Divorce (the action or instance of legally dissolving a marriage) in Illinois is referred to as Dissolution of Marriage and is categorized as a contested divorce or an uncontested divorce. WARD FAMILY LAW, LLC, represents clients of various personal and professional backgrounds with each client having their own unique issues and concerns, but all are going through the same divorce process. With Jennifer R. Ward, Esquire leading the way on your case, you have legal counsel with extensive law school classroom teaching, professional lecturing, publishing, negotiation, and courtroom experience, which provides clients with well-rounded representation.
In a contested divorce, the parties disagree on at least one of the main issues. In an uncontested divorce, the parties can agree on all of the issues and need guidance negotiating and drafting the final documentation. WARD FAMILY LAW, LLC, can streamline an uncontested divorce case by guiding the client through the steps that are necessary to ensure that the case is concluded with well-written, mutually agreeable documentation in a timely fashion. We also handle highly contested matters and are fully committed to litigating on behalf of our clients, when necessary, to ensure our clients obtain favorable results under the law.
WARD FAMILY LAW, LLC, will help you navigate the divorce process from start to finish, and we will ensure that you are being personally guided through every step. We understand family dynamics and how emotionally draining the divorce can be; we will take the time to understand your needs, concerns, and objectives and how that will impact you and your family. The complexities of the divorce process and implications are not lost on a law firm that handles these cases every day, which allows our clients to have access to attorneys that are both compassionate and experienced in the family law field.
In order to file for a Dissolution of Marriage in Illinois, one of the spouses must be a resident of Illinois for at least 90 days and must meet jurisdictional requirements. The grounds for divorce in Illinois are now irreconcilable differences, specifically defined as “causing the irretrievable breakdown of the marriage and the court determines that efforts at reconciliation have failed or that future attempts at reconciliation would be impracticable and not in the best interests of the family.”
If the parties lived “separate and apart” for at least six consecutive months immediately preceding the entry of the judgment dissolving the marriage, there is an irrefutable presumption that the requirement of irreconcilable differences has been met. In Illinois, living “separate and apart” does not simply mean the parties have physically lived in separate residences- this legal term refers more to the parties’ mindsets with regard to the breakdown of their marriage. Living separate and apart can include spouses living together but believing that the marriage has irretrievably broken down for a period of at least six months prior to the entry of a judgment for divorce.
In obtaining the final Judgment for Dissolution of Marriage, any such judgment cannot be entered unless the court has jurisdiction and has considered, approved, reserved or made provision for the allocation of parental responsibilities, the support of any child of the marriage entitled to support, the maintenance of either spouse and the disposition of property. The court will enter a Judgment for Dissolution of Marriage that reserves any of these issues either by agreement of the parties or motion of either party that the court finds appropriate circumstances exist. Our expertise allows you to meet, and often surpass, your goals in obtaining a dissolution of marriage. Contact our experienced attorneys at WARD FAMILY LAW, LLC, to schedule a consultation 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…
Highly recommended! We waited until the last minute to get our prenup done. Jennifer stepped in and got everything put together. We got to focus on the wedding and she got our prenup drafted and finalized with time to spare. If you want professional, trustworthy and thorough then go to Ward Family Law.
My girlfriend and I had a baby and broke up just after he was born. I did not realize that I was not automatically the dad in the Chicago system even though I was on the birth certificate. I am glad I reached out to Jennifer - she explained the process for unmarried parents and options to establish me as the Dad through paternity in the court system. She also helped with parenting time. Huge thank you.
It was harder than I thought to find the right family lawyer for me. She understood the underlying issues presented by my family and her being educated on the LGTBQIA2S+ community is hugely important to us. Strongly recommend her and the Ward Family Law team to anyone looking for the perfect fit for ALL
I knew that our custody case was going to be long and we would both be fighting hard for our kids. What I did not know is that the laws in Chicago had changed for custody and how that is handled in court. Jennifer took the time to explain the new legal terms like allocation judgment and parenting time and decision making and the steps that a case will require when the parents do not agree on anything for the kids. Once she knew how I felt and what I wanted, Jennifer and her legal team worked hard for me…
My boyfriend and I had a kid a few years ago. He was on the birth certificate so I thought we were fine and we were not. When it came time to get child support I needed to establish him as the dad with the court. After talking to WARD Family Law I knew that I needed a lawyer to get the paternity test, get child support and other money from him and set a schedule. They helped me understand how to help move the case forward so that we could get it over quickly and I really needed the…
I chose to hire Jennifer Ward after speaking with attorneys at several different firms. I chose her because 1) She's brutally honest, even when information being shared may not be what you want to hear. 2) She's very intelligent and experienced. 3) She's dedicated and tough as nails. On our initial phone call, after I'd shared with her some details of my separation, she shared some truths that hurt but were necessary for me to hear. I knew she wasn't going to be someone to hold my hand and soothe me (I have friends and a therapist for that!), but…
Jennifer represented me during a very difficult case and time in my life. I cannot thank her enough for her thorough representation of my case. She is definitely someone I would highly recommend to others!
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