In way of background, the Uniform Child Custody Jurisdiction Act was enacted in 1968. It was revisited an amended 30 years later with the formation of the Uniform Child Custody Jurisdiction Enforcement Act in 1997. It has been adopted in all 50 states and was adopted in Illinois in 2003. Definition of Child Custody Proceeding – this includes proceedings involving legal …
As if there are not enough things to think about when beginning the divorce process, it is imperative that parties preserve evidence, even when merely the prospect of divorce litigation is present. Thus, the duty to preserve evidence is triggered when there is probable, likely or reasonably anticipated litigation. See Shimanovsky v. General Motors Corp. 181 Ill.2d 112, 121 (1998) …
A very common thought when the divorce process begins is: what if my spouse empties or our bank account? Different states have different statues regarding what restraints are “automatic” when a divorce litigation ensues. Some have very ridged and extensive “automatic orders” or “automatic temporary restraining orders” (a/k/a/ “ATRO’s”), while others do not. Illinois does have an automatic stay for: …
There are a myriad of animal law issues affecting farm and ranch families who are going through a divorce (both with companion animals but also livestock and frozen genetics). Read my Fact Sheet with the National Agriculture Law Center here. Don’t forget to check out all my NALC Fact Sheets on family law issues with agriculture here.
This is always a hot topic in divorce, but in particular with farm and ranch families. I worked on Fact Sheets for family law issues affecting agriculture for the National Agriculture Law Center. You can read my Fact Sheet on children issues including “custody and visitation” here.
In Illinois, it is within the trial court’s discretion to give the dependency status to one parent because the tax dependency issue is viewed as an issue of support. In re Marriage of Evanoff and Tomasek, 2016 IL App (1st) 150017 (1st Dist. 2016), In re Marriage of Sawicki, 346 Ill.App.3d 1107 (3rd Dist. 2004). If a court allows the …
Oftentimes in a divorce or separation, people assume that assets need to be divided… but that isn’t *always* the case, especially with farm and ranch divorces. Read my Fact Sheet on Keeping the Farm Business Intact with the National Agriculture Law Center here. You can read all of the fact sheets on family law issues with agriculture here.
Oftentimes folks who are getting a divorce, do not think about estate planning concerns but this is an especially important issue for multi-generational farm and ranch families, Read my fact sheet with the National Agriculture Law Center on this very topic here. All of the family law issues in agriculture Fact Sheets can be found here.
Equitable distribution (“ED”) is the allocation of the marital estate in a divorce. Importantly, not all states are equitable distribution states; instead, states like Texas and California are community property states. The majority of states are equitable distribution states, but it is important to confirm this with a licensed attorney in the applicable jurisdiction. In way of background, property in …
Child support in most states is largely formulaic (i.e., a math equation)– basic support is typically calculated by looking at the income and qualified deductions of each parent. However, for most involved in farming and ranching or other kind of agri-business, finding the numbers for the math equation is anything but straightforward. This figure is also used to help calculate …