While children are not often named parties in family law litigation, they are frequently greatly affected by the outcome of family court matters such as parenting time and visitation.

NOTE: As of July 2017, the law governing child support in Illinois has changed. Please see our Child Support page for more information.

Couples sign prenuptial agreements before marriage so they are able to determine, in advance, how assets will be divided if there is a divorce. The Illinois Uniform Premarital Agreement Act governs prenuptial agreements. Couples enter into prenuptial agreements assuming that the court will enforce them if there is a divorce. However, there are situations that make a prenuptial agreement, or some of the provisions in a prenup, invalid.

On January 1, 2016, Illinois family law went through a major overhaul, and changes to the Illinois Marriage and Dissolution of Marriage Act went into effect. One major change was the way child custody was divided. Prior to the change, there was child custody and visitation; however, now the law discusses parental responsibility and parenting time.

Lawmakers in Illinois ended the session without passing a budget. Therefore, without a budget, several programs in Illinois are running a shortfall or are at risk of closing. The Child Support Services Program, a program which helps many people, especially low income families, get the child support to which they are entitled, is being adversely affected by the stalemate.

In order for a father to retain the legal rights and responsibilities of parenthood, paternity needs to be established. In the absence of an adoption or other extenuating circumstances, if the mother of the child is married to a man at the time that she got pregnant and/or the time that she gives birth to the child, then her husband is the presumptive father. In all other cases, paternity needs to be established.

The Chicago Tribune recently reported that a woman from Lake Geneva, Wisconsin was arrested and charged with several felonies and misdemeanors for taking her three children out of state.

There are several ways to bring children into a family. One way to create a family is through adoption, and many people choose to adopt children through foster care. It is important to understand basic information about adopting a child from foster care if you are interested in pursuing this option.

When people think about divorce they usually think about long and stressful hours fighting over property and parenting responsibilities with their spouse. They also tend to think about the high attorney fees that go with it. However, that does not have to be the case. Some couples are choosing mediation as a way to make decisions about their divorce.

During the lifetime of a child, circumstances can change greatly that may mean that the amount you pay or receive in child support should be altered to take these changes into account. This is called a “modification” of child support.

Generally, we think of divorce as a personal matter that remains private. However, once in awhile, a divorce or information that comes out as part of a divorce can negatively impact someone’s job.

When a couple divorces, sometimes one spouse is ordered to pay the other spouse maintenance. Maintenance used to be called alimony and is generally paid from the higher earning spouse to the lower earning spouse. Maintenance can be ordered by a judge or a couple can agree on it. There are several types of spousal maintenance and different circumstances that apply when determining whether maintenance will be paid, how much, and for what period of time. Therefore, if you are seeking maintenance after a divorce, then it is imperative to understand the specifics of this process&…