Posted on February 16, 2017 in Divorce

Thanks to social media and a host of smartphone apps, it is now possible to essentially track your every movement throughout the day. This can be a dangerous thing, especially if you are in the midst of a divorce. Information gleaned from a Twitter or Facebook account—or even location data from a partner's mobile device—can be used as evidence against you in court.

French Lawsuit Says Uber App Bug Caused Spouse to Suspect Cheating

Many people enjoy a false sense of privacy when they use a social media account or app. They assume that just because they use a password to log in, that means their data is hidden from a spouse or any other party. That is not always the case. Virtually all software contains bugs that may be exploited, and, in some cases, a person's unfamiliarity with the software may lead to the accidental disclosure of potentially damaging information.

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 Posted on February 14, 2017 in Alimony/Spousal Support

In an Illinois divorce, the court may award long-term maintenance, or alimony, to either spouse based on a number of factors. Long-term alimony is generally appropriate when one spouse is unable to earn an independent living. Depending on the case, spousal maintenance may last for a set number of years or continue indefinitely until either party dies or the recipient remarries.

Defining Alimony for Tax Purposes

As a general rule, the Internal Revenue Service considers alimony to be a form of taxable income. This means the receiving spouse must report all maintenance payments for the year on his or her federal income tax return (usually Form 1040) as part of his or her gross income. Conversely, the spouse who pays alimony can deduct it from his or her own gross income.

There are several conditions that must be met for alimony to be considered taxable income:

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 Posted on February 09, 2017 in Divorce

Many Illinois divorces are caused—at least indirectly—by adultery. When a person discovers their spouse is cheating, they understandably hurt and angered. In some cases, the jilted party may want to seek (legal) revenge against the person who stole their spouse. But can you actually pursue legal action against your spouse's lover? Historically in Illinois, the answer was yes. Illinois long recognized two torts known as “alienation of affection” and “criminal conversation.” Also known as “heart balm torts,” these are basically civil claims for adultery brought against a third party.

Illinois Abolishes “Heart Balm” Torts

In 2015, the Illinois General Assembly rewrote the state's divorce laws. As part of these reforms, the legislature also abolished future lawsuits for alienation of affection and criminal conversation. However, parties may still pursue these claims based on acts that took place prior to January 1, 2016, the date the new divorce laws took effect.

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 Posted on February 07, 2017 in Paternity

Establishing paternity is often a prerequisite towards obtaining child support. Illinois has specific legal procedures for recognizing paternity over the objections of a reluctant father. But, what if paternity has already been determined by a court in another country?

There is a principle in law known as “comity” that covers such situations. Comity basically means an Illinois court will recognize a judgment entered by a foreign court under its own laws and applicable to its own citizens. This is not just a matter of respecting foreign courts; it also prevents parties from re-litigating matters in Illinois courts that have been already decided somewhere else.

Illinois Court Upholds Thai Paternity Judgment

A recent case from Cook County illustrates how comity works in practice. In this case, a woman from Thailand filed a petition to enforce child support obligations against the man she claimed was the father of her triplets. The father was an American citizen who had been working in Thailand and admitted to having an extramarital affair with the mother. While he also admitted to being the mother's “sperm donor,” he denied acceptance of any paternal obligations towards the children, which were conceived through an artificial insemination process.

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 Posted on February 03, 2017 in Alimony/Spousal Support

Aside from child custody concern, spousal support is often among the most contentious issues in Illinois divorce cases. Unlike child support, which is subject to rigid state guidelines, judges have wider latitude to determine alimony or spousal support. The goal of spousal support is not to "punish" anyone, but to ensure the recipient spouse is not at a serious financial disadvantage once the divorce is final.

McHenry Court Considers $400,000 Per Month Alimony Request

Spousal support is exponentially more complicated when dealing with a high-asset divorce. Among other factors, the judge must take into account the couple's "standard of living" at the time of the divorce, as well as each spouse's current and future earning capacity. Put another way, the alimony award for a stay-at-home spouse married to a multi-millionaire may differ significantly from that of a working spouse who already has significant income.

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 Posted on January 30, 2017 in Divorce

A divorce involves a number of technical legal issues. One of the first questions you may have is: "Where should I actually file for divorce?" In some cases, the answer may seem obvious, but if you and your spouse are already living apart–and in different states–then the matter is a bit more complicated.

The Importance of Jurisdiction

Not all courts are the same. The law determines what types of cases a particular court may decide. This is known as jurisdiction. If a court lacks jurisdiction, it cannot hear the case.

There are two types of jurisdiction: subject-matter and personal. Subject matter jurisdiction refers to broad categories of lawsuits. For example, patent law is under the exclusive jurisdiction of the federal courts. This means you cannot file a patent infringement lawsuit in Illinois state court. Conversely, family law matters like divorce fall within the subject-matter jurisdiction of state courts.

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 Posted on January 27, 2017 in Divorce

Retailers often consider the holiday season–late November through the end of December–as their peak season. But once Christmas and New Year's end, does that signal the start of peak divorce season? A recent study published by a major university suggests it just might.

Sociologists Identify “Twin Peaks” in March and August

Last August, sociologists at the University of Washington presented the findings of a comprehensive survey of 14 years worth of divorce data from Washington State. Specifically, the researchers examined divorce filings from 37 of Washington's 39 counties during the period from 2001 to 2015. What they found was there were consistently two “peaks” in divorce filings each year: one in March and the second in August.

University of Washington Professor Julie Brines, who led the study, attributed the March and August spikes to the “domestic ritual” calendar surrounding family holidays. In other words, couples tend to wait until after summer vacation and the Christmas season to file for divorce. Brines noted holidays are “emotionally charged and stressful for many couples and can expose fissured in a marriage.” In particular, if holidays “don't live up to expectations,” unhappy couples may be more motivated to seek divorce.

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 Posted on January 25, 2017 in Child Support

Illinois courts currently determine child support payments based on the non-custodial parent's net income. A person's “net income” means all income less statutorily specified deductions. A common deduction is for state and federal income taxes, which are generally withheld by the employer and paid directly to the government.

Of course, many of us end up receiving a tax refund each year because our employer withholds more than the final tax due. Is this refund therefore considered part of a person's net income for purposes of child support? The short answer is yes, but the long answer is more complicated depending on the specific circumstances.

Court Finds Refund Not an Attempt to “Game” System

In fact, an Illinois appeals court recently addressed this very subject. The parties, in this case, divorced several years ago. At the time, they agreed the father would pay the mother 28 percent of his net income as child support. This percentage is consistent with Illinois guidelines for couples with two children.

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 Posted on January 23, 2017 in Divorce

There are dozens of details surrounding a divorce. One that may get overlooked is estate planning. Most couples have previously signed wills, powers of attorney, and advances directives for health care naming the other spouse as their agent. Once a divorce is final, however, these documents may no longer reflect each party’s wishes.

Wills

When it comes to estate planning after divorce, Illinois law actually provides some assistance. If you executed a will prior to divorce that named your then-spouse as executor or a beneficiary of your estate, any such provision is automatically revoked once the divorce is final. The rest of your will remains intact; only those provisions affecting your former spouse are invalidated.

That said, there may be circumstances where you want your spouse to remain an executor or beneficiary. For example, if you plan to leave your estate to your minor children, you may still wish for your spouse to serve as executor. If that is the case, you need to make a new will reaffirming your intentions.

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 Posted on January 19, 2017 in Child Custody

One of the more common disputes that arise during (and after) a divorce is visitation rights for the non-custodial parent. Ideally the parents establish a visitation plan and stick to it. But life does not always go according to plan, and when one parent feels they have been deprived of time with their child, it can lead to additional litigation even after the divorce is final.

Missed Weekend Leads to Extended Litigation

In a recent case from Chicago, a judge went so far as to hold a mother in contempt of court after the father missed two scheduled visitation days with their son. An Illinois appeals court reversed the contempt finding but still ordered the mother to give the father “make-up” visitation days. It is worth noting this dispute arose more than a decade after the parents divorced and agreed to a visitation plan.

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