Posted on May 17, 2019 in Divorce

If you are thinking about ending your marriage, you may be completely unsure of where to start. If you are like most people, you probably never though you would be at this point when you first got married. The complexity and duration of your divorce will depend on the type of life you and your soon-to-be ex-spouse have built together, whether or not you have children, the assets and debt you have accumulated during the marriage, and more.

Because every divorce depends on the couple’s unique circumstances, there is no one-size-fits-all method for managing an efficient and minimally-stressful divorce. However, experts do have some advice for how to avoid common mistakes during the divorce process.

Only Considering the Short-Term Consequences of Your Decisions

Understandably, divorce is a highly emotional time for many people. If you are getting divorced, you may have to consciously remind yourself to make decisions that are best in the long run instead of decisions based on emotions. For example, some individuals are determined to fight their spouse for ownership of the house during a divorce. However, keeping the house may not be the best decision for everyone. Some people end up keeping the house but giving up a retirement plan account or other valuable investment or asset. This can result in them losing future investment-return gains and being cash-poor in the future. Some divorced individuals find that a large house and yard are too expensive to keep on their own anyway. In order to avoid this pitfall, it may be in your best interest to discuss your financial options with a professional.

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 Posted on May 08, 2019 in Divorce

Any divorce can be difficult, but certain complex investments or assets can significantly complicate the end of a marriage. If you are planning to divorce, you have probably already considered how certain assets will be divided between you and your soon-to-be ex-spouse. Apportioning bank account balances or figuring out whether or not to sell the family home can be a challenge, but other assets may be even more difficult to value and divide. Among these complex assets are Bitcoin and other types of cryptocurrency. Cryptocurrency is a relatively new form of currency which can be extremely hard to value. If you or your spouse have invested in cryptocurrency, read on to learn about how this investment could affect your Illinois divorce.

Virtual Currency May Be Considered a Separate Asset or Marital Asset Depending on the Circumstances

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 Posted on April 12, 2019 in Child Support

Child support is designed to help children with unmarried or divorced parents enjoy the same quality of life as if his or her parents were married. There are many misunderstanding about the child support laws in Illinois. Child support is a separate issue from parenting time (visitation) and parental responsibilities (custody). A parent who does not have any custody of a child may still be required to pay support. Court-ordered child support obligations may be changed, but only if the parent requesting the change meets certain criteria.

Recently Updated Child Support Laws

Illinois child support laws changed significantly in July 2017. Child support amounts are now calculated with an income shares model. Before this change, child support obligations in Illinois were calculated by taking the payor’s net income and applying a certain percentage based on the number of minor children. For example, if you had one minor child, 20 percent of your net income would go to the child’s other parent in support at minimum. Now, child support in Illinois is calculated using an income shares model. Under this model, the Court considers the combined net income of both parents as well as other factors to determine a fair and reasonable support order.

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 Posted on April 04, 2019 in Divorce

The National Domestic Violence Hotline reports that approximately three in 10 women and one in 10 men in the United States have been the victim of rape, physical violence, or stalking by romantic partner. It takes a tremendous amount of courage to leave an abusive relationship. Abusive spouses often convince their partners that they cannot lead a successful life without them. Perpetrators of abuse use put-downs, gaslighting, threats, intimidation, and more to maintain control over their partner and convince them not to leave. If you are considering divorcing an abusive spouse, you may be unsure of where to start. Read on to learn about divorce in Illinois and how you can protect yourself and your children from an abusive spouse.

Illinois is a “No Fault” State

In some states, married couples who wish to divorce must list a reason, or grounds, for why they are seeking the dissolution of marriage. Illinois, however, is a “no fault” state. This means that anyone can seek a divorce for any reason. Those wishing to end their marriage simply list “irreconcilable differences” as the grounds for the divorce. If your spouse has been abusive to you, you will not need to prove this in order to be granted a divorce. However, even though domestic abuse cannot be the grounds for a divorce, you will still have an opportunity to introduce evidence of your spouse’s violent, threatening, or demeaning behavior during the case.

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 Posted on March 23, 2019 in Child Custody

If you plan to divorce in Illinois and wish to share custody of your children with your soon-to-be-ex-spouse, you will be required to create a parenting agreement. Parenting agreements, also called parenting plans, create the foundation for post-divorce child custody and visitation. Divorcing parents who wish to pursue joint custody are required to sign a joint parenting agreement which outlines how they will share parental responsibilities and resolve disagreements as co-parents.

What to Include in Your Parenting Plan

There are certain elements an Illinois parenting plan must contain. At minimum, the Illinois Marriage and Dissolution of Marriage Act (750 ILCS 5) requires that a parenting plan include:

• A designation of the parent who will have the majority of parenting time and who will make most of the decisions about the child’s life;
• The child’s living arrangements and visitation schedule;

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 Posted on March 15, 2019 in Alimony

If you are divorced, you may have been ordered to pay your spouse spousal maintenance. Spousal maintenance, also called spousal support or alimony, is designed to help subsidize a financially-disadvantaged spouse after a divorce. For example, a stay-at-home parent who forgoes work outside the home to care for children is left at a serious disadvantage after divorce. Reentering the work force can be difficult or impossible after such a long absence. Depending on the health, employability, and life circumstances of an individual awarded spousal support, the support may be ordered to last indefinitely. Other times, support is only ordered temporarily.

There are several ways in which spousal maintenance obligations terminate or are available for modification. If you want to stop or modify court-ordered spousal support payments, it may be helpful to learn about Illinois spousal maintenance laws.

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 Posted on March 08, 2019 in Divorce

If you are considering divorce or have already decided to end your marriage, you probably have many questions. One of these questions may be about how your accumulated wealth and property will be divided during the divorce process. Television and movies are rife with examples of a resentful spouse getting more than their fair share during a divorce. However, Illinois courts do make every effort to make property division decisions as fairly as possible. If you are wondering how your property will be divided between you and your soon-to-be-ex spouse, read on to learn about Illinois equitable distribution laws.

If You and Your Spouse Agree on How to Divide Property

Illinois courts encourage divorcing couples to make their own decisions about property. If a couple can agree on who will get what after the divorce, there may be no need for court intervention. Understandably, some divorcing couples are not able to come to such an agreement. If you and your spouse cannot reach a settlement about property and debt, the courts will use a method called equitable distribution to make property decisions.

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 Posted on February 19, 2019 in Divorce

Social media has revolutionized the way we talk to our friends and loved ones. Most people who experience a major life change such as a marriage or birth of a child write about the event on their social media pages. Ideally, everyone would be able to post what they wanted to online without any negative consequences. Realistically, however, almost everything you do or say online could come back to cause problems for you during divorce. Those undergoing a separation or divorce should make sure to post with caution and avoid the most common social media blunders.

Bragging About Expensive Vacations or Other Purchases

You can inadvertently cause problems for yourself in the future by posting information about major purchases on social media during your divorce. If you are putting pictures up of a new car or computer, this will could your argument for spousal support. You may have been pinching pennies for a long time to afford your new things, but such posts can create the impression that you are making money “under the table” or are otherwise not being honest about your assets.

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 Posted on February 13, 2019 in Division of Property

As the old saying goes, he who has much has much to lose. Any divorce can be stressful and financially risky, but high net-worth divorces involve an increased risk. If you are someone with a high net worth or you own complex assets and plan to divorce, you should know that the road ahead may be bumpy. Fortunately, you do not have to face the complex world of high net-worth divorce alone. Divorces involving valuable and complex assets almost always require the skill and experience of a divorce attorney familiar with high-asset divorce.

World’s Richest Man to Divorce Wife

Jeff Bezos is mostly known for being the founder, CEO, chairman, and president of the retail giant Amazon. He has an estimated net worth of over $90 billion which makes him the world’s richest person. Bezos recently announced that he and his wife of 25 years are divorcing. The couple and their children live in Washington state which has slightly different laws about property distribution during divorce than Illinois.

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 Posted on February 05, 2019 in Divorce

Any divorce is challenging, but divorcing a spouse who struggles with an addiction can be especially legally complex and emotionally burdensome. For some, compulsive spending is a coping mechanism used to deal with negative emotions or memories. Studies show that purchasing a new item releases a feel-good hormone in the brain which is similar the effects of drugs and alcohol. Gambling addictions can occur when a person convinces themselves that the only way to fix their financial situation is to finally win big. Unfortunately, the big win rarely comes and the house always wins. If you plan to leave a spouse who sometimes acts in financially reckless ways, you should take steps to protect yourself personally and economically.

Separate Your Finances As Soon As Possible

When you decide to leave a spouse who is a compulsive shopper, gambling addict, or who may otherwise waste marital funds, you should take steps to separate your finances as soon as possible. Illinois state law dictates that only shared property, called marital property, will be divided during a divorce. Once you decide to divorce, you must make sure any assets you accumulate from then on will be considered separate property which is not subject to division. One way to accomplish this is to get a legal separation. Simply living apart is not the same as being legally separated and does not afford the same legal protections. Another way to protect yourself financially is to request a court order that prevents your spouse from accessing certain assets like saving accounts or retirement accounts.

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