Posted on June 21, 2017 in Child Custody and Support

Family courts do their best to be equitable in making decisions regarding child support, and they look to ensure that the amount ordered as payable is one that both parents can manage. Sometimes, however, payments are not made for a variety of reasons. Fortunately, there are safeguards in place that ensure that back child support or maintenance payments may be collected.

Notices of Withholding Income for Support

If you are not receiving your child support payments, you may contact Illinois’s Division of Child Support Services, or you may involve the family court where your divorce was handled. Either way, it is incumbent upon you to ask for back child support. If you can back up your claim, the court will enter an arrearage against the parent owing support. Usually, when a Uniform Order of Child Support is ordered, a Notice to Withhold Income for Support is sent to the employer of the paying parent, advising them to withhold a certain amount and forward it to the state. If an arrearage occurs, a new Notice must be sent to let the employer know that more must be taken out to cover it.

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 Posted on June 15, 2017 in Business Valuation

Divorce is complex; however, dividing property is often the most complicated aspect of a process that can take a long time. Nowhere is this better illustrated than in the procedure for valuing and dividing a family-owned business. Between personal preferences and the market rates, dividing the value of a business will often create major issues during the proceedings.

Valuation Basics

During a divorce, Illinois courts only have the ability to divide marital property. A family business usually qualifies if it is run by both spouses, or if one spouse owns a controlling interest—the rationale is that the spouse working there will bring home paychecks earned by improving the business’s value. If the business is deemed marital property, it must be valued so that it and the couple’s other assets can be divided equitably.

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 Posted on June 14, 2017 in Prenuptial and Postnuptial Agreements

Prenuptial agreements have become popular among marrying couples. One of the most-cited reasons for such an agreement—sometimes called a prenup—is that the couple wishes to prepare for the possibility of a divorce, in the event that it occurs.

Reasons for a Prenup

Divorces in Illinois are fairly common. According to the Illinois Department of Public Health, there were about 69,500 marriages and nearly 29,500 divorces in 2013. Given these statistics, a prenuptial agreement between the spouses that details what will happen if a divorce occurs may be prudent.

Another reason couples enter into a prenup is to protect children from a previous marriage or relationship. If one spouse has children and then gets married, even if the marriage lasts only a short time, the other spouse could walk away with a substantial amount of money that could otherwise be used for the benefit of the children.

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 Posted on June 09, 2017 in Mediation

Given the current backlog in Illinois courts, many couples are choosing to forego the traditional court case when they divorce, opting instead for alternative methods such as mediation or collaborative divorce. There are multiple reasons that many are choosing to eschew the courts, but perhaps the most common is because mediation is arguably easier and less time-consuming. However, it is not for every couple, and doing research on the issue will help you decide what is best for you.

Advantages of Mediation

For many couples, the advantages of mediation are numerous. If you and your spouse are able to discuss issues amicably, mediation can be cost-effective and efficient, as you will essentially be drawing up your own divorce decree. The mediator is simply there to guide you and advise on any relevant points of law. If this is possible for you and your soon-to-be-ex spouse, you may be able to avoid the significant time and money investment, to say nothing of the psychological cost, of going to court.

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 Posted on June 07, 2017 in Child Custody and Support

Often, the number one fear of parents contemplating or currently going through a divorce is that it will negatively affect the children. Unfortunately, there is no silver bullet cure for the pain caused by ending a marriage. Getting a divorce is complicated and messy, but this upheaval does not last forever. There are steps you can take to lessen the burden on your children and help them to not only navigate this new family structure but to thrive in it.

Staying Together May Be Doing More Harm Than Good

Some couples consider divorce completely out of the question and commit to “staying together for the kids” even if they are obviously miserable together. Such couples believe that the children living with both parents at the same time is better for them than a shared custody arrangement. Research has shown, however, that children who live in a home with fighting, arguing, and tension are deeply hurt by this.

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 Posted on May 31, 2017 in Family Law

In juvenile court, it is sadly not uncommon for parental rights to be terminated if doing so is deemed to be in the best interests of their children. Parents with a history of violence or substance abuse problems, among others, may be deemed unfit. However, the system does not always shut the door irrevocably. If a parent is able to demonstrate that he or she has changed and that it would now be in the best interest of the child to allow the parent to have time with the child, there may be a way to get it.

Each State Has Its Own Laws

Most states do not permit restoration of parental rights in any but the most unusual cases. Illinois is one of nine states that does have a procedure to restore parental rights in certain situations; the other 41 generally do not. The general prevailing view is that certain faults can be corrected if proof of a significant change in circumstances is shown.

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 Posted on May 29, 2017 in Property Division

When we were children, we were taught that the fairest way to divide things between two people is to split them equally. If each person gets an equal share of the treats or important items, in theory, no one can complain about inequality. There are, however, situations in life where equal distribution is not actually the fairest choice. Illinois and many other states prefer the theory of equitable distribution when it comes to marital assets during a divorce. While this approach can cause some obstacles in divorce asset division, it is generally worth the trouble.

Trends in State Law

There are different methods that divorce courts may use to divide the assets acquired during a marriage. As a general rule, most state courts favor property settlements that allow both spouses to live as close to the standard of living enjoyed during the marriage as possible, and depending on the amount of assets between the parties, this may not be possible in many situations.

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 Posted on May 26, 2017 in Adoption

Adoption has become a fairly common way to expand one’s family in this day and age. In many cases, children are adopted from foster care, but occasionally, an adult may decide to adopt a member of their own family for a variety of reasons. While this may sound unusual, it is more common than many believe, and it can be a faster way to remove a child from an uncertain situation, giving them a stable home. If you are considering this option, it can help to be familiar with the process.

Parental Rights Issues

The primary concern in such cases is whether or not the biological mother and father have abandoned or signed away their parental rights, or whether they are still the legal custodians of the child in question. The Illinois Adoption Act holds that both parents must waive their rights before a child can be adopted by anyone, and this does apply to a parent who has been inactive in a child’s life. For example, an absent father has the right to decline his consent to the adoption if he can be located. Usually, this means that you must show due diligence in your attempts to locate the father, with the matter being considered closed if you are unsuccessful after six months to one year.

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 Posted on May 24, 2017 in Paternity

It is a common—albeit somewhat of a stereotype--trope that when a child is born, it is the mother who will have to seek the biological father out and hector him into formally acknowledging legal paternity. However, this does a disservice to the millions of fathers who actively wish to be involved in their children’s lives yet are discouraged or dissuaded from acknowledging paternity or are actively turned away from trying to claim a child as their own. If you want to be involved in your child’s life, but are facing resistance or problems, you do have options you can use to pursue the matter.

What Are My Rights?

In some cases, acknowledging paternity of your child can be very easy. When the baby is born, you and the mother—if you are unmarried—will have the opportunity to complete a voluntary acknowledgment of paternity (VAP) form. While there are other opportunities to establish paternity, this is by far the quickest and easiest method if the child’s mother is cooperative with your efforts. It is extremely important to realize, however, that completing a VAP form does not entitle you to any custodial rights regarding nor to any guaranteed parenting time. It establishes a legal parent-child relationship, but it does not make any other guarantees.

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 Posted on May 19, 2017 in Property Division

It is a very common scenario for a couple to divorce after putting a retirement plan in place. What many do not realize, however, is that certain instruments are not divisible under the sole authority of a divorce decree. Many retirement accounts require an instrument referred to as a Qualified Domestic Relations Order (QDRO). It is important to be aware of which assets may require a QDRO, as failure to appreciate this necessity could have severe tax consequences.  

Definitions and Terms

Some retirement instruments may be divided or disbursed under the terms of your divorce decree. The most common example of these would be an Individual Retirement Account (IRA). An IRA is an investment account usually opened by an individual or small business to hold the proceeds of other assets such as stocks or mutual funds. However, most accounts or instruments that are specifically designed for retirement must be handled through the use of a QDRO. The QDRO may be addressed in the divorce agreement, but the relevant asset cannot be disbursed via the divorce agreement itself.

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