Blog

Although it seems unfair, your personal 401(k) retirement plan is considered marital property and, as such, is subject to the same rules as other marital possessions in a divorce. A recent article by Jerry Shaw on NewsMax.com offered advice on how to ensure this asset is shared equitably between ...

The HuffPost Divorce page recently presented advice from readers/bloggers on how they made their divorce process and co-parenting situations a bit easier to handle. These are all fairly simple suggestions, yet they can create amazingly beneficial results. This post will reveal the best advice on ...

Although you're not dealing with child custody and visitation issues, a divorce can be just as or even more difficult for grown children than for younger ones. The good news is that there are a few more ways for helping adult children accept your divorce and move on.  This post will provide tips ...

To get through your divorce with the best concessions in place, hiring a lawyer is always a good idea. To reach those concessions through effective communication and negotiation versus anger and conflict, hiring a lawyer such as a Mediation Consulting Attorney will help you determine those best c...

If divorce has been put on the table by you or your spouse, stop and consider one very important thing: Are you truly ready for all the emotional and legal issues that come with divorce planning? Is divorce truly the best solution? This idea is explored in a recent article on Mediate.com titled ...

The Illinois General Assembly has passed a major update to the Illinois Marriage and Dissolution of Marriage Act (IMDMA). If signed by the Governor, the new IMDMA will offer many positive changes for divorcing couples in Illinois. Here is an outline of proposed changes to the Illinois Marriage a...

Anyone dealing with legal issues, divorce in particular, deserves to have all the information necessary to make the best possible decisions. This can be tricky if you're not a legal professional or can't afford one to help you, but a new Illinois policy will help change this for the better. This ...

The recent Illinois Appeals Court case In re Marriage of Perez shows that the courts now favor a decision of joint custody (often without naming a custodial parent) for minor children in divorce cases.  Yet this is not always the best outcome for the children, writes Champaign County Circuit Judg...

For divorcing families, the mediation process can be extremely helpful but also quite stressful. If anyone in the family struggles with alcohol abuse, they may manage their anxiety by coming to sessions under the influence–making the process more challenging for the mediator as well as the partic...

Father's Day for divorced dads can be anything from bittersweet to devastatingly sad, depending on child custody and visitation decisions. According to a recent article on the website Divorce360, “Depression for men is more closely tied to the loss of children than it is to the loss of the marria...

Here are summaries of two recent family law cases from the Appellate Court of Illinois. PAYMENT OF OVERDUE CHILD SUPPORT – In re Marriage of Rocha When this couple divorced in 1998, the husband was ordered to pay child support of $150 per week. In 2001, three years after the initial “Judgment...

In a recent Huffington Post article, 12 Things Kids Think About Divorce But Are Too Afraid To Say, family therapist Tara Kennedy-Kline outlines what your kids probably want to tell you about the divorce, “but don't have the world experience to say directly.” She developed this list after counseli...

Being a parent is often challenging; parenting after a divorce can be even more so for both custodial and non-custodial parents. Creating the right parenting schedule can make this very difficult situation that much easier. From a recent article on the site SinceMyDivorce.com, here are some tips ...

For lawyers and non-lawyers alike who live in DuPage County, Illinois, the DuPage County Bar Association (DCBA) is a valuable resource offering educational seminars, community service programs and even social functions to bring people together. HISTORY AND MISSION STATEMENT The DCBA was charter...

Mediation has become a successful tool for settling family law cases such as divorce or child custody. It's actually just one part of a broad range of processes known as Family Dispute Resolution or FDR. There is a positive outlook for Illinois Divorce Mediation Services. Over the last 25 years,...

In an on-going effort to share helpful information for anyone currently or previously involved in Illinois divorce proceedings, here are summaries of two recent cases from the Appellate Court of Illinois concerning paternity and a Motion Regarding Finding No Paternity. REMOVAL OF A CHILD FROM IL...

There are many reasons why it happens, but sometimes a spouse chooses to end a marriage with little or no warning to their significant other. For the unsuspecting party who didn't see it coming, this sudden life change can leave that person shocked, angry and depressed–often meaning they have no ...

Social media (Facebook, Twitter, texting and more) has become a favorite way for people to share information about their lives in real time.  However, if you're involved in a divorce and/or child custody case, what you post or text can have a huge effect on the ultimate outcome, and you need to b...

Today's mobile society often creates difficult decisions for divorced parents and their children, particularly when a parent needs to move out of the state where the children reside. Last October, I wrote a blog about the importance and value of collaborative divorce for couples with children, wh...

Many people believe that a divorce mediator will resolve the issues that are stalling their Illinois divorce process. However, successful divorce mediation results from the commitment and involvement of the parties involved in the divorce, not the mediator alone.  A recent article by Sandra Crawf...

Below are summaries of two recent cases from the Appellate Court of Illinois. Each one has something worth noting, whether your Illinois divorce proceedings are beginning soon, presently in process, or already completed. This post will focus on child support expenses, grandparent visitation right...

If your Illinois divorce includes child visitation or custody arrangements, you may be assigned a Guardian Ad Litem, often referred to as a GAL. This post will help in understanding the role of a GAL in DuPage County, Illinois. In Family Court, the role of this specially trained, court-appointed...

After a divorce many couples realize that although some decisions looked great on paper, they don't always work in real life. This is particularly true for child custody agreements.  Once everyone has actually lived with the agreement, one parent may decide that they would prefer sole custody of ...

Most people think that divorce is a long, drawn-out process that takes years to be finalized. The truth is that with some practical planning and professional assistance, it is possible to have your DuPage County divorce completed quickly and with a minimal amount of stress. Therefore, this post w...

Divorce is often the best solution for a troubled marriage–but what if one spouse is not ready to accept that conclusion or one party simply wants to make the divorce process long and difficult out of spite or anger? Some couples spend months negotiating a settlement for an amicable divorce in Il...