DOMESTIC RELATIONS

What we will do for you
The area of law including divorce, division of property and debts, child custody, support and visitation is generally referred to as Domestic Relations.  If you have questions regarding any of these areas, you should schedule an appointment to speak with us.  We will review the facts of your case with you and thereafter explain your options.
If you are going to be divorced and you and your spouse have a complete agreement on all issues, we will charge a fixed fee.  We charge $400 plus costs if you have no children and $500 plus costs if you do have children.  There would be additional costs if you are dividing a retirement account and that requires an additional Court Order.
If the matter is not completely settled, we will charge for our services on an hourly basis.  Our hourly rates are as follows:

  • Senior Attorney                                     $150

  • Associate Attorney                              $120

  • Legal Assistant                                     $75

  • Secretary                                                $30

GENERAL INFORMATION

In Illinois, there are two ways to obtain a dissolution of one’s marriage:

(1)    Irreconcilable Differences (sometimes referred to as "no fault")

(2)    Fault Grounds (where you claim the other party did something wrong)
In order to use irreconcilable differences, the parties must be separated for two years or both agree to waive the two-year waiting period and be separated for six months before the hearing.  The fault grounds used most of the time is "mental cruelty."

After the court decides that it will grant a dissolution of the marriage, the court then addresses the issues of:

(1)    custody of any children of the parties under the age of eighteen

(2)    visitation of these children

(3)    child support and college education expenses

(4)    medical insurance for any minor children

(5)    payment of medical bills not covered by insurance

(6)    allocation of the income tax deduction for each child

(7)    spousal support called maintenance (formerly alimony)

(8)    division of real estate and other assets including retirement benefits

(9)    division of debts

There are two types of custodial arrangements in Illinois:

(1)    sole custody

(2)    joint custody
Sole custody basically means that one of the parties will make the decisions regarding raising the children and the other will visit with the children.  Visitation can be "reasonable" if the parties can agree on what that visitation will be.  If they cannot agree, the court can specifically define the visitation.  In Central Illinois, typical visitation includes forty-eight hours every other weekend, a few hours one evening during the week, every other major holiday and two weeks during the summer time.  Although this schedule is "typical,"  actual visitation can vary widely depending upon the facts of the case and the parties.
Joint custody basically means that the parties will in some manner jointly decide on issues involving raising the children.  Such issues to be decided jointly include where the children will go to school, their religious training, sports activities and medical care.  For joint custody, the parties should have a written agreement on how these decisions are to be made and what happens if they do not agree.  In joint custody arrangements the court usually will want one of the parties to have "primary physical custody."  Joint custody does not automatically mean that the children will spend an equal amount of time with each parent.  The court order should set forth how the children will divide their time between their parents’ residences.  Often the children are with the parent who has "primary physical custody" as much as if he or she had sole custody.

Child support is usually determined by applying the schedule provided in the statute.  The statute provides for determining child support by multiplying a certain percentage by the parent’s net income.  Generally, net income is defined as total wages minus taxes, health insurance costs and other prior child support orders.  The percentages are as follows:

  • One child              20%

  • Two children       28%

  • Three children    32%

  • Four children       40%
The court can deviate from these percentages if the facts warrant.  Additionally, the court often requires a parent to pay for one-half of the day care expenses for young children.
Since facts of each case are so different, one must exercise caution when comparing child support orders or any court orders in dissolution matters.
Education expenses are decided on a case-by-case basis even more so than child support.  When considering the costs for college education, the court considers the reasonableness of the proposed school, the child’s resources and the resources of each parent.  
Maintenance is generally appropriate when the parties have been married for a significant length of time and there is a significant disparity between their incomes.  There are many facts the court takes into consideration.  Judges often say that deciding maintenance is one of the more difficult decisions they must make.
Property and asset division is sometimes complex and would be difficult to explain here.  However, there is one basic concept that would be worth noting.   When dividing assets the court must first decide whether the asset is a "marital" asset or a "non-marital" asset.  Marital assets are those acquired during the marriage.  Non-marital assets are those one of the parties owned before the marriage or were acquired by one of the parties by gift or inheritance during the marriage.  Generally, one keeps his or her own non-marital assets while marital assets are divided by the court (not necessarily equally).
Since the facts of each case vary, you should consult a lawyer about these matters and not attempt to analyze your case yourself.