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Online Document Prep for Your Divorce: Is it the Right Choice?
There are a variety of online companies that offer document preparation and do-it-yourself forms for couples going through a divorce or needing assistance with child custody issues. These sites promise to save users significant amounts of money in attorney fees and to resolve their issues amicably and without protracted litigation. However, document preparation sites are a poor substitute for the advice of a qualified, experienced legal professional.
Listed below are suggestions to consider before deciding to handle any family law issue on your own.
Individualized service. Every divorce is different. However, document preparation sites approach divorces the same way. These sites offer a simplified approach—users check a box to select and draft legal documents. Yet many people do not understand all of the issues that must settled in a divorce. Additionally, if users neglect to check an appropriate box, the proper forms will not be suggested, and they may find themselves in Court months or years later to resolve an issue they never knew they had.
Business Valuation and Division in Illinois Divorce
Many couples, especially those with a high-net worth, own a business that is not only their largest asset, but their sole source of income. When these couples divorce, difficult issues arise such as how to value the business, whether it should be sold or divided and, if divided, which spouse should receives the business and how should the other spouse be paid for his share.
Illinois Business Valuation
In order determine the division of assets in a divorce, the assets must first be assigned a value. However, determining the value of a business is not as easy. For an investment account, you simply look at the balance on any given day, or for a vehicle, you can look up the Kelley Blue Book value.
A business valuation involves examination of a variety of factors by an attorney and forensic accountant skilled at valuation. There are factors that must be looked at when calculating the value of a business, some of which are dependent on the type of business. In general, several factors that go into determining business value include:
Handling Illinois Child-Related Expenses in the Digital Age
If you have children, getting divorced means you are never truly free of your ex. The child custody and child support agreements mean you will, at minimum, be dealing with your ex when it comes to exchanging the children for visitation and dealing with support payments.
Yet while those child support payments are determined by a statutory formula based on the parents' income, deductions and the child custody schedule itself, there are several other child-related expenses that an agreement does not always cover. Hence, this means a lot of unnecessary friction that can often land parents back in court.
Payment of Child-Related Costs: There is an App for That
Given today's high-tech world, it should come as no surprise that there is now an app — several, in fact — designed to help make the process of paying for child-related expenses a lot less contentious. The apps, however, are not designed to track payment of child support. Instead, they track the “extras” that go into raising children — activities fees, sports equipment and uniforms, class trips and even, payment of medical co-pays and deductibles.
Step Away from the Computer: Divorce in the Age of Social Media
Facebook. Twitter. Instagram. If you have access to a computer or smartphone, you most likely have an account on at least one social media site. They are a great way to connect with far-flung family and friends, post photos and updates about what is going on in your life, and even vent now and again. However, if you are involved in a divorce or child custody case, what you post on social media could negatively impact the outcome of those cases.
Many people believe that what they post on social media is a private interaction between them and 350 of their closest friends. And while there are privacy settings users can put in place to restrict non-friends or followers to see their photos or read their updates, many people's pages do not employ these privacy settings. In fact, 80 percent of attorneys report combing through social media sites for evidence that can be used against the opposing party. Hence, even if your accounts are set to private, family, friends or even members of private online groups may be sharing information with your significant other.
Illinois Allows Unmarried Couples to Enforce Property Claims against Each Other
Taboos regarding cohabitation are quickly becoming passe as many of today's couples are opting to live together before – and sometimes in lieu of – marriage. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, unmarried couples comprised 45 percent of all U.S. households in 2010. But until recently, unmarried Illinois couples who ended a relationship had no rights to enforce property claims against an ex-partner, or otherwise divide assets, due to their unmarried status.
Blumenthal v. Brewer: Allowing Property Claims against Unmarried Ex-Partner
In Blumenthal v. Brewer, the Chicago couple had been in a committed relationship for 26 years. They lived together, commingled assets, and raised three children. In all ways, they acted as a married couple. Yet they were unmarried due to same-sex marriage being illegal in Illinois. Brewer, an attorney, had stayed home for several years to raise the children. Her partner, however, built a lucrative medical practice. At the end of the relationship, Blumenthal's net worth was $500,000 more than Brewer's.
Illinois Division of Assets: Why Title Does Not Trump All
My spouse and I have been married 15 years. I want to get a divorce, but I have been a stay-at-home mom for the past 10 years. I have no money, and everything is in my spouse's name. I do not know how I will be able to start over from scratch.
Questions similar to the one above are often posted to social media and divorce-related websites, and understandably, those in these situations are concerned. When it comes to divorce, there is a difference between marital and separate property, and separate property is not involved in the division of property. But simply because one spouse's name is not on a title does not make it separate property.
Property Division in Illinois Divorce
Illinois is an equitable distribution state, which means that marital assets are awarded in a manner that is most fair under the circumstances — not via a 50-50 split.
What Causes Divorce Later in Life?
The decision to divorce, regardless of a couple's age or length of marriage, is a difficult one. Recent studies show that the rate of divorce among couples age 50 and older have doubled in the past two decades; in 2009, one out of every four divorcing couples were over the age of 50. In fact, a host of high-profile celebrities have split up over the past year, after decades of being married. This publicity sheds light on the fact that couples who have been together for a long time are not always guaranteed a life together forever.
What causes a couple who has been together a long time to finally call it quits?
The children are gone. The oft-heard refrain among unhappily married couples is: “We're staying together for the sake of the children.” Once the children are out of the house — or even longer, as some couples stay together for the sake of their adult children — the glue that held a marriage together is gone, and couples are left with nothing more to do than head to divorce court.
Can a Stepparent's Income be Used to Determine Child Support Payment?
Following a divorce, chances are high that either you or your spouse will re-marry. However, if you and your ex-spouse had children, and there is a child support order involved, is it possible for the custodial parent to obtain an increase in the original child support award based on the new spouse's income?
Calculation of Illinois Child Support Payment
The Court determines the value of a monthly child support an obligor (the parent ordered to pay child support) must pay based on a child support guidelines adopted by the Illinois legislature. Although there may be slight variations, a typical child support award is a percentage of an obligor's net income, with the percentage being determined by the number of children he or she is financially obligated to support.
Payment of College Expenses in Illinois Divorce
Most parents hope that their children attend college or vocational school after high school graduation, and many want to help their children pay expenses associated with earning that higher education. But with 57.4 percent of all Illinois high school graduates going directly to college, are parents required to pay for their child's college education? Or does their child support duty end when the child turns 18?
Support for Non-Minor Child's Educational Expenses in Illinois
In most Illinois child support orders, the obligor parent (the one ordered to pay support) is no longer required to make payments once his or her child graduates from high school or turns 19. However, in some instances, the Court can order child support payments to be paid toward a child's educational expenses, including college or other professional training.
Tax Issues Following Divorce
After months — or even years — of legal wrangling, your divorce is finalized and you and your ex-spouse are now free to move on with your lives. However, if either of you were ordered to pay alimony, or if there are children involved, there are tax issues related to the divorce to which you need to be aware. In fact, you may need to revisit these issues as circumstances change.
Common Tax Issues Faced by Couples Once a Divorce is Finalized
Filing status. Your marital status on December 31 determines your options regarding filing status for tax purposes. If your divorce is finalized before the end of the year, you may want to file as head of household rather than as a single person. You can file as head of household — and get a bigger standard deduction — if you had a dependent living with you for more than half the year and you paid more than half of the upkeep on the marital home. An attorney and accountant can advise you whether it is to your advantage to file as head of household or as an unmarried person.
Introducing The Law Office of Nicholas W. Richardson
Nicholas W. Richardson is an experienced divorce lawyer and mediator whose comprehensive legal knowledge, commitment to clients and reputation for results bring lasting solutions to your problems.
The Law Office of Nicholas W. Richardson, P.C. serves clients in Illinois cities such as Palatine, Schaumburg, Inverness, Arlington Heights, Rolling Meadows, Glenview, Hoffman Estates, Bartlett, Des Plaines, Elk Grove Village, Mt. Prospect, Niles, Prospect Heights, Skokie, Streamwood, Barrington, Buffalo Grove, Wheeling, and others throughout Cook County, DuPage County, McHenry County, and Kane County.
Results listed are not a guarantee or indication of future case results.
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847.873.6741
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