DIVORCE

WHAT ARE MY RIGHTS IN A DIVORCE?

Generally, each party to a divorce has the same equal legal rights.  The more important question is how you protect your rights.  If you are thinking about divorce or one has already been filed, it is urgent that you get legal advice from a lawyer immediately.  Under no circumstances, should you rely on what you are told by third parties who are not lawyers or even on what you are told by your spouse.  It's a natural thing to trust the advice of your spouse, but this is the wrong time to do it.  Even the most well - intentioned device from non- lawyers can lead to serious problems.  If you don't consult a competent attorney early, a number of your rights could be compromised before the case ever gets to court; for example, marital property is sometimes transferred or sold, or bills could be created by either spouse before action can be taken to stop it.  While the court would try correct marital property problems after a case has been filed, that is sometimes difficult, if money has been spent or items have been sold. The only way to protect your legal right is to have a case on file in Court, after having sought legal advice from a competent, experienced attorney. The court, once the case is filed, will have the power to rule on any problems as they arise. Once the court is involved, the judge can then make every effort to fairly balance the parties' positions and to divide property and resolve other issues in an equitable manner.

WHAT IS THE COST AND WHO WILL PAY FOR A DIVORCE?

Divorces cost more or less depending upon the issues involved.  Fees are private matters between the lawyer and the client and need to be individually determined in each case.  The East State Street Law Office has always tried to help people with their legal problems and we are willing to try to work out fee arrangements.  Please feel free to talk to us about making payment arrangements through one of the programs we use.  We also believe in keeping clients informed as the case goes along so there are no surprises at the end as far as fees are concerned.   We think you will find the East State Street Law Offices to be reasonable.  When you come in for your first consultation, we will be willing to give you out best idea what the fees will be, any retainers involved, and answer your questions.  The question of who pays for the divorce is one to be determined by the court.  Sometimes the court can order fees to be paid by the other party.  If that is appropriate in your case, we can discuss that when we meet as well.

HOW LONG WILL A DIVORCE TAKE?

A divorce can take up to as much as one year or more to complete depending on many factors.  Generally, the time required depends on what issues the parties cannot resolve..  The courts are crowded and judicial time is heavily burdened.  It is therefore important to resolve as many of the issues by negotiation and mediation through the assistance of counsel rather than going to court to require the judge to make all decisions.  You need confident, experienced counsel to assist you in negotiating the resolution of your case with your spouse and their attorney.  This is the best way to shorten the length of time that the case is pending and produce a result reached with the participation of both parties.

WHAT HAPPENS TO PROPERTY, DEBTS & RETIREMENT FUNDS IN A DIVORCE?

Except for custody of children, virtually all court disputes in divorce cases are related to the division of property such as pensions or retirement accounts.  Since most people don't understand these issues, they frequently think that they have an agreement when they have not considered everything.  Experienced legal advice, on these issues is an absolute necessity.  We feel they we are uniquely able to provide that advice and we invite your inquiries about any of these issues.

CHILD SUPPORT

ESTABLISHING THE AMOUNT

The Court looks at several factors in establishing child support.  These factors include the age and expenses of the children, the income of both parties, the parties' debts and other expenses.  There are statutory guidelines which the Court is encouraged to follow.  Computing child support is a complicated process, and the assistance of an attorney is usually required.  The attorneys at East State Street Law Offices do these calculations on a daily basis and can assist you greatly in predicting what the Court will probably do regarding child support.

CHANGES AFTER DIVORCE

We usually recommend that parties with minor children keep each other informed of all changes that affect finances even after divorce.  The Courts have increased the informational requirements in connection with changing employment for those paying support.  Raises in pay are not necessarily required to be reported; however, the expenses of the custodial parents continue to increase.  Remember that the amount of child support is always subject to review and potential change by a Judge when there has been a substantial change in circumstance.  We can review the specifics of your case with you and make recommendations any time.  Feel free to request assistance if you have further questions.

SUPPORT FOR CHILDREN OF UNMARRIED PARENTS

Children have a right to support whether their parents are married, have been married and divorced, or have never been married.  When the parentage of a child has been determined, a Court will then enter an Order for support.  Specific questions regarding this process can be answered by the lawyers at East State Street Law Offices either through an appointment or, when they are available, by telephone.  Necessarily, questions answered on the phone will be limited to very general ones, since each case has specific facts which require very detailed information.

CUSTODY

CUSTODY JOINT VERSES INDIVIDUAL

It is everybody's goal in a divorce case involving minor children to make the process as painless as it can be for the children.  In an ideal situation, the children would enjoy as much access as possible to both parents.  The burden of accomplishing this goal falls on both parents in a divorce, and joint custody is ideal if the relationship permits it.  Joint custody does not mean the child will spend 50 percent of the time with each parent.  The children must have a home where the majority of their time is spent.  Joint custody, however, does mean that that parents will share as much as possible in the decisions regarding the child's upbringing.  The parents should communicate with each other and spend as much time with the child or children as possible to make growing up as comfortable and happy as it can be.  In those situations where joint custody is not appropriate either because the parties do not live in the same community or because there are other reasons custody would not be appropriate, the courts will award custody to one party and attempt to give a liberal visitation schedule to the other party.  The assistance of counsel in resolving custody suits is a must.  There are any number of things that need to be considered in these matters and experienced counsel can give valuable advice and suggestions to help reach an agreement or to  prepare for and conduct trials of custody issues if necessary. 

CHANGES IN CUSTODY AFTER DIVORCE

Custody of children is never final until the children reach majority.  The rules are different, however, after a Court has entered a custody Order and a parent wants to change that Order.  The lawyers at East State Street Law Offices who do this type of work will be happy to talk to you about your unique circumstances and advise you.  Please do not expect anyone to answer your questions by phone, since this is an extremely complicated area of family law which requires very specific information,  review of Court documents and specific factual information must be part of that advice.  Thoughtful, informed advice in connection with child custody is necessary, and this cannot be done hastily.  Call for an appointment, and we will do our best to help you.

MOVING OUT OF STATE WITH CHILDREN

Generally, when the residential custodian of a child wants to move out of the state where the parties were divorced, that parent must request permission to remove the child from the state from the Court. This requirement is part of the Court's continuing interest in the welfare of the minor children over whom the Court has jurisdiction. Each specific case requires analysis by an experienced family law attorney and since each case is unique, it will require the attorney to review Court documents, legal precedents, etc.  If the parents of a child were never married, there is a somewhat different rule. Again, legal advice is extremely important in these cases. Please feel free to call for an appointment.

COURT-ORDERED MEDIATION

If custody, visitation or moving out of state are issues before the Court, the Court Rules require the parties to attend mediation sessions.  Mediation is a process where the parties meet with a trained mediator who might be a lawyer, a social worker or a psychologist. The mediator attempts to assist the parties in reaching an agreement. The purpose of mediation is to assist the parties in solving these problems, hopefully, without the necessity of Court intervention. Agreements reached by the parties are put in writing by the mediator and reviewed by the parties' lawyers. If approved, the agreement can then become a Court Order without any further hearings. Mediation is a relatively new program which has met with substantial success. Several of the lawyers at East State Street Law Offices are trained in mediation and have experience in this area.

There are many possible legal issues in any divorce.  Because laws very from state to state and every situation is different this information is to be used only as a general guideline and does not replace the advice of an attorney.  The Supreme Court of Illinois does not recognize certifications of specialties in the practice of law nor does it recognize certifications of expertise in any phase of the practice of law by an agency, governmental or private, or by any group, organization or association, except for patents, trademarks or amoralities.