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Recent Blog Posts
What if a Self-Employed Spouse Lies About Income During Divorce?
Divorcing spouses’ income and assets influence everything from property division to child support. Whether a divorcing couple reaches a negotiated divorce settlement or the case goes to court, the spouses can only make informed decisions if both parties disclose full, accurate financial information. Spouses may try to sway the divorce in their favor by underreporting their income, inflating expenses or debt, or lying about assets. This type of financial deception is often especially easy for self-employed spouses.
False income information can heavily influence the case. Lying on official court documents is also unlawful. If you are getting divorced, honest, complete financial disclosure is a must.
Determining a Spouse’s Self-Employment Income During Divorce
If your spouse is self-employed, you may worry that he or she will lie about the amount of money he or she makes. Some spouses try to lower their spousal maintenance or child support obligations by understating their income. Conversely, spouses may try to get more support than they deserve by pretending to be less financially successful than they actually are. Spouses may also underreport income to influence property division.
Can I Kick My Spouse Out of Our Shared Home During Divorce?
Most couples that separate or divorce live in separate homes while the divorce is ongoing. However, some spouses refuse to move out—even if the marriage has become intolerable. If you are seeking a divorce and your spouse refuses to leave your home, you may wonder if you can kick your spouse out or have them evicted. In Illinois, a spouse may be able to seek exclusive possession of the marital home under certain circumstances. Read on to learn more.
Evicting a Spouse Through a Motion for Exclusive Possession of the Marital Residence
Divorce is usually a tense process, but sometimes that tension escalates to a point that is unsafe. Hostility during divorce can damage the mental wellbeing of the spouses and their children.
If living together in the same home as your soon-to-be-ex-spouse has become intolerable and he or she refuses to move out, you may be able to file a motion for exclusive possession of your home. If granted, the order will force your spouse to move out. However, Illinois courts only grant motions for exclusive possession if there is legitimate danger to either spouse or the children. Mere tension, awkwardness, or stress may not be satisfactory reasons.
Three Financial Concerns to Be Aware of in Your Illinois Divorce
Often, the emotional and personal fallout caused by the split gets the lion’s share of attention during divorce. However, divorcing spouses must also consider the financial consequences of the split. Divorce can dramatically impact your personal finances. Furthermore, mistakes during the process can lead to avoidable financial losses and extra stress for both parties. If you are getting divorced, make sure you consider the following financial concerns.
Marital Debt Can Haunt Spouses Long After the Split
When you get divorced, you and your spouse will need to address your shared property as well as your shared debts. Per Illinois’s equitable distribution laws, most debts accumulated by either spouse during the marriage are marital debts for which both parties are responsible. Those financial obligations do not terminate when the couple divorces. Spouses who divide joint debt between each other may still be pursued by creditors if the other spouse fails to make his or her payments on time – even after the divorce is finalized. This is why many financial experts encourage divorcing spouses to pay off debts during the divorce by selling other assets.
Do I Have to Share My Retirement Funds With My Spouse in a Divorce?
Saving for retirement is a top concern for many working adults. Many people dream of living out their golden years enjoying hobbies and spending time with loved ones. Understandably, divorcing spouses often wonder if their divorce will threaten their retirement plans. They question whether retirement funds that they earned on their own are considered shared property for the purposes of divorce.
Classification of Retirement Accounts in an Illinois Divorce
There are two main categories of property in an Illinois divorce case: marital property and non-marital or separate property. Almost every asset or debt that a spouse acquires during the marriage is a marital asset or debt. Property acquired through inheritance or gift are two notable exceptions. Assets and debts that a spouse had before the marriage are classified as non-marital.
Do I Qualify for Alimony in My Rolling Meadows Divorce Case?
The financial impact of divorce can often be just as devastating as the personal impact of the split. Many divorcing individuals worry about how they will make ends meet after they are no longer marred. This is often especially true for stay-at-home parents or spouses who have been out of the workforce for a long time. If you are getting divorced, you may wonder if you can get alimony, or as it is called in Illinois, spousal maintenance. Spousal maintenance can be a valuable source of financial assistance after a divorce, however, this support is not guaranteed. Read on to learn how a divorcing spouse can pursue financial support in the form of spousal maintenance in an Illinois divorce.
When Can a Divorcing Spouse Get Spousal Maintenance?
Alimony or spousal maintenance is not automatically granted in a divorce. There are two main ways that a spouse may receive maintenance payments: an agreement between the divorcing spouses or a court order. If you and your spouse do not already have a prenuptial agreement or other agreement entitling you to maintenance, you can petition the court for maintenance.
Three Tips for a Stay-at-Home Parent Getting Divorced in Illinois
Stay-at-home mothers in Illinois often find themselves wondering how they could ever get a divorce when they are not working. Even in a happy marriage, the idea of not being able to leave if necessary can be suffocating. Yet homemakers in Illinois successfully pursue divorce every day, and you may be surprised to learn that there are options available to help you leave a bad situation. If you are a stay-at-home parent and considering divorce, here are three quick tips to help you move through the divorce process more easily.
Collect As Many Important Documents As You Can
Stay-at-home parents frequently do not handle the family finances. Although you may be the one doing the grocery shopping and sticking to a strict budget, you may not have all the information you need about your family’s financial affairs. Start gathering bank statements, mortgage statements, bills, retirement account information, pay stubs, tax returns, and any other documents you can get. More information is always better, especially if you anticipate that your spouse may try to make it difficult to get access to documents.
Three Possible Tax Implications of Getting Divorced in Illinois
When divorcing spouses in Illinois are negotiating fiscal issues like spousal maintenance and marital asset distribution, tax implications should never be far from mind. Divorce arrangements can differ significantly in terms of how much tax spouses will be paying or saving, and a divorce decree should never be finalized without understanding exactly what it means for your finances. Here are three areas to keep an eye on.
Child Dependents
When spouses are married, they claim their children jointly on their tax returns. After a divorce is finalized, only one parent can claim a child each year. Spouses who can work together can come up with any agreement that makes sense for them. Perhaps spouses switch off years, or certain children are always claimed by a certain spouse. Whatever the arrangement is, be sure to put it in writing so you do not accidentally trigger an IRS audit by both claiming the same child.
Asset Sales and Transfers
Debunking Three Common Myths About Men and Divorce
During the 1970s, the introduction of no-fault divorce laws in the United States made it much easier to get divorced and divorce rates subsequently skyrocketed. For many people, this was an unalloyed good; getting out of difficult or abusive marriages became much easier. But for decades, divorce laws definitively favored the mother when children were involved. Mothers often automatically received full custody and fathers had to fight an uphill battle in court to gain access to their children.
Today, divorce laws in Illinois are gender neutral and it is much easier for men to have shared parenting time and parental responsibilities. Nevertheless, myths about men in divorce persist. If you are a man seeking father’s rights in Illinois, here are three common myths and the truth about them.
Three Ways Mediation Can Help Your Illinois Divorce Move Faster
For most couples, divorce is a contentious process. Many years of hurt often culminate in divorce proceedings where the gloves come off and couples use issues like property division and parenting time as a proxy arena in which to hash out their personal differences. But taking this approach hurts everyone, especially if there are children involved, and can lead to a hostile divorce that takes much longer.
One solution to help couples avoid overly antagonistic divorce is called mediation. During mediation, a neutral third party who is specially trained in Illinois law helps divorcing couples discuss their differences with a focus on finding solutions. Mediation is not a perfect or easy process, but it can help a divorce move much faster - and therefore cost much less. Here are three ways mediation may help divorcing couples save time and get the divorce over sooner.
What is the Process of Divorce Mediation Like in Illinois?
While getting divorced is rarely easy, it does not always have to be a big fight that results in long, expensive court battles. Illinois encourages divorcing couples to pursue alternative dispute resolution strategies like mediation because both spouses tend to be more satisfied with the result.
What is Mediation in an Illinois Divorce?
Mediation is a process during which both spouses meet with a trained, impartial party (called the “mediator”) to talk about and negotiate issues in a divorce. These include, but are not limited to:
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