Blog

Am I going to pay alimony? If so, how much? As with most legal questions, the short answer is “it depends.” Illinois law establishes specific benchmarks and guidelines for family courts to use in calculating spousal maintenance (formerly known as alimony). However, the law also gives the court significant discretion to deviate from the guidelines...

When a wife falls ill, the risk of divorce increases It’s one of the fundamental marriage vows: to stay by your spouse in sickness and in health. But new research on late-in-life divorces has suggested that those vows don’t play out as expected, at least when it’s a woman who gets sick. A February 2025...

If you’re like most people going through a divorce, the last thing you want is to go to trial. If you are going to end your marriage, you’d rather do it on your own terms and preserve your privacy throughout the process. And you might think that avoiding court means you can also go without...

The decisions you make during your divorce will have massive implications for the rest of your life. That’s why it’s so important to get sound advice and proceed carefully. Unfortunately, that’s not always the case in practice. Here are seven of the most common divorce mistakes we see—and how to avoid them. 1. Making decisions...

Navigating child custody laws in Illinois requires a clear understanding of how courts allocate parental responsibilities. Illinois no longer uses the term "custody" in legal proceedings. Instead, the state divides parental duties into decision-making responsibilities and parenting time. These laws prioritize the child's best interests while ensuring both parents play meaningful roles in their child’s...

As the new year begins, the joy and warmth captured in holiday cards can feel out of reach for some families. Beneath the glow of twinkling lights and festive meals, cracks in relationships may become impossible to ignore. It’s no coincidence that January—often called “Divorce Month”—sees a significant spike in divorce filings, with nearly one-third...

As joyful as the holidays ought to be, they’re never easy for parents, and especially not for parents who are divorced or separated. The holiday season means navigating your custody situation, shuttling the kids from home to home, dealing with time away from school, and seeing relatives with whom you may have complicated relationships. The...

Prenuptial and postnuptial agreements are legal contracts that outline how marital assets will be handled in cases of divorce or death. Both agreements address similar topics, such as the division of financial assets and alimony provisions. In some cases, they address retirement benefits such as pensions. When considering a prenup versus a postnup, each type...

As far as the legal system is concerned, a marriage begins at a moment in time and ends at a moment in time. Of course, real lives and real relationships are more complicated than that. Often, the marriage is over in an emotional sense long before legal proceedings are completed, or even started. This is...

Over the last few decades, more and more couples have met online. By now, online dating has been around for long enough that we have real data about how marriages that started online are playing out. The results are mixed. While online dating has led to more marriages across regional and demographic lines, marriages that...