Posted on July 30, 2014 in Divorce

According to the U.S. National Centers for Health Statistics, almost one in six fathers do not reside with their biological children. Either the result of death or divorce, this statistic provides little comfort for the newly single parent raising his or her children on their own.

If you recently divorced your husband, there are ways to explain and deal with an absent father to avoid taking a toll on your children. When your spouse vacated the home, your children began missing an important member of the family structure. Dealing with this type of situation not only results in extra stress on you as the sole parent but also on the children.

One of the most important steps you may undergo is to take full advantage of all available resources to ensure that the absence of their father does not affect your children’s stability but to further reinforce that this is not their fault under any circumstances.

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 Posted on July 24, 2014 in Divorce

A wedding ring is a symbol of love and life. Placed upon the finger as couples say their vows, a ring is a symbol of marital bond and visual declaration of marital commitment, never to be removed. Yet why are couples admitting to voluntary removing their rings to disguise their marital status? An article published earlier this year notes several interesting facts derived from a study as to why people remove their wedding rings. In the study, two thousand study participants offered their insight into this growing trend.

Although removing a wedding ring can arouse deep suspicions of pending infidelity, one-fifth of the young married participants have come clean and admitted to removing their wedding rings as preparation for a night out on the town. The reasoning – more attention from the opposite sex when enjoying a girl’s or guy’s night out. They also confessed that after an argument, the ring was also intentionally removed to solidify their point and to let their partner wonder if divorce is in their future.

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 Posted on July 21, 2014 in Divorce

Dr. Willard F. Harley, Jr. has proclaimed to have saved thousands of marriages over the years by offering advice on marital conflicts and several of the quickest methods for restoring a harmonious path for couples. One area of concern for Harley is that we should carefully choose our friends after the nuptials to decrease the chances of appearing before a judge awaiting a final divorce decree.

Harley mentioned that when discussing the topic of avoiding the extramarital affair it is often wise to forego continuing friendships with members of the opposite sex. Even though many have bulked at Harley’s suggestion, believing it to be somewhat ridiculous and controlling, Harley believes that keeping these types of friendships intact often prove to be the breeding ground for infidelity even among the best of friends.

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 Posted on July 18, 2014 in Divorce

According to the late Ruth A. Peters, PhD, continual contributor to Today Family Time, it is not uncommon, nor selfish, to want to escape and rejuvenate in private. No spouse, no kids, no job, no worries.

Dr. Peters was a firm believer that as one half of a duo, separate vacations should be a welcome addition to each of our lives. She suggested that we should not think of it as an escape but as a new experience. However, there is one ground rule. Never should a quest for a separate vacation be viewed as an interference or a threat to the home-bound partner.

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 Posted on July 15, 2014 in Divorce

When going through a divorce, one of the most important things you need to be able to is to trust your divorce lawyer. It is essential for you to trust that he or she will represent your best interests during what is quite often a very complicated and emotional process. And in order for your attorney to best represent you, there are certain pieces of information you should share during your initial attorney consultation.

To begin, there may be embarrassing incidents from your past that you are uncomfortable sharing. However, it is better for your divorce lawyer to hear about these incidents from you, and to thus prepare the best case for you, instead of being taken by surprise within the courtroom.

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 Posted on July 10, 2014 in Child Custody and Support

In child custody situations where one parent has primary physical custody, the non-custodial parent is often ordered to pay child support. In Illinois, child support is usually based on the number of children and the net income of the parent who has to pay the support.

The amount of child support for one child is 20 percent of payor’s net income. For two children the rate bumps up to 28 percent. The rate for three children is 32 percent, and for four it is 40 percent. Finally, the rate for five children is 45 percent and six or more children is 50 percent of the payor’s net income.

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 Posted on July 08, 2014 in Divorce

Going through a divorce is never easy, even if you are the one who wants out of the marriage. There are steps you can take to help the legal divorce process go smoothly and with less acrimony between you and your soon-to-be former spouse. These steps will also help keep legal costs down.

• Provide the necessary documents and financial records that your attorney requests in a timely manner;

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 Posted on July 02, 2014 in Child Custody and Support

A new review, Lesbian and Gay Parents and Determination of Child Custody: The Changing Legal Landscape and Implications for Policy and Practice, conducted by researchers from Drexel University reveals that LGBT parents still encounter bias from the family court system when it comes to child custody disputes. The review appears in the premiere issue of Psychology of Sexual Orientation and Gender Diversity, and was published by the American Psychological Association (APA).

Despite many states, like Illinois, passing laws allowing same-sex marriages, as well as last year’s Supreme Court decision which ruled the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) unconstitutional, parents in the LGBT community are still being denied the same legal rights as heterosexual parents.

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 Posted on June 28, 2014 in Divorce

If you and your spouse recently decided to call it quits, how you and your body chemistry deal with divorce remains to be seen. For some, there may be a shedding of a few pounds. But for others, the first line of defense is double packing on the pounds by stress eating. One way or another it happens to us all.

As you stress over continual maintenance payments, child support orders, and the division of marital property, it is in your best interest to retain an experienced and knowledgeable divorce attorney, assist your children with their concerns, and take care of your own physical well being.

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 Posted on June 26, 2014 in Annulments

One of the most effective marketing slogans to ever hit the jackpot recently celebrated more than a decade of enticing vacationers and love struck couples to Sin City. Illinois couples, however, do not need to travel to the desert to tie the knot nor petition for an annulment. Couples can opt to petition for an annulment as stipulated under the Illinois Marriage and Dissolution of Marriage Act (750 ILCS 5). However, under the terms of the Illinois Declaration of Invalidity of Marriage, certain criteria must first be met in order to qualify.

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