Divorce is never easy, but it happens with considerable regularity across marriages at every financial level and within every social group. If you are facing a divorce, you are facing both an emotional journey and a complicated legal concern, which makes working closely with a top Chicago divorce attorney a great place to start.
While your divorce will be as unique as a fingerprint, the terms addressed (as applicable to the circumstances of your divorce) will be the same as those addressed in every other divorce, including:
Your marital assets refer to all those properties and things of value that you and your spouse acquire over the course of your marriage (as offset by your debts). These assets must be divided between you equitably upon divorce, and in this context, equitably means fairly – once the circumstances deemed relevant by the court are factored in. While the separate property that you brought into your marriage with you and kept separate throughout will remain separate, the dividing line between separate and marital property can be difficult to maintain throughout the years of a busy marriage.
Parental responsibilities refer to who will make the important, overarching parenting decisions moving forward, including those related to the following:
Parenting time determines when you have your children and when they will be with their other parent. If you can agree on a schedule between yourselves, you can get as creative as you would like with it, but if the court is required to weigh in, you can expect a standard parenting time schedule.
The calculation of child support is generally straightforward and follows state guidelines. The factors that are generally weighted the heaviest in the calculation process include the number of overnights each of you has with the children and you and your ex’s incomes (relative to one another). Illinois uses the income shares model in calculating child support, which also takes in account how many overnights each party has in regards to a division of parenting time.
Spousal support or maintenance is now a statutory calculation that takes many factors into consideration, including income and duration of the marriage. This issue can often be a contentious issue in divorce cases that can prolong the process in many situations.
If you are either headed toward divorce or are already facing divorce, the top Chicago divorce attorneys at WARD FAMILY LAW recognize the gravity of your situation and are well prepared to skillfully advocate for your case’s most advantageous resolution. To learn more about what we can do to help you, please do not hesitate to contact us today.
I am writing a review because I think a lot of times people make the same mistake that I did at the beginning of my case. I had a wonderful talk with Jennifer before my case started and I was very comfortable with her demeanor and her explanations of the Chicago Divorce process. I decided to go with another lawyer because the retainer was a little lower. Big mistake. I didn’t really like the lawyer when we spoke but I was more focused on the money instead of the big picture. I felt like there was no communication during my…
My Husband, now ex, and I wanted a friendly, fast divorce. We had nothing to fight about and nothing really to divide. We thought that would make it easy but when we saw all the paperwork we knew that we needed help. It takes one piece of paper to get married and 100 pieces of paper to get divorced in Chicago!! Ward Family Law made the divorce a smooth process for us and got it done faster than we thought. If you want to be friends with your ex but still want the divorce then look no further and call…
I had a very complicated divorce with a lot of family-owned businesses and assets. Jennifer and her team of professionals help navigate the formal discovery and litigation process with great knowledge, strategy, and patience with all our questions. My family was very concerned about the impact and outcome and we are all pleased with the results. From the appraisers to the business valuators, Jennifer utilized the right people at the right time to shore up our case for the best settlement position at pre-trial. We were happy with the Judge's recommendations, we believe, based on all her hard work and…
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