Posted on March 24, 2016 in Main

NOTE: A new Illinois law governing how child support is calculated went into effect in July 2017. Please visit our child support page for details

The state of Illinois takes the obligation to ensure children are supported very seriously. As such, if you are divorced within the state and default on support payments, attorneys have many tools available to them to help collect unpaid child support arrearages. The most common method of doing so is wage garnishment, via your employer.

Why Garnishment?

In Illinois, wage garnishment is used to enforce a variety of court orders, though child support is the most common. It is seen as the most reliable way to obtain money from a parent who owes child support. Under Illinois law, unpaid child support becomes a judgment as a matter of law after 30 days from the date it was due. As such, it is not necessary to go back to court in order to issue a separate wage garnishment for unpaid child support.

Continue Reading ››

 Posted on March 17, 2016 in Main

No good parent wants their children removed from their home. However, if reasonable cause is given, it can happen. If you are placed in this horrible position, there is a specific procedure that is generally followed by the courts. Moreover, you are expected to comply. Therefore it is imperative that you understand your obligations and your rights during this difficult time.

Procedures Before the Dispositional Hearing

The end stage of the child protection process is referred to as the dispositional hearing. Before that, however, there are several different hearings to determine your fitness as a parent and whether or not your child's safety requires foster care.

The first hearing can occur as quickly as 48 hours after the child's removal, and it essentially assesses whether the child needs to be placed under the protection of the Department of Child & Family Services (DCFS). If the answer is no, then the child goes home with his or her parents and the file is closed. This finding is unusual, however; a judge will generally discover that there is at least reason to conduct an investigation.

Continue Reading ››

 Posted on March 10, 2016 in Main

Maintenance in Illinois usually takes the form of either a lump sum payment or periodic payments over a period of time. Under Illinois law maintenance terminates upon remarriage and/or cohabitation of the spouse receiving maintenance with an adult individual on a continuous conjugal basis.

Under Illinois law, once a marriage ceremony has been performed, spousal support terminates. Compared to a remarriage situation, support issues regarding cohabitation are more vague and complex. If one spouse can show that the other is living with someone else “on a resident, continuing conjugal basis,” then he or she can petition to have maintenance payments terminated. However, cohabitation is not as defined as remarriage.

The crux of the matter is that the two people in question must be living in a “de facto husband and wife relationship” to be considered cohabitating. There are many different factors that a court will consider when deciding whether this is in fact the case. Factors include:

Continue Reading ››

 Posted on March 03, 2016 in Main

Generally, Illinois law does not require that attorneys' fees be paid by one spouse or the other. However, there are situations in which a court may step in and award attorney fees to a spouse, especially if the financial situation in the marriage is significantly lopsided. In these situations, the burden is on the spouse needing help to show that he or she has no ability to pay an attorney.

The most well-known Illinois decision on this topic is In re Marriage of Earlywine, which was decided in 2013. Neither Earlywine had funds to hire a divorce attorney, but the husband's family loaned him enough to do so. The court held that since Mr. Earlywine now had a concrete advantage over his wife, he was obligated to contribute toward her attorney's fees so as to level the proverbial playing field. This was held despite the fact that a significant portion of the money had already been paid to Mr. Earlywine's attorney; the concept of a “level playing field” in divorce litigation was deemed more important in terms of public policy by the court.

Continue Reading ››

 Posted on February 26, 2016 in Main

An issue occasionally encountered in divorce is that a spouse will simply walk out, disappear or otherwise not cooperate or participate in the divorce proceedings. Hence, this can lead to issues obtaining a divorce decree. If your spouse cannot be located or contacted, it can be a little more difficult to obtain your divorce. Consulting an experienced family law attorney is advised.

Divorce by Publication

Divorce by publication is the process during which you place your notice of divorce in the newspaper or other publications that serve the area where your spouse was last known to reside. Once the court grants permission, you may then place the notice in the relevant publication for a specific period of weeks.

Divorce by Default

If your notice has run for the prescribed length of time with no results, and you have exhausted other possibilities in attempting to locate your spouse you are able to ask the court for a divorce at that time, as your spouse is presumed to have defaulted on his or her right to contest the filing.

Continue Reading ››

 Posted on February 19, 2016 in Main

NOTE: A new Illinois law governing how child support is calculated went into effect in July 2017. Please visit our child support page for details

With the recent significant changes to spousal support and parenting laws in Illinois, some may labor under a belief that the child support laws changed as well. In reality, the child support regulations have not changed in any major respect recently.

How Much Do I Pay?

Not every divorce involves child support payments; in rare situations, a judge may decide that one parent requires no additional income in order to provide a life that is in the best interests of the child. However, in the significant majority of cases, a judge will order the non-custodial parent to contribute monetarily based on the formula adopted by the state of Illinois.

Continue Reading ››

 Posted on February 12, 2016 in Main

When two people divorce, they may arrive at an acceptable settlement to allocate their property and other interests, including parenting time with children and an amount of support. However, this does not close the book on all marriage-related matters forever. It is possible in Illinois to make certain modifications to your divorce decree after a Judgment is entered, though not all issues may be reopened.

Spousal & Child Support

In Illinois, a modification to either spousal support or child support may be made if a “substantial change in circumstances” has taken place. Modifications usually occur when someone has either sustained a loss (for example, if the noncustodial parent is loses a job), or when someone has had their financial situation improve. However, it is important to remember that until a court rules on a motion for a modification, payments must continue as previously set. If a party ceased paying support, or began to pay less, it could result in a party filing a petition seeking contempt of court.

Continue Reading ››

 Posted on February 05, 2016 in Main

If you have adopted a foreign-born child, you may wish to go through a process called re-adoption after returning to Illinois. Though not required by law, re-adoption offers several benefits to both adoptive parents and the adopted child. Further, the process is usually a simple and happy occasion.

Reasons for Re-adopting

Perhaps the biggest reason for re-adopting is that the process ensures that any rights of the biological parents to the child are terminated. This will help protect against any potential issues, however rare they may be, that could arise in the future. Another benefit is that during the re-adoption process, the child's name can be legally changed. Frequently, adoptive parents desire to select their own name for their adopted child.

By re-adopting, documentation of the birth can be obtained simply by contacting the Illinois Vital Records. This is important because it avoids potential difficulty in obtaining the foreign adoption decree. Re-adoption allows for the creation of a Record of Foreign Birth, which is a legal and binding document that the adoptive parents receive upon the completion of the adoption. In order to acquire a Record of Foreign Birth, the adoptive parents must submit a Certified Illinois Certificate of Adoption and some other form of evidence of the child's date and place of birth, such as a certified copy of the original birth certificate.

Continue Reading ››

 Posted on January 28, 2016 in Main

Paternity can be established in a number of different ways under Illinois law. Establishing paternity is important because, once established, a court can allocate parental responsibilities (formerly known as custody), allocate parenting time, and order child support. The level of complexity in establishing paternity depends upon the particular circumstances of the individuals involved.

Paternity Determinations

Under Illinois law, paternity is established through any of the following means:

1. Marriage to or civil union with a child's biological mother at the time of birth or within 300 days prior to the child being born;
2. Marriage to the biological mother after birth and the father is listed on the child's birth certificate;
3. Court order of parentage or Department of Healthcare and Family Services (DHFS) administrative order of parentage; or

   Continue Reading ››

 Posted on January 15, 2016 in Main

At the beginning of the year, changes went into effect in Illinois related to the process for obtaining a divorce. The fault grounds for a divorce have been eliminated. Instead, divorces will be granted when irreconcilable differences exist in the marriage.

Elimination of Fault

Previously, divorce in Illinois could be based on some sort of fault by one of the parties. This included acts such as adultery or physical and/or mental cruelty. As 2016 begins, Illinois will no longer deal with these fault grounds for divorce. Instead, under Illinois law, couples can get divorced when it is shown that they have irreconcilable differences causing an irretrievable breakdown of the marriage. This means that prior efforts at reconciliation have been unsuccessful and future attempts are not practicable.

Irreconcilable differences exist when there is an inability of the couple to agree on basic, fundamental issues and there is no possibility of them ever agreeing. Issues that may lead to a finding of irreconcilable differences include, but are not limited to:

Continue Reading ››