Posted on September 07, 2022 in Spousal Maintenance

When a DuPage County court awards a spouse spousal maintenance, formerly known as alimony, the amount and length of the maintenance are usually determined through the use of statutory guidelines. The court has the discretion to deviate from Illinois statutory guidelines since it evaluates divorce on a case-by-case basis. After assessing marital property, a divorce attorney can determine and advocate for the appropriate type and amount of maintenance. There are five types of spousal maintenance in Illinois.  

Five Types of Spousal Maintenance

A legal formula of the statutory guidelines calculates the amount of maintenance by subtracting 25 percent of the payee's net income from 33.33 percent of the payor's. The maintenance awarded cannot exceed 40 percent of the spouses' combined income. The duration of the maintenance is determined by the length of the marriage multiplied by a specific percentage. For instance, maintenance is awarded at 40 percent of the length of a 10-year marriage, equating to 4 years. At 24 percent of a 5-year marriage, maintenance is calculated at 14 months. The five types of maintenance include the following.

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 Posted on September 02, 2022 in Child Support

Parents raising a special needs child can be fraught with an entirely different set of challenges than raising a child who does not require the extra medical and therapeutic care that special needs children may require. What constitutes a child with special needs varies and can include afflictions and conditions such as Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD), Autism Spectrum Disorder (AUD), and cerebral palsy (CP). Caring for a child afflicted with cognitive, behavioral, developmental, or physical problems and disabilities can be emotionally taxing and may encumber some parents with financial burdens.

Child support disputes between divorced parents of a child with special needs can easily arise for many reasons. In some instances, the obligee spouse, usually the non-contributing primary caregiver of the child, may need additional support for the child’s medical expenses. The obligee spouse may also rightfully feel that they cannot attain employment outside of the home because of their full-time job as the caregiver. The obligor, or breadwinner, on the other hand, may believe their ex-spouse is manipulating their child’s condition for financial gain. The court considers the best interest of the child to be paramount. A child support attorney adept at financial disputes between parents of a child with special needs can help facilitate a modification. 

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 Posted on August 24, 2022 in Child Custody

The US Bureau of Census estimates that nearly 50 percent of marriages end in divorce, with the average marriage only lasting seven years. More than 75 percent of divorcees remarry, which explains how 1300 stepfamilies are created daily. According to a Pew Research Center survey, more than 40 percent of American adults have at minimum one step relative, either a stepparent, stepsibling, or stepchild. Adapting to the new circumstances of a parent’s remarriage can be a traumatizing upheaval for a child, especially if the stepparent is difficult or meddling. A biological parent is likely to be alarmed and nerve-racked knowing their child will be under the care of their former spouse’s new spouse, who could possibly mistreat the child. Blended families where both parents have children can also be confusing and chaotic to the child.

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 Posted on August 17, 2022 in Divorce

 Hiding assets during divorce proceedings is illegal yet quite common, especially when the divorce is contentious. Divorcing spouses must disclose all marital assets, including annual income and debt. Cheating an ex-spouse out of assets that are rightly due to them can occur in various forms. This kind of deception is prevalent among conventional and high-net-worth complex divorces and predominately affects non-contributing spouses. A divorce attorney adept at hidden assets and asset tracing can strategize to help secure a fair settlement.

Ten Common Ways a Spouse Can Hide Assets

According to a National Endowment for Financial Education survey, 58 percent of those surveyed admitted that they had hidden money from their spouse, and 34 percent admitted to lying to their spouse about finances and debt. Hiding minor purchases from a spouse accounted for 54 percent of those surveyed, while 84 percent admitted to hiding financial statements or bills from their spouse. Hiding assets can be easily accomplished and can include the following.

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 Posted on August 11, 2022 in Divorce

Late-in-life divorce, or divorce after 50 years of age, has doubled since 1990, with researchers forecasting the rate will triple by 2030. Also known as “gray divorce,” a term conceived by the American Association of Retired Persons, late-in-life divorces are prevalent and account for one out of every four divorces nationwide. Spouses choose to divorce after decades of marriage for various reasons, ranging from developing disparate values to shifting retirement goals. A gray divorce can be complex and contentious due to the length of the marriage, familial obligations, or even disputes about retirement savings. A divorce attorney, adept at marital property division and complex finance, can help strategize a late-in-life divorce plan.

Six Common Reasons for Gray Divorces

1. Lifespan – Life expectancy in industrialized countries continues to increase. Longevity may embolden spouses to reconsider their future. With the possibility of leading a healthy life for another 25 years, divorce at 65 years of age after decades of marriage may not seem unreasonable. 

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 Posted on August 02, 2022 in Divorce

Traditionally, women have changed their surname to that of their spouse and continue to do so. Some women opt to retain their maiden name after marriage, while others choose to hyphenate their surname with their husband’s surname. After divorce, many may wish to return to their maiden name. The option to change a surname can be included in the divorce decree, which automatically authorizes the name change. However, sometimes the terms to revert to a former name are not included in the final divorce decree either by oversight or intentionally. 

Ex-spouses may initially wish to retain their married name for convenience or to continue sharing a surname with their children. They may then find themselves wanting to revert to their maiden name months or even years after the divorce. A divorce lawyer can help facilitate a name change in the divorce decree or long after the divorce is finalized.

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 Posted on July 28, 2022 in Child Custody

Preferred pronouns are intended to reflect a person's gender identity. Some individuals wish others to use their preferred third-person pronouns when speaking to or about them. The burgeoning prevalence of children and teens adopting preferred pronouns can sometimes be confusing and even controversial. Joint custody disputes regarding a child's wishes to be referred to with pronouns that do not correspond with the child's sex assigned at birth can be complex. Some parents may believe their child is going through a phase or identity crisis, while other parents choose to respect their child's wishes.

Linguistics aside, the best interest of the child is always at the forefront of the courts. A family lawyer can help guide disputing divorced parents to agreeable solutions that serve the child's happiness and good health.  

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 Posted on July 21, 2022 in Divorce

Funds from a retirement account are often marital assets and subject to equitable marital complex property division. Each retirement account, including private, public, and military, vary in its distribution and division. Illinois law recognizes that retirement accounts have contributions that are either economic or non-economic. This law is especially essential for the non-contributing spouse, known as the alternate payee. Some retirement accounts may be worth more value in the future.  

A Qualified Domestic Relations Order (QDRO) is a court order that recognizes retirement funds are marital property. A retirement account and QDRO attorney can help with this type of complex property division.

Two Types of Retirement Accounts

Retirement plans have a Plan Administrator who manages the funds for the beneficiaries and contributors. Although there are many kinds of retirement accounts, each can be categorized into the following two.

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 Posted on July 14, 2022 in Divorce

Loyalty programs are popular marketing strategies that businesses use to lure customers. The incentives of reward points, which are often exchanged for products and services, help companies retain customers. These intangible reward points are considered currency and can include frequent flyer miles, credit card points, as well as hotel, restaurant, and retail rewards. As trivial as it may seem, reward points are often contested during divorce proceedings.

Identifying ownership of reward points can be challenging. A divorce attorney who understands the complexities of equitable property division can determine if reward points are marital or non-marital property.

Two Ways Reward Points are Marital Property

 Timeline of accrual – Reward points earned during the marriage are deemed marital property. The credit card account holder’s name is inconsequential as long as the accrued reward points occurred during the marriage. Even if the accrued reward points were through business travel or expenses, points from a corporate credit card are marital assets. Although some credit card reward points are not transferable, some offer cash-back benefits. The value of reward points exchanged for goods and services could be estimated and included in the settlement. 

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 Posted on July 07, 2022 in Divorce

Life circumstances sometimes change, and a divorced parent may need to petition the court for a parental relocation. The relocating parent may argue the move will improve the child's quality of life with opportunities such as a better school system or the parent's career advancement. The other parent may dispute the relocation for legitimate reasons, like economic or health challenges. Or, there could be a spiteful reason, such as the parent contesting the relocation to sabotage the ex-spouse's new life. Parental relocation disputes can be complex, especially when a child custody order needs a modification.

How the child will acclimate to the new environment is a significant concern. Luckily, protecting the child's best interests is a fundamental principle of the court. A family law attorney can help with the challenges of petitioning for a relocation. 

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