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As the parent of a minor child who does not live under your roof, you no doubt cherish the time you spend together. While a court may establish your rights to parenting time, whether by agreement or as part of a divorce case, you do not have much guidance to tell you the best ways to exercise your responsibilities to maintain a strong, healthy relationship with your child.
Proper logistics and planning can help ensure a successful parenting time arrangement, and you can also take advantage of the input of an experienced Illinois parental responsibilities lawyer. General advice on making the most of your parenting time includes the following:
Make Sure Children Understand the Schedule: Depending on their ages, you should discuss the details of your parenting time schedule—from times and dates to holidays and vacations. A seamless transition between two homes takes some adjustment, but you will want to make sure that your children feel equally comfortable in both spaces. A written schedule provides children with structure and a sense of security.
When you think about divorce in Illinois, you may see images of drawn-out, antagonistic legal battles involving repeated court hearings where spouses fight over children, the division of property, and spousal support. However, not all cases are so adversarial and can actually be resolved through mediation under appropriate circumstances.
Many spouses are able to agree on some issues or are close to compromise on disputed matters, making mediation an ideal solution to protracted, expensive litigation. Talk to an Illinois mediation professional about your situation after getting some basic information about the process.
How Mediation Works in Divorce Cases
Illinois law allows divorcing couples to resolve their disputes via the mediation process, which is a proceeding that is less formal than a court hearing. The parties, with their attorneys, select a certified mediation professional and schedule the session at a convenient time and place for all. Before the mediation, each spouse prepares a brief on the disputed issues and presents the point of view as to how they should be resolved.
The Illinois budget crisis has been in the news often, but it has had an unfortunate, relatively unknown impact on the victims of domestic violence. According to an April 3, 2017 report in Crain’s Chicago Business, there have been no new funds dedicated to the state’s domestic abuse programs; some of these groups offer legal advice and counsel to individuals seeking to protect themselves and their families from violence.
If you are a victim of domestic violence, you do have options to ensure your safety despite the lack of money for certain programs. Instead of attempting to go it alone, consult with a domestic violence attorney who knows the law and court procedures in Illinois.
Statutes on Domestic Violence
The Illinois Domestic Violence Act is the primary statute covering violence, but the Illinois Marriage and Dissolution of Marriage Act also applies in certain situations. There are key definitions to put the law in context. First, abuse can come in many forms, so you do not have to establish actual, physical attacks to seek protection. Harassment, intimidation of one of your children, and interference with personal freedoms can also be abusive. Second, the law protects a person from abuse by a family or household member, a definition that includes spouses, parents, unmarried couples that share a child, and individuals who have a relationship.
Child support and spousal maintenance are two of many considerations in an Illinois divorce, and the financial obligations included in a final decree will vary based upon the unique circumstances of the parties involved. When a divorcing couple can agree to certain support issues, there are tax benefits that the couple can take advantage of by structuring payments in a certain way. An arrangement termed “unallocated” child support is attractive to both parties. Speak with an Illinois divorce attorney with experience in tax matters to see if it is an option for you.
Default Rules on Spousal and Child Support
Spousal support, commonly termed alimony, is paid by the spouse in a higher income bracket to the individual with a lower income; the intent behind spousal support is to ensure that person enjoys a similar lifestyle after the divorce as compared to when the couple shared a household. Under federal law, the payor spouse can deduct alimony payments when filing individual income tax returns. However, child support falls under a different set of tax laws and is not deductible from the payor parent’s income taxes.
A recent Illinois Supreme Court opinion shed light on how attorney’s fees are handled in divorce cases, ending a battle that had both spouses in and out of court for 10 years. According to the Chicago Sun Times, the ruling means that a wealthy bankruptcy lawyer must pay his ex-wife $160,000 in attorney’s fees plus $27,500 in monthly spousal support.
In the original 2016 divorce settlement, the court ordered the man to pay a staggering $35,000 per month in alimony; he appealed that amount over the next few years. As the case dragged on, the ex-wife poured thousands of dollars into legal representation to protect her interests. The matter stands for the proposition that the parties’ respective finances are one factor involved with determining who pays attorney’s costs in an Illinois divorce case.
Petition for Attorney’s Fees
Under the Illinois Marriage and Dissolution of Marriage Act, a spouse can file a petition with the court to request payment of his or her costs, including attorney’s fees. The court may issue such an order after considering the financial resources of the respective parties. An award of fees may be issued for any proceeding under the Act or other court matters, such as:
When a couple decides to divorce, several steps are taken to begin the process. After the initial consultation with an Illinois divorce lawyer, your attorney will get to work on gathering information and filing the proper forms for your case. Research on property division, issues involving children, and potential strategies for spousal support will also be conducted. Additionally, your attorney will be touch with you about the work behind the scenes, which will include appearances in court. You may wonder what these hearings are about, since your case is not yet proceeding to trial. These court appearances are a necessary part of the process, so it is important to understand what is going on and what to expect.
Status Hearings
Court appearances are scheduled by the judge to see where certain factors stand on divorce proceedings. Your attorney will attend to offer a report on whether there has been settlement on property distribution and/or spousal support, and if you and your spouse have come to an agreement on allocation of parental responsibilities and parenting time. If discovery and depositions are necessary to investigate and resolve certain outstanding issues, your attorney will update the judge.
A legal battle stretching from Illinois to Indonesia found its way into a Cook County courtroom in March 2017, as a judge ruled against granting guardianship and custody to a baby’s grandmother. According to an ABC 7 Chicago News report, the infant’s parents are serving a prison sentence in a Bali murder case, having been convicted just before the child’s birth. The girl had been allowed to stay in jail with her mother until her second birthday, and her mother entrusted an Australian woman with her care on that date.
The basis of the judge’s ruling was that the child’s parents must give written consent before a decision on the grandmother’s guardianship petition would be proper. There are complicated issues involved in any Illinois guardianship case, as an experienced attorney can explain.
Illinois Probate Act
Just like any other case, a court must have jurisdiction over the matter and the parties involved. In guardianship cases, the Illinois Probate Act specifically states that the court lacks jurisdiction to rule on a petition to appoint a guardian if:
A court will make a determination of parenting time regarding minor children as part of a divorce, and both parents are expected to meet their obligations under the order. The occasional deviation from the schedule is understandable as life gets hectic for one parent or the other. However, continued incidents that deviate from the parenting time order can become a problem.
Abuse of allocated parenting time is inconvenient and discourteous, and it is also against the law. Still, it is possible to pursue enforcement under Illinois law. You may be able to proceed in a civil court to enforce parenting time, but—to give more “teeth” to the court’s order—you can also seek criminal penalties against the non-conforming parent. Talk to an Illinois parenting time lawyer about the two different options.
Enforcement in Civil Court
Illinois law specifically provides for situations where there is abuse of parenting time by one of the child’s parents. The other parent can file a petition stating the name, contact information, and place of employment of the person offending the parenting time order, as well as the details of the parenting plan in effect at the time. In addition, the petition must include the specifics of how the other parent is violating the terms of the parenting time order, along with relevant information.
Illinois law allows parents to seek a determination on parental responsibility before the child is born, whether or not the individuals are married. If the issue of parental responsibility arises out of a divorce case, the court would first apply the legal presumption that the child is a product of the marriage. Where the issue is presented in the case of unmarried parents, a court must first determine parentage.
Either situation introduces interesting questions about jurisdiction over an unborn child under state law, as courts must have the authority to hear the case before making any determination on parental responsibility in Illinois.
General Jurisdiction Rules
Under Illinois law, a parent cannot take a child out of the state once the other parent has been served with parentage or divorce papers. Once all the parties are before the court in this way, the court has jurisdiction. However, this rule only applies to living people; it is necessary to turn to Illinois law on parental responsibility matters to determine jurisdiction in cases where the child is not yet born.
The already-contentious divorce between Jesse Jackson, Jr. and Sandi Jackson is becoming even uglier as attorneys for the spouses spar over jurisdiction issues. The Chicago Sun-Times reports that the dispute centers on whether Illinois courts have jurisdiction over Ms. Jackson, who lives in Washington, D.C. with the couple’s two children. Mr. Jackson’s lawyers allege that there is a valid legal basis for the divorce case to remain in Illinois due to Ms. Jackson’s connection to the South Side residence the couple shared: She contributed to household expenses since purchasing the home in 1994 and uses the space when she is in town. A decision on the motion filed by Mr. Jackson’s attorneys may not come for some time, yet the case raises important questions about jurisdiction in Illinois divorce cases.
Two Types of Jurisdiction for Divorce Cases in Illinois
In general, jurisdiction determines where you file for divorce, because you must initiate your case where you reside—not where you were married. There are two types of jurisdiction you must satisfy to proceed with your divorce in Illinois.
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