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Due to increased government benefits, moratoriums on evictions, and certain government incentives to ease financial pressures in many households in 2021, total new bankruptcy filings across all chapters were 24.2% lower than in 2020.
Nonetheless, bankruptcy continues to be a complex legal proceeding involving a person or business that is unable to repay its outstanding debts.
What Are the Types of Bankruptcies?
Chapter 7: Liquidation
A Chapter 7 bankruptcy deals with cases also known as “no-asset cases” because there may not be an actual liquidation of the entire debtor’s assets. To qualify for a Chapter 7 bankruptcy, a debtor…
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A Guide to Moving Out of Illinois State with Kids After a Divorce
 
Many things can happen after a divorce. Perhaps you want to move to a new location and begin life afresh, or you have got a new job opportunity elsewhere. No matter the reasons for the move, it is imperative to know that Illinois has stringent laws concerning relocation of children after divorce.
Relocating may not be a simple step since you need to obey the law. If you have custody of the children, relocating could mean that the other parent will spend less time with the…
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By Joseph Silverstein

Evicting a tenant in Illinois requires a detailed legal process. Therefore, it is important for landlords to be patient and wait for the court to enter a formal eviction order providing possession of the unit versus taking voluntary possession.  Indeed, there are consequences that landlords can face if they take matters into their own hands and attempt to remove their tenant before the formal eviction proceedings have concluded. Further, landlords with units located in the City of Chicago must be aware that Chicago has its own unique laws with regard to eviction.

Section 5-12-060 of the Chicago Municipal…
Continue Reading Legal Update: Chicago Tenants Now Have Five Years to File a Lawsuit Against Landlords Who Unlawfully Enter into Their Unit to Take Possession

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DIFFERENT TYPES OF TRUSTS

Estate planning can be a very overwhelming process without the assistance of an attorney. One part of what can make this process complicated is the various types of Trusts that can be utilized depending on your specific situation. While the following types of trusts are not the only ones available, they are a few that may be applicable to your situation.

MARITAL DEDUCTION TRUST

This type of trust is applicable to those who are legally married and is very common for those in that situation. This type of trust allows for assets to be transferred…
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If you are currently on the hunt for your next home—and possibly your forever home—you are not alone. Since roughly the beginning of the COVID-19 health crisis, home prices have been on the rise, and the market has been historically hot. Experts expect the market to come back closer to normal over the next year or so, but there are no indicators that prices are coming down anytime soon.
With this in mind, you need to make sure that you fully understand what you are getting into when you submit a bid on a new home. As excited as…
Continue Reading Can You Really Afford That New Home?

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How can you, as a consumer, protect yourself from debt collectors using unfair, deceptive, or abusive practices to collect consumer debts? This is part3 of our 3 part series on debt collection practices. Today we discuss the rules and laws in place for debt collection actions. 

In an era where accessibility is everything and various forms of communication have now emerged, it’s easy to see how consumers can be more susceptible to abusive debt collectors.

Fortunately, under the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA), debt collector protocols are set out on what they can and cannot do when trying to…
Continue Reading Rules and Laws of Debt Collection

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How can you, as a consumer, protect yourself from debt collectors using unfair, deceptive, or abusive practices to collect consumer debts? This is part 2 of our 3 part series on debt collection practices. Today we discuss inappropriate behavior from a debt collector.
In an era where accessibility is everything and various forms of communication have now emerged, it’s easy to see how consumers can be more susceptible to abusive debt collectors.
Fortunately, under the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA), debt collector protocols are set out on what they can and cannot do when trying to collect a…
Continue Reading Inappropriate Behavior from a Debt Collector

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How can you, as a consumer, protect yourself from debt collectors using unfair, deceptive, or abusive practices to collect consumer debts?  We will have a 3 part series on diving into these topics.
In an era where accessibility is everything and various forms of communication have now emerged, it’s easy to see how consumers can be more susceptible to abusive debt collectors.
Fortunately, under the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA), debt collector protocols are set out on what they can and cannot do when trying to collect a debt. Moreover, the FDCPA gives rights to debtors who have…
Continue Reading Debt and Debt Collectors

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It’s not uncommon to consider divorce, even if you aren’t yet ready to get started on that process right away. Perhaps you still love your partner, but you can’t stand each other and so you want to know what it would feel like if you lived separately. Perhaps you can’t divorce due to your religion, but it’s time to live separate lives. Are you afraid of losing your health insurance, or other benefits, but you just can’t live together anymore?
Sometimes, divorce just isn’t what you want but you can’t be together. You may want to consider a legal …
Continue Reading A Legal Separation versus a Divorce in Illinois

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Homeownership comes with a lot of responsibility and a variety of unique tasks. One of the most important and vital aspects of maintaining your home is choosing the correct general contractor to help you with everything related to home improvements.
A general contractor, main contractor or also known as a prime contractor is responsible for coordinating and supervising a variety of projects, such as building public, residential, commercial, and industrial structures.
General contractors work closely with other building specialists, such as architects, civil engineers, and trades workers, including stonemasons, electricians, and carpenters. Depending on the project, construction managers may even…
Continue Reading Research a Contractor Before Hiring

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When you file for protection under the United States Bankruptcy Code, you may be able to stop creditors and bill collectors from harassing you for payments that you cannot afford. Depending on the type of bankruptcy you are filing, you may also be able to get a substantial portion of your debt discharged.
Whether you file under Chapter 7, Chapter 11, or Chapter 13, bankruptcy proceedings can be complicated and time-consuming, and it may be tempting to take shortcuts. Doing so, however, is incredibly dangerous and could lead to even more serious problems than not being able to pay…
Continue Reading The Dangers of Being Dishonest in Your Bankruptcy Case

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The moment when a loved one passes away feels, inevitably, insurmountable. Aside from the overwhelming feelings of trying to sort out funeral arrangements, the legal aspect of managing someone’s finances after they pass away can seem perplexing to a grieving family. Which brings up the question: What types of taxes are due when a person passes away?

Estate Tax (Federal and State)

An estate tax, also known as a “death tax’, is a tax on the net value of an estate of a deceased person. This usually occurs before the assets of an estate are distributed to the heirs.
Continue Reading What Types of Taxes are Due When a Person Passes Away?

By: Matthew O’Malley

The last 24 months have been unprecedented. Every industry and individual has been impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic. It is helpful to reflect on some of the lessons we can learn from this pandemic, and I have gained the following insight through my representation of condominiums and community associations in the Chicago-land area.

First and foremost, be reasonable. If you are serving on a Board or a unit owner, always try to work things out before anything escalates. Condos and HOAs are communities after all, and many times those who are in dispute are neighbors and have…
Continue Reading Two Years In: What Condominiums and Community Associations Can Learn from the COVID-19 Pandemic

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Cultural shifts in behavior and attitude have enabled people to understand the meaning of marriage. The same shifts have reduced the years’ long stigma associated with divorce. Over the past century, the US transitioned from a country where divorce was inconceivable to a land where it is a commonplace.
Although the divorce rate continues to decrease among adults between 16 – 65 years, an estimated 50% of new marriages end in divorce. Illinois boasts being one of the states with the lowest divorce rates. The Daily Northwestern indicated that only 6.6% of marriages in Illinois end in divorce.
Many…
Continue Reading Illinois Divorce – Contest vs. Uncontested

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If you have been paying any attention whatsoever to the real estate market, you probably realize that the last two years have been an uphill battle for homebuyers—and first-time homebuyers, in particular. At the very beginning of the COVID-19 health crisis in early 2020, the residential real estate market started somewhat sluggish, but it very quickly took off and has only gotten hotter since then. In late 2020 and through 2021, the housing market continued to sizzle, and existing-home sales hit their highest annual mark in 15 years, according to the National Association of Realtors (NAR).
The red-hot housing…
Continue Reading Experts Do Not Expect a Housing Market Slow Down in 2022

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Medical Decisions in a Parenting Plan
That marriages sometimes end in a separation or divorce is not news. And when they do, children are usually placed with one or both parents, who then have to decide about the child’s custody and – by extension – medical care.
In some states, judges may make these decisions, but in others, they are left up to the parents themselves. The problem arises when there is a disagreement between the two parties about how best to treat their child. In many cases, the issue of whether to allow a parent to make medical decisions…
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