Many people are familiar with the five stages of grief following the death of a loved one. A divorce, while not a death, is still a loss. The end of a marriage is so painful because it not only includes the loss of a partnership but also the loss of the dreams and commitments shared by the couple. Like death, divorce is life-altering for many, resulting in an array of emotions along with changes and challenges.  
When a couple decides to divorce, no matter how friendly the divorce begins, the process can be filled with landmines. Marital assets must…
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Many couples have found that behaviors by in-laws they might have considered a bit quirky before the marriage can quickly become intrusive. Unfortunately, there is no rule book for how to handle your in-laws after marriage, and while in-law troubles may not cause divorce, they can certainly be a contributing factor. The trouble may not be that a spouse’s in-laws behave badly but that the spouse resents the fact that a husband or wife is not giving first loyalty to the marriage during these squabbles.
Communication difficulties, poor conflict resolution, and a partner’s lack of respect all made it into…
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In most cases, during the allocation of parental responsibility, both parents want to see their children as often as possible. But what if your ex simply walks away after the divorce, perhaps even moving out of state, and makes no effort to see the children? What if you see your children waiting anxiously for their visitation time only to have your ex cancel time after time?
As heartbreaking as this is, are there any legal avenues for forcing a parent to take advantage of visitation time? The answer is probably “no.” Since visitation is considered a “right,” people cannot…
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Social media and divorce are increasingly linked. Perhaps the use—or misuse—of social media contributed to these divorces, or perhaps the progression of a divorce is impacted by the use of social media. Today, 67 percent of attorneys use social media evidence against the other spouse during divorce proceedings.  
Perhaps contributing to the divorce itself, 35 percent of couples say they argue about social media posts monthly, and a full one-fifth of married people admit to feeling jealous of their partner’s social media interactions. But could social media posts actually have an impact on how marital assets are divided during the…
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While the division of retirement accounts during an Illinois divorce can be complex, it can also be a crucial part of the division of assets process. Some spouses in the middle of a contentious divorce may simply walk away from their share of the retirement account just to have the matter over and done with. Other spouses may not believe the retirement account is worth enough to go through the headaches of splitting it.
Aside from the marital home, retirement accounts can be one of the most significant assets owned. Community property states divide marital assets—including retirement accounts—50/50.  Equitable division…
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Some domineering spouses will use the couple’s marital finances to assert control within the marriage. This control sometimes rises to the level of financial abuse. If your spouse has been restricting your access to marital funds, forcing you to deposit your salary into an account that only has his name on it, or strictly controlling your spending, he may fall into this category. If you are ready to leave your marriage, there are steps you should take before filing for divorce and while your divorce is in process. You must be represented by a strategic Dupage County, IL complex divorce…
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Deciding what type of medical and mental health care your child should receive is an important parental responsibility. If you and your spouse are always in agreement about what kind of care your child should have, allocating this parental responsibility might be fairly easy. Sharing the duty – and right – to sign medical consent forms for your child is the logical solution. However, if you and the other parent have major disagreements about important issues like whether to vaccinate your child or whether she should see a therapist, you might have a more difficult time allocating medical decision-making…
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Especially if you and your child’s other parent both work full-time, there will be times when neither parent can physically be with the child. Even if one of you is a stay-at-home parent, there may be occasions when you need someone other than your co-parent to take care of your child for a short amount of time. You may need to attend to a family emergency while your co-parent is out of town, or your co-parent may have a work event that is not child-friendly while you are out of town. It is wise to include both contingency and routine…
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Financial concerns prevent a lot of lower-earning spouses and homemakers from seeking the divorce they want. If you are financially dependent on your spouse, you might be worried about what would happen to your lifestyle – or even your ability to meet your basic needs – if you got divorced. Stay-at-home parents might have additional concerns about how their earning capacity might impact child custody decisions. Illinois offers legal protections for spouses who would be at a financial disadvantage during divorce. While you should discuss your concerns with a qualified Naperville, IL divorce attorney, you should also know that…
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When one parent has relocated – with or without the children – you will need to make a new parenting time schedule. Arranging to transport the children back and forth between each parent’s household can be quite a bit more difficult when the parents live far apart. Depending on the distance between the parents’ households, this might involve buying plane tickets and planning for your children to travel alone as unattended minors. If you had a 50/50 parenting time schedule before the relocation, you would probably not be able to adhere to that schedule anymore. A DuPage County, IL child…
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Generally, when a married person receives an inheritance, it is his or her separate property. Inherited money or property is excluded from the definition of marital property, which includes nearly anything either spouse acquires during the marriage. Inheritances are treated a bit differently under the law when it comes time to divide marital assets. When your family member or loved one chose to leave you an inheritance, she clearly meant for you to be the one to benefit from her gift. Otherwise, she would have named both you and your spouse in her will or trust. However, parts…
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Parenting time is usually one of the most hotly debated issues in a divorce. Rarely is a parent willing to relinquish time with his or her child, especially when the divorce is contentious. Although child custody orders are intended to be permanent, there are cases where a parenting time schedule needs to be changed at a later date. There are several reasons divorced parents might need a change in their child custody agreement or orders long after the divorce is finalized. If either parent’s or the child’s circumstances have changed substantially, you may be able to move for a modification…
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