestyle

In high-asset divorces, children often expect a certain standard of living because of the family's financial resources. The child may attend a private school, receive one-on-one tutoring, or participate in expensive extracurricular activities. Illinois courts seek to preserve a child's standard of living and avoid divorce consequences that negatively impact the child. After all, divorce is between the adults, not the child.

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 Posted on May 26, 2023 in Family Law

Divorcing parents have many different options for raising their children as divorced co-parents. For some divorcing spouses, it makes sense for one parent to take most or all the parenting responsibilities and parenting time. For example, if one parent works in another state, frequently travels outside the country, is incarcerated, or cannot provide a safe home for the children, sole custody may be in the child’s best interests.

In other cases, parents want to share responsibility for their child and ensure they both spend enough time with the child. Illinois law used to refer to this type of arrangement as joint custody. However, the language used in Illinois child custody laws has since been updated. A custody arrangement in which both parents have a relatively equal amount of parenting time is called shared parenting time.

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 Posted on May 24, 2023 in Divorce

Vacation homes are more than just a piece of real estate. Countless joyful memories were likely made in your vacation home, and the property has just as much sentimental value as it has financial value.

Understandably, disputes can arise when addressing ownership of a vacation home in an Illinois divorce. In this blog, we will discuss how vacation homes are handled during the divorce process and what you can do to receive personalized advice regarding property division issues and other divorce concerns.

Who Owns a Vacation Home if You Get Divorced?

Per Illinois law, marital property includes assets that either spouse purchased or otherwise obtained during the marriage. Property that was owned by a spouse before the marriage is usually non-marital property, but there are several exceptions.

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 Posted on May 11, 2023 in Family Law

In Illinois, alimony is referred to as spousal maintenance or spousal support. Maintenance payments relieve some of the financial burden created by divorce. The money may be used for housing, everyday expenses, or educational costs for a spouse who requires additional training or education to become financially self-sufficient after a divorce.

If you earn significantly less income than your spouse, you may wonder if you will be able to get alimony in your divorce. You may have been out of the workforce because you were a stay-at-home parent, homemaker, or simply relied on your spouse to provide the financial support you needed.

This blog will explain the main legal avenues through which a spouse can receive spousal maintenance, how spousal maintenance awards are calculated, and what the next steps are for anybody who wishes to pursue spousal maintenance during their Illinois divorce.

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 Posted on May 05, 2023 in Divorce

Many people move to the Chicago area to fulfill their dreams as creators. Actors, authors, musicians, artists, inventors, designers, and entrepreneurs flock to the Windy City and the surrounding regions, hoping to make a living from their unique creations.

Unsurprisingly, disputes regarding intellectual property are not uncommon in Illinois divorce cases - especially cases involving high-net-worth individuals.

If you are planning to divorce and you or your spouse have copyrights, patents, trademarks, contractual rights, royalties, or other intellectual property rights, make sure you understand how intellectual property is valued and distributed during divorce.

Intellectual Property May Be Considered Marital Property

Most people assume that a creator’s work is his or her property alone. However, Illinois law is clear regarding the classification of property: Any assets acquired during the marriage are marital property save for assets acquired through gift or inheritance. Assets acquired before the marriage or after legal separation are non-marital property. These rules apply to tangible assets such as real estate and bank accounts as well as intangible assets such as intellectual property rights.

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 Posted on April 28, 2023 in Divorce

High-asset divorce cases often involve significant financial intricacies not present in typical divorce cases. Financial issues can be relatively straightforward to sort out when both spouses are open and forthcoming about financial information. However, when a spouse undervalues their property, fails to disclose all sources of income, or otherwise withholds financial information, the case gets much more complicated.

Forensic accounting is a process during which financial information is analyzed to identify, appraise, and locate assets. If you or your spouse own high-value real estate, investments, business interests, or other complex assets and you plan to divorce, forensic accounting can be a useful tool during your divorce process.

Identifying Marital and Non-Marital Assets with Forensic Accounting

Marital assets are assets that were accumulated during the marriage. Non-marital assets include gifts, inheritances, and assets accumulated before the marriage.

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 Posted on April 26, 2023 in Divorce

The division of marital property is a crucial aspect of the divorce process. Most of the assets acquired by either spouse during the course of the marriage are considered marital property. This can include bank accounts, retirement funds, real estate, investment income, and household items such as clothes and furniture.

Most divorcing couples negotiate a property division settlement. However, if the spouses are unable to determine a property division arrangement they can both agree to, the court makes a decision based on Illinois equitable distribution laws.

The dissipation of assets occurs when a spouse destroys, wastes, or misuses assets immediately prior to or during a divorce. A dissipation of assets claim may be used to recover reimbursement for assets that are squandered by the other spouse.

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 Posted on April 21, 2023 in Family Law

If you are planning to divorce and you or your spouse has significant financial assets, it is important to know how this wealth can influence the divorce process. Not only are financial issues such as property division more complicated, wealth can also influence child support calculations. 

In Illinois, child support is typically based on a standard formula. However, Illinois courts may deviate from the typical formula and use other means of calculating child support in high-income divorce cases.

Child Support Guidelines and Deviations

Each state handles child support slightly differently. Until a few years ago, Illinois determined child support solely using the paying parent’s income. The amount a parent paid in child support was based on a simple percentage of his or her net income. In order to create a more equitable situation for both parents, child support is now based on both parents’ income.

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