Tag Archives: Wheaton divorce attorney
Understanding Joint Child Custody under Illinois Law
During the past few years, joint child custody has become a popular choice in Illinois because it permits both parents the opportunity to spend time with their children. In this way, children benefit, too, as they don’t feel cut off from seeing one of their parents. However, joint child custody can have a downside: Co-parenting can exacerbate disagreements between the parents and present long-term challenges.
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Visitation Guidelines: Custody Dos and Don’ts for Healthy Co-Parenting
Divorce affects children in different ways. Research published by Northern Illinois University shows that adolescents with divorced parents are 15 percent more disengaged from their families than adolescents from two parent homes. Healthy co-parenting is important for a child’s development even after the dissolution of a marriage. This is why it is important to have visitation guidelines to follow.
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Bad Marriages May Literally Cause Broken Hearts
The symbolism of a broken heart to represent the pain of loss as dates back at least five centuries. Obviously, it has become a very common way to express the emotional impact of grief, usually related to losing a loved one. Whether caused by death, betrayal, romantic rejection, or divorce, heartbreak may have some physiological manifestations, but it is primarily a psychological and emotional reaction. A recent study, however, suggests that for certain demographics, a bad marital situation may contribute to the deterioration of the physical health of the heart as well.
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Number of Remarriages in America Continues to Grow
According to the Pew Research Center, nearly 42 million American adults have been married more than once. The current estimate has almost doubled from what it was in 1980, when 22 million reported having been remarried, and has tripled the 14 million figure from 1960. The increase in divorce throughout the United States over the last several decades has certainly been a factor, along with an upward shift in the average age of the population, both of which contribute to more individuals able to and interested in getting remarried.
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Invalidating a Prenuptial Agreement
The average age at which Americans marry for the first time continues to rise to record levels. This, combined with the increasing number of second and third marriages, means that couples are bringing more of their individual lives with them when they marry. Each spouse, on average, has had more time to pursue business interests and accumulate wealth, for example, than they may have had a generation or two ago. As such, prenuptial agreements are also becoming increasingly common, as individuals seek to protect specific assets or interests in the event the marriage fails.
Custody and Visitation: Post-Divorce Holiday Planning
If you believe what you see in department stores, the holiday season has been in full swing for months. At this point, Ebenezer Scrooge himself could hardly deny that the holidays are now right around the corner. For divorced parents, it may be a season of unpredictable emotions as they find themselves trying to negotiate holiday plans and arrangements for their children. Stress, anger, and resentment may threaten to overshadow the happiness and joy of the holidays for those who are not prepared.
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Discernment Counseling: Innovative Marriage Counseling Focuses on Couples Both Individually and Together
The idea of marriage counseling is often met with mixed feelings from people who have experienced it and people who are considering it as an option. With typical marriage counseling, the couple attends sessions together with a counselor in order to work through marital problems and other issues affecting the marriage.
How Mediation Contributes to a Healthy Divorce
Research has shown that divorce is on the decline in the last few decades, but there were still 33,789 total divorces and annulments in Illinois in 2011, 2,310 which occurred in DuPage County. There are various emotions that arise during the course of divorce proceedings. Guilt, anger, and sadness are all overwhelming and can affect day-to-day life at any moment. How can one deal in a healthy way with the dissolution of a marriage?
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Child Custody: Could You Handle Your Child Choosing Your Ex?
A family dealing with divorce must account for many considerations. The divorcing spouses need to decide who will keep the family home, which in turn decides who needs to find a new place. Property and assets must be divided equitably, and arrangements made regarding the children. When making decisions regarding child custody in Illinois, the court is expected to at least consider the wishes of the child as to which parent with whom they wish to live. For many divorced parents, it can be very difficult to find out that their child’s preference is the other parent.
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Alimony Laws in Illinois
Alimony is a difficult and confusing issue for all divorces. The current guidelines for judges to follow in order to decide and calculate alimony are ambiguous and uncertain. Divorcing spouses have little information to go on to guess what alimony will be. However, a new law that will go into effect in January 2015 will make alimony easier to calculate and much clearer.