Posted on December 00, 0000 in Child Support

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.

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 Posted on December 00, 0000 in Child Support

The newest twist in the divorce of a Chicago hedge fund owner and his wife is her alleged request for $1 million a month in child support for their three children. To all but the most wealthy families (and even to most of them) $1 million per month seems excessive. But it raises the question, if child support is based on statutory guidelines, how can one parent request a certain amount of support, and what would it take for the Court to award it?

Children of Divorce Entitled to Same Lifestyle

Child support is based on a statutory formula that takes into consideration the net income of the obligor (the parent paying support) and the number of children to be supported. Once the Court determines the obligor’s net income, he/she must pay a percentage of his/her monthly net income based on the number of children he/she has. For example, an obligor with three children must pay 32 percent of the monthly net income.

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 Posted on December 00, 0000 in Child Support

The divorce is finalized and child support, and custody orders are in place. Your ex has always been sporadic about making child support payments — some are on time, others are late. Yet the late payments are double what is required in order to make up for the missing payments. However, months have passed since you have received a check, and your ex will not return your calls.

What can be done to enforce payment, and what are the potential ramifications for your ex-spouse?

Illinois Child Support Enforcement

If your ex-spouse (the obligor) is delinquent in child support payments, meaning he or she has missed making one or more payments, you will need to file a motion for post-decree enforcement of the child support order. By submitting a “Petition for Rule to Show Cause,” pending you can show that the obligor’s failure to make child support payments is without good cause, he or she can be held in contempt of Court.

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 Posted on December 00, 0000 in Child Support

For children whose parents are separated, and for the parents who have custody over them, child support is key to financial stability. However, if parents fall behind in their child support payments, they can cause their children and co-parents economic distress.

However, a new Bill, recently signed into law, addresses these issues. The Bill is aimed at ensuring that children and their parents receive timely child support payments by studying the root causes of the failure to pay child support. Additionally, the Bill calls for policy recommendations on how to address these root causes and how to streamline the child support system.

The Bill

House Bill 2791, sponsored by State Rep. Camille Lilly, D-Chicago, requires the Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity to conduct a study researching the reasons why parents do not pay child support. Often, parents fall behind in their support payments because they are unable to pay, not because they do not care.

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 Posted on December 00, 0000 in Child Support

In Illinois, Courts have discretion to include, as part of a child support order, a requirement that parents contribute toward post-secondary education expenses of their non-minor children. Historically, the guidelines for determining whether such support could be required were vague and confusing. The passage of the Family Law Reform Bill addresses these concerns by creating a new protocol for determining when non-minor support is appropriate.

Existing Law

The current version of the Illinois Marriage and Dissolution of Marriage Act allows a Court to order educational support for a child, including college or professional training expenses, as part of a custody agreement. Previously, Courts were only instructed to consider the following when making their determination:

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 Posted on December 00, 0000 in Same-Sex Marriage

Same-sex marriage has been legal in Illinois since June 2014. Hence, gay and lesbian couples who choose to raise a family together now have an easier road to parenthood — whether through adoption or conception of children following marriage.

Same-Sex Stepparent Adoption in Illinois

Since passage of the new law, Illinois same-sex couples who have children following their marriage, whether biological or adopted, may place each partner’s name on a birth certificate. This is a change from prior law, when only a biological parent’s name was permitted to be listed.

Legalization of same-sex marriage also makes it easier for a non-biological parent to adopt his partner’s biological child. In many cases involving children of same-sex couples, the child is biologically related to one partner — either the mother who gave birth using donated sperm or a gay couple who used a surrogate and the husband’s own sperm.

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 Posted on December 00, 0000 in Division of Property

Illinois is an equitable distribution divorce state, meaning that all assets the spouses accumulated during the marriage, or any assets brought into the marriage that become marital property due to commingling, are divided equitably in the divorce. This usually, but not always, means the marital assets are divided equally.

Equitable distribution does not necessarily mean that every asset is split down the middle. Barring special circumstances that entitles one spouse to receive more than one-half of the marital assets, each spouse will be awarded 50 percent of the total value of the marital estate and 50 percent of all marital debt. This means that the spouses can get creative in how the assets are divided.

Equitable Division of Marital Assets – A Case Study

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 Posted on December 00, 0000 in Division of Property

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 Posted on December 00, 0000 in Division of Property

According to Schaumburg, Illinois-based American Veterinary Medical Association, 51.8 percent of Illinois residents are pet owners. For many of these residents, their animal companions are more than pets — they are four-legged family members and are as beloved as children. And like children, deciding who receives custody of the pets in a divorce can become heated.

Obtaining Custody of Pets in Illinois Divorce Illinois Courts consider pets as personal property, no different than bank accounts, vehicles or other household belongings. This means they are just another asset to consider when determining the most equitable way to divide assets. The Court will not conduct a custody hearing, and there will not be “best interests” factors to consider when deciding who should receive the pet. However, there are steps you can take to increase the likelihood that the Judge will award you custody of your pet. Retain copies of all receipts. Because pets are personal property, you must be able to prove a greater ownership interest than your spouse in regards to your pet. Documents showing that the pet was registered in your name, receipts from veterinary bills (especially if paid from your separate property) or other evidence showing as you as the pet’s primary caretaker can help prove that the Court should award you the pet. Prove your ability to care for the pet. Even though pets are property, they are different from a car or bank account — they require active care. Being able to show that you are better able to care for the pet than your spouse may help sway the Court’s decision. Other determining factors which may help prove you are in a better position to care for the pet include your spouse having a job that requires frequent travel, his moving into an apartment or rental home that does not allow pets or evidence of allergies. Agree to a custody schedule. Although the Court will not engage in a custody determination the way it will with children, this does not mean it will not consider a custody arrangement if one or both of the parties present one. For couples with children, it may be helpful to keep the pets on the same visitation schedule as the children. Obtain a pre- or post-marital agreement. Though not an option if you are in the middle of a divorce, either a pre- or post-marital agreement will allow you to address the issue of who will receive the pet in the event of divorce. Palatine Divorce Attorney If you are planning on filing for divorce, or if you have just been served with divorce papers from your spouse, contact Palatine divorce attorney Nicholas W. Richardson today for a free consultation. With more than a decade worth of experience handling divorce and other family law matters, Nicholas W. Richardson understands the complex emotions that can arise and knows when to approach each issue in the spirit of compromise — and when to dig in and fight. Call the Law Office of Nicholas W. Richardson, P.C., today to discuss your case.

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 Posted on December 00, 0000 in Division of Property

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.

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