Posted on September 30, 2024 in Property Division

Divorce is a complicated process, especially when it comes to dividing property. Just like the rules of dividing property purchased during a marriage, the laws of dividing property acquired before a marriage may not always be clear. Understanding these nuances can help you protect your assets and prepare for future legal proceedings. To help ensure a fair outcome, an experienced Kane County attorney can guide you through the steps of dividing your property.

Is Property Acquired Before the Marriage Considered Separate?

In most cases, property owned by either spouse before the marriage is viewed as separate property. This means that the assets owned prior to the marriage generally remain with the original owner after a divorce. In Illinois, separate property includes items such as:

• Real estate purchased before the marriage

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 Posted on September 24, 2024 in Divorce

No-fault divorce has played an important role in family law for many years. Instead of requiring spouses to convince the court that there are reasonable grounds to let them get divorced, a couple can say they have irreconcilable differences and start the process. By enabling couples to end their marriages because they are not happy together, without needing to prove that anyone did something wrong to the other, the entire process of dissolving a marriage became smoother.

However, a movement in the country has been working to change that. This article will explore what it would mean if no-fault divorce came to an end in Illinois. If you have more questions about this, speak with a skilled St. Charles, IL divorce lawyer who can answer them.

What Does No-Fault Divorce Mean?

Some couples want to split up for specific reasons: If one spouse had an affair, developed a debilitating addiction, or was caught hiding money or otherwise acting dishonestly, most people would not blame the other spouse for wanting to end the marriage.

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 Posted on September 20, 2024 in Adoption

Divorce is often a stressful experience to go through. As a couple navigates the division of assets and allocation of debts that is an important part of a divorce, you are probably wondering who will be responsible for paying for the credit card debt that your spouse amassed. A seasoned Kane County, IL debt division attorney can review your case and offer valuable guidance.

How Does Debt Division Work in Illinois?

Illinois follows a model of equitable distribution in divorce. That means that all the assets as well as debts that were acquired during a marriage are divided fairly, not necessarily equally, between the spouses. However, with debts as with assets, there is a differentiation between marital debt and separate debt.

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 Posted on September 20, 2024 in Divorce

While the concept of divorce is familiar to most people, there is a lack of knowledge about the various options available. Many people, especially those who have never been through a divorce themselves, have seen a high-conflict divorce play out in a movie or TV show. In these stereotypical scenes, the spouses do everything in their power to punish and hurt each other. They try to keep as much property, assets, and parenting time for themselves in an attempt to leave the other with nothing or as little as possible.

You might be surprised to learn that many couples manage to end their marriage without this dynamic playing any part. While there are several options for lower-conflict divorce, including collaborative divorce and mediation, this article will explore an interesting alternative known as uncontested divorce. Speak with a knowledgeable DuPage County, IL divorce lawyer to learn more.

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 Posted on September 17, 2024 in Child Custody

In this day and age, content creation is so common that it is almost strange not to have your own channels. Some influencers - children and adults alike - have as large a following as famous singers and movie stars. When popular influencers’ posts are combined with affiliate marketing, sponsored content, and subscriptions, serious money can be made.

For some children, a fun casual interest in creating online content can turn into a profitable career very quickly. However, parents of minor children who appear in paid online content need to know the laws regulating their work. A new law recently enacted in Illinois requires you to compensate your children when they appear in money-earning posts. To learn more about how this could impact you, speak with a knowledgeable DuPage County, IL family law attorney.

What Are Parents of Child Influencers Obligated to Do?

Amendments to Illinois’s Child Labor Law now require parents to pay their children if certain conditions are met, including:

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 Posted on September 17, 2024 in Property Division

With cryptocurrency becoming more popular, it is increasingly included in divorce proceedings. Since it is a relatively new asset category, it can raise interesting questions about equitable asset division in an Illinois divorce. If you or your spouse own cryptocurrency, speak with a qualified Kane County, IL divorce lawyer to understand how it could be divided in divorce.

Determining the Value of Cryptocurrency

The state of Illinois differentiates between marital property and separate property. Any savings, investments, property, and other assets you had when you entered the marriage are generally considered exclusively yours. On the other hand, anything either of you acquired during your marriage is generally defined as marital property and subject to an equitable division during divorce.

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 Posted on September 12, 2024 in Family Law

Although "prenuptial agreement" is a well-known phrase that many people have heard, there is a great deal of confusion about what it means. Often, it comes up in TV shows portraying a couple about to get married when suddenly the wealthy fiance's family issues an ultimatum, telling the other fiance to sign the prenup "or else." 

Thankfully, the truth can be far less dramatic. Prenuptial agreements are practical documents that act like a contract, where both fiances are given a clear understanding of how financial matters will be handled in their marriage and in the hypothetical event of a future divorce. If you are wondering whether a prenuptial agreement is a good idea for you, contact a knowledgeable Wheaton, IL family law attorney to learn more.

The Benefits of a Prenup

One main reason people sign a prenup is the peace of mind it provides by dispelling the misconception that they will end up with nothing in a divorce. Married couples often merge their finances to some degree.

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 Posted on September 11, 2024 in Order of Protection

When someone claims to be a victim of domestic violence, Illinois takes those claims seriously and responds swiftly. A restraining order, officially called an order of protection, can be issued against the person being accused, which might legally keep them out of their home without a solution for where they can spend the night. 

When accusations are especially severe, the court can even issue an emergency order of protection almost immediately, without a long court process and without giving the accused an opportunity to tell his side of the story. Unfortunately, this swift handling of cases meant to protect victims of domestic abuse can be exploited. 

If you are falsely accused of domestic violence and are being kept out of your own home and away from your children as the result of an emergency order of protection, speak with a knowledgeable Kane County, IL family law attorney who can guide you as you navigate this painful situation. 

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 Posted on September 05, 2024 in Family Law

It has become somewhat common practice to sign a prenuptial agreement. Not everyone signs one, but almost everyone has heard of one. However, even though a prenup can have a serious impact on your financial future, some people sign it without truly wanting to. Maybe their future in-laws gave them an ultimatum to pressure them into signing it. Perhaps they lacked the knowledge to fully understand that they were signing a document their spouse’s family lawyer drew up that unfairly represented the spouse’s interests. 

If you signed a prenup that you did not want to, it might not have seemed like a big deal at the time because you were sure you would live happily ever after. Unfortunately, most people do not anticipate divorce when they are planning their wedding, and many people find themselves in divorce proceedings with a prenup that they were never comfortable with. If you fall under this category, speak with an experienced Kane County, IL divorce lawyer to review your options.

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 Posted on August 29, 2024 in Divorce

There is no arguing that a divorce can sometimes seem like one enormous, horrible fight that hurts not only the spouses involved but also their children. But some couples can feel they should not be married and still want to avoid hurting each other. Once the divorce is finalized, parents still need to be involved in each other’s lives as they continue to raise their children, and that can be extremely challenging following a high-conflict divorce. When two people share the understanding that they can work together instead of against each other so that each can leave with a divorce settlement and parenting plan they can feel comfortable with, it can make a big difference. If you are your spouse do not consider yourselves enemies and are willing to take a less combative approach to ending your marriage, speak with a seasoned Kane County, IL divorce lawyer about an amicable divorce.

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