Reason three: Mediation and settlements are usually the best ways to resolve a divorce in Illinois. But not always!Endless negotiations do not leading anywhere. Sometimes so much time is spent in negotiating and trying to strike a deal with a party or lawyer who is impossible that it is simply more cost-effective to have a trial with a judge's decision than to endlessly negotiate a case that has no hope of settlement.A trial can be finished many times in one day, as opposed to negotiations that never seem to come to an end.

Reason four: Divorce law varies from state to state in the United States.Divorce law varies from state to state in the United States. Some states, other than Illinois, look at the income from parents in order to set the child support. This is called an Income Shares System. In these states,  child support is set based upon a formula that takes into account the approximate amount of each parent's share, that would have been devoted to the child in a shared household if both parties remained together.Therefore, if the custody parent makes $2,500 per month and the paying parent $7,500 per …

Reason 7: Free advice isn't free and may be useless (or worse).Sometimes your best friend, or parent will give you completely wrong advice because they are emotionally involved or simply too blind to see the truth because they want the best for you but are not educated in the ways of Illinois divorce law.Or, it's on the Internet so it must be true. How often have we heard that? There are many articles, blogs and statements made on the Internet regarding Illinois divorce that are simply untrue, misleading, or the author lacks the experience to portray the total picture.

Reason five:  Bankruptcy and divorce law frequently come into play during the course of a divorce case.

Reason two: Divorce law in Illinois has time limits. Some of the time limits are absolute and some are flexible.For example, time limits that are absolute. To appeal to the Illinois Appellate Court what you believe is a wrongful final Illinois divorce (Judgment of Dissolution of Marriage), you must file a Notice of Appeal within 30 days.Another example is that if your husband or wife works for an Illinois city or village, county or the State of Illinois itself . Your spouse's pension must be divided by a special court order called a qualified Illinois domestic relations order or "QILDRO" and …

Reason 8: Think economics not emotions. Good divorce lawyers are good counselors.Feel guilty and want to give your soon-to-be ex-wife everything? Feel angry and want to take the whole marital estate from your ex-husband? A good divorce lawyer can help you keep the emotion out of your decisions regarding fundamental issues which will affect your future following a divorce.Don't let the emotional roller coaster you are on dictate the terms of your settlement. Six months after divorce you may be looking back saying why didn't I get a what I needed or why did I really agree to give all that up…

Reason one why you need a divorce lawyer in Illinois: You need to choose the right county to file your divorce case. Do you really want to be litigating with your spouse in Cook County, Illinois? In Cook County, you're contested divorce case may more than 3 years from start to finish.That's right: Choosing the right county in which to file a divorce is critical to the length of time your divorce case may take. If you anticipate that you will have a lengthy fight with your spouse over custody, a division of assets, or any other major issue, the county where the divorce is filed may be the …

Reason 6:  Divorce law varies from county to county within the State of Illinois.One example of county to county variables in Illinois is maintenance includes the following: Some counties are more favorable to the wife who receives maintenance while others favor husbands who pay maintenance. Likewise, there are no guideline like there is for child support in determining the length of time maintenance is paid by one spouse to another.  In some Illinois counties, such as McHenry County, the divorce judges use the length of the marriage as a rule of thumb formula for how long maintenance is …

"I will soon be in Illinois divorce court and be ordered to pay maintenance (alimony) to my wife both during the divorce and quite possibly after the divorce. I would like to avoid the embarrassment of having everyone in my company know that there is a withholding order in place requiring my employer to withhold money from my salary to pay my wife maintenance (alimony). It makes me look like a deadbeat when I have never missed a payment to her. Instead, I would like to make the payments directly to my wife. Is this possible?" Under the Illinois Income Withholding for Support Act [750 ILCS 28/…

Prenuptial agreements are contracts that set out a plan for the division of property and assets if a couple decides to divorce. Illinois law requires prenuptial agreements to be in writing and signed by both parties. The agreements go into effect once a couple gets married.

"Must child support be withheld from my pay by my employer in Illinois? Can I choose instead to make my child support payments directly to the mother?"

People get divorced for a multitude of different reasons. Illinois law provides specific categories into which your reasons for divorce will inevitably fall. While the categories are finite in nature, nearly any reason for parting ways can fit into one category or another. Ultimately, if one of the ‘at fault’ reasons do not fit your needs, there are always catchalls to fill in the spaces between more specific reasons.

"How should I dress and act when I go to court for an Illinois divorce?"

Married couples enjoy a number of unique privileges, which generally end in the event of a divorce. Aside from having favorable taxation status, married couples may enjoy unique privileges inside a court of law. The marital privilege, also sometimes called the spousal privilege, is a term used to describe two separate privileges. These include the testimonial and the communications privileges.

Recently, various states have decided that long-term unmarried couples can request support from one another when they separate. This type of after-separation support is called palimony. Palimony is payment provided by one partner of an unmarried couple to the other when the relationship ends. It can also include the division of assets acquired during the relationship. Palimony is available in some states for long-term couples that never officially married, but were in a relationship similar to marriage.

Getting married is an exciting and joyful event any couple’s relationship. When a couple gets married, they promise to honor and love each other until death, and are excited to share the rest of their lives together. However, staying married forever is not the reality for some couples. Divorce rates in Illinois are currently declining, but divorce is still not uncommon in Illinois.

For a long time, it has been a convention that a single mom could get back on her feet by getting remarried. In some situations, this has even been a stipulation for the discontinuation of spousal support.It seems, however, that some single moms may be better off staying single. Facing the proposition of being a single parent, or even a parent who shares custody with a former spouse, can seem overwhelming. If divorce is right for your situation, however, you might find that every one is better off down the road.Nearly ten years ago, Congress passed legislation that gave states the option to …