Posted on October 18, 2021 in Family Law

Married couples acquire all kinds of personal property and financial obligations during their relationships. When couples divorce, they often have to figure out how to split up their property and the debts that they share.

Under the Illinois equitable distribution standard, the goal of litigated property division is a fair outcome. Judges must review the property and debts a couple shares and the unique circumstances of their marriage to arrive at a decision regarding the distribution of both the property and the death.

Although people often focus on the division of property in a divorce, that can also be a major concern. If one spouse has substantial student loan debt, is that debt possibly divisible in the divorce?

When did that spouse incur the debt?

Like with assets, certain debts can be separate property that aren't subject to division by the court. Debts held prior to marriage will usually remain the sole responsibility of the spouse who incurred the debt.

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 Posted on October 16, 2021 in Child Custody

Raising children with your ex isn’t always easy, but it’s a fact of life for many people. Being able to come together as a parenting team can make this a bit less stressful. Successful co-parenting isn’t always simple, but the children usually benefit when parents can make it work.

One way that you can improve the situation is to remain positive. There are many things to consider if you want to make this work. One of the most important is to remember that the focus has to be on the children. Remembering that simple point may help to reduce the contention between you two considerably.

Take care of yourself

Taking care of yourself can reduce your stress. It might be hard to find time for yourself when you have the children with you, but you may have a better chance when your ex has the children. Feeling your best is usually possible if you eat a healthy diet, get some exercise, and take the time to rest.

Focus on good things with the children

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 Posted on October 11, 2021 in Divorce

It is only natural to feel distressed or frustrated at times during the divorce procedure. Separation is a major life event that can impact the family.

However, divorce can also be looked at in a positive light as a chance to build for the future. As a result, it may be beneficial to avoid behaving negatively toward your spouse if the temptation should arise. Outlined below are three negative behaviors that might be worth avoiding.

Attempting to hide marital assets

When tensions run high, spouses may be tempted to act out of spite. Occasionally, an individual may believe that spending marital assets or attempting to hide them will harm their spouse. However, behaving in such a manner is unlikely to assist anyone. In fact, the courts may deem this to be in violation of the law and could seek to restore balance by awarding the other party a greater share of marital properties.

Making disparaging public statements against your spouse

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 Posted on October 02, 2021 in Divorce

The divorce process can be trying at the best of times. Separating from your partner is a significant and life-altering decision.

In other aspects of life, we tend to set goals so that our intentions are clear and our expectations can be managed. This process can also be useful during a divorce. Asking yourself the following questions can help with good goal setting:

How quickly do you want your divorce to be finalized?

Every situation and divorce are different. If you have been married only for a short time and have no children or major assets, then a divorce could be finalized relatively quickly. Similarly, if you’ve already emotionally moved on and are involved with someone new, getting through your divorce as fast as possible may be more important than what you get out of your property settlement.

If you have been married for a significant number of years or there are several disputes to resolve, the divorce process could take longer. Managing your expectations around these issues could make the process easier for you.

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 Posted on September 27, 2021 in Child Custody

Parents generally don't have to worry all that much about having to prove that they're fit to parent while married or things are going well in their relationship. Absent allegations of abuse or neglect, no one generally questions their ability to parent.

During a divorce, however, custody disputes can become fierce. While you may be conscious of many things that can affect the outcome of your case, there are some more obscure concerns — like the following — that could end up with the same result:

Poor hygiene and appearance

Someone's personal grooming habits can say a lot about how well they take care of themselves and their surroundings, such as their car or home. This is, in part, why judges like parents to appear in front of them before they render any custody decisions.

A judge might worry about how effective you'll be at parenting if you appear in their courtroom disheveled and unkempt. Since we know that poor hygiene can give way to illnesses, a judge may avoid awarding you custody if they're unsure that you can preserve the good health of your child.

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 Posted on September 20, 2021 in Divorce

If you want out of your marriage, why on earth would consider living with your ex-spouse after your marriage is over?

Well, mostly for the sake of convenience. Maybe you have young children, and neither you nor your ex-spouse wants to disrupt their lives until they’re old enough to understand the concept of two different homes. Maybe your teenager is close to graduating high school, and you don’t want them to have to finish at a new school. Maybe you both just like where you live and can’t afford a similar lifestyle on your own.

Whatever your reasons, living with an ex-spouse can work — as long as you follow some basic guidelines:

No new partners get to come to the home

You and your ex-spouse both need to be free to move on — but neither of you should shove a new partner in the other’s face.

Make an agreement that you will both keep your new relationships away from the home. (If one of those relationships turns serious, then it’s time to end the post-divorce cohabitation.)

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 Posted on September 13, 2021 in Divorce

There are two types of classification of states when it comes to the division of property in a divorce: Community property states and equitable distribution states. In community property states, all the marital assets get divided 50/50.

Illinois, however, is an equitable distribution state where property may or may not be divided equally. In equitable distribution states, the goal is to make sure that the distribution and division of a couple’s property and debts are done equitably — and that may not mean splitting things down the middle.

Circumstances that may result in an unequal distribution of assets and debts

Since Illinois is an equitable distribution state, the following factors are considered when fairly and equitably dividing assets and debts:

• Contributions: The court takes into consideration each spouse’s contributions towards purchases and investments.
• Length of marriage: The court also considers the length of the marriage. The longevity or brevity of marriage may result in an unequal distribution of assets.

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 Posted on September 05, 2021 in Child Custody

The custody arrangements that both child psychologists and the courts deem best for children have shifted over the past few years. The current consensus is that joint or shared custody is what's best for kids.

Not all situations are the same, though. Not all parents employ the same approach to parenting, nor are the demands on their time the same. A 50/50 custody schedule might not be realistic for all parents -especially ones with demanding careers.

Is 50/50 custody possible given your family dynamics?

Many parents who share 50/50 custody generally have their kids for certain days during the week. Others may have their kids on alternating weeks. There are other variations as well.

Various factors determine which custody schedule parents implement. Whether a child is old enough to return from school to an empty home alone and take care of themselves is likely to impact custodial arrangements. A parent's work schedule and whether they have to travel for their job may also impact how much parenting time they can assume.

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 Posted on August 27, 2021 in Child Custody

There are so many unique and new terms related to child custody that it can feel like learning a new language. People talk about co-parenting, parallel parenting and different kinds of custody, often without any explanation about what they really mean.

Some of these terms are deceptive and mean something other than what you may have originally imagined. Split custody is a perfect example. Some people think that split custody is just another term for shared custody or co-parenting.

However, split custody actually refers to a specific kind of shared custody arrangement.

Split custody can benefit families with multiple children

When parents agree to split custody in a family with several children, what they agree to is that certain chidlren will stay with each parent. Parents can either agree that the split arrangement is consistent, or they can alternate which children they care for.

They can either exchange custody or arrange for visitation with the children who live with the other parent. In some cases, the family may even agree to sibling visitation so that the kids can all spend time together too, which is important to their bonds with one another.

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 Posted on August 22, 2021 in Divorce

Combining your household with your spouse when you get married often means that you share almost everything in your lives. You probably own your house together and likely share cars and insurance policies as well. Commingled finances often mean that you share debts as well as assets.

Many couples also have shared credit cards that either spouse can use for household expenses. If you file for divorce in Illinois, what happens to those joint credit cards?

Equitable distribution laws apply to debts as well as assets

When a couple files for divorce in Illinois, they either have to negotiate their property division themselves and file an uncontested divorce or they have to ask a judge to rule on the division of their property. If the judge has the final say in the distribution of your marital estate, they will have to apply equitable distribution rules to your household assets. Family law judges have to consider marital circumstances and focus on fairness when dividing marital property.

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