On average, people are putting off getting married and having children until their late twenties and early thirties. In addition to giving people more time to accumulate assets of their own, those who wait until later to get married may be more likely to have pets when they enter the relationship. Other times, a couple who is already married might test their ability to keep a helpless creature alive by getting a pet before they commit to trying to have a baby.

However you come to pet ownership, one thing is certain: If you and your spouse end up getting divorced, you do not want your divorce to impact your ability to spend time with your beloved pet. Savvy couples are finding ways to protect their pets from divorce by signing a prenuptial or postnuptial agreement that details pet custody after divorce. How can a prenup or postnup manage a pet? Read on to find out, and then contact an Illinois family lawyer who can help you create an enforceable premarital agreement of your own.

Can Prenuptial Agreements Address Pets?

One of the hard and fast rules about premarital and postmarital agreements is that they cannot manage issues of custody or child support when it comes to human children. So how could they do the same for pets?

A compromise leaves everyone unhappy, as the old saying goes, and nowhere is this more true than with a divorce decree. The hallmark of a good divorce decree seems to be that both spouses are left wishing they had more control over the outcome and that the terms of the decree benefitted them more personally.

Although certain parts of a divorce decree can only be changed in very rare circumstances, other parts can be modified to better suit your circumstances. However, it is important to know when a divorce decree modification petition is likely to be approved so you do not waste time or money on unsuccessful petitions.

Which Parts of a Divorce Decree Can Be Appealed?

The least likely part of your divorce decree to be appealed successfully is the property division part. This is because it tends to be the most unforgiving when it comes to modifications; after all, modifying a property division would require transferring money, investments, or real estate between spouses, all of which can be very expensive and time-consuming. The only time that a property division agreement has a chance of being modified is if the appeal is filed within 30 days of the original divorce decree being handed down, and only then if there was a serious error of fact or application of the law.

One of the most challenging aspects of divorce is the need to divide assets and debts that a couple has accumulated during a marriage. A divorcee’s long-term financial stability can feel threatened by this process, as a typical divorce leaves both partners with less in asset ownership and cash savings than they had before the divorce. Naturally, this can have implications for retirement.

Those interested in getting divorced can rest easy, however, knowing that certain things are not changed by divorce. One of these is Social Security benefits, a major piece of one’s overall financial picture. Understanding what your benefits are likely to be can help you plan for the future and engage in wise financial negotiations.

Can My Former Spouse Draw On My Benefits?

If you have made substantially more money than your spouse throughout your marriage, you may be wondering whether your spouse can get their own benefits based on yours - and, more importantly, whether that will reduce the amount of benefits available to you. Whether your spouse can benefit from your work history will depend on a number of factors, but the most important thing to know is that, no matter what your spouse does, your personal benefits will not change. You cannot do anything to deny your spouse benefitting from your Social Security contributions, but their actions will not impact your benefits in any way.

No matter what your marital arrangements look like, parenting involves making significant sacrifices for your children. Unfortunately, some parents end up making major economic sacrifices to raise their children by staying home to provide childcare and then are left in a vulnerable position when they need to file for divorce. If you are in this situation, understanding your options for getting divorced is an important part of protecting yourself now and in the future.

Temporary Spousal Support

When only one spouse works outside the home, that spouse often ends up controlling most or all of a couple’s finances. That can make it very difficult for the stay-at-home spouse to know the family’s financial situation, to get money to move out or otherwise protect themself, or to feel empowered to hire an attorney to file for divorce.

Recognizing this, Illinois law does allow for the provision of temporary spousal support orders. However, these orders are not automatic and are not granted to every spouse filing for divorce; instead, a spouse needs to petition for temporary support and a judge will determine whether the circumstances merit an award. Some things the judge will consider include:

When children are facing the difficult reality that their parents are getting divorced, they might respond by internalizing the conflict between the adults. Most children are generally not privy to the many arguments behind closed doors and disagreements that the parents have had for many years. As a result, children may turn inward and blame themselves for their parents’ failing relationship, as well as for the divorce itself. While you might realize that your divorce has nothing to do with your child, they might not be so sure, and it is your job to help your child to stop accepting the blame.

#1: Talk Openly and Carefully

If a divorce is coming, you and your spouse should make every effort to speak with your child together about what will soon be happening. You must be very clear that the split is due to issues that you and your spouse have with one another. Your child did not break the marriage, and they cannot fix the marriage. Also, be sure to talk to your child in a manner that is appropriate for their age, including the details you choose to share. For example, it might be true that the stresses of child-rearing did cause damage to the relationship between you and your spouse. However, if you say that to your second grader, they could interpret that as you saying that he or she caused your divorce by simply existing.

#2: Invite Ongoing Communication

Once you have told your child about the divorce, do not have preconceived expectations about how he or she will handle the information. Everybody handles difficult news in his or her own way. It is also important to avoid asking your child to keep things to himself or herself. Do not put the pressure of secrets on your child. Instead, tell your child only what you are comfortable with others finding out. Similarly, do not force your child to talk to you right away. Instead, offer a safe, welcoming atmosphere in which your child can talk about their concerns or feelings without negative consequences.