Firm News

What is a legal retainer and how does it work? A legal retainer is a lump sum payment made by a client to an attorney at the commencement of legal representation.  It facilitates the satisfaction of costs (court costs, clerk filing fees, process server fees, etc) and...

What is an Order of Protection? An Order of Protection is a court order which restricts someone who has abused a family or household member. An Order of Protection may: prohibit an abuser from continuing threats and abuse; order an abuser out of a shared home or...

What is an uncontested divorce? An uncontested divorce is one in which both parties are in agreement with each and every request in the Petition for Dissolution of Marriage.  The Petition for Dissolution of Marriage is the initial filing with the Court that commences...

What is Domestic Violence? Any person who commits an act of abuse against another family member or household member has broken Illinois domestic violence law. How are family or household members defined?  Under Illinois law, family or household members are defined as:...

Mediation in Divorce and Family Cases In most Illinois counties, if the parents cannot agree on the issues of parental responsibilities or decision making, custody, or parenting time (or other non-financial issues), the Court will Order the parties to attend mediation...

A pre-trial conference in a divorce proceeding usually occurs towards the end of the case, once the parties have been able to narrow down their dispute to a handful of issues.  At a pre-trial conference, the attorneys for both parties meet with the Judge and explain...

New Child Support Law Takes Effect July 1, 2017 Beginning July 1, 2017, the child support law of Illinois will see significant changes.  Under the current law, a parent with a majority of the parenting time with the children (custodial parent) receives a set...

Life Insurance and Child Support For litigants in divorce and paternity proceedings where child support is a consideration,  life insurance should also be an important consideration. In the event a parent who is contributing support passes away before his/her...

Once a Petition for Dissolution of Marriage is filed, the responding party must be made a party to the proceedings in order for the Court to obtain jurisdiction over that party. Jurisdiction is the authority of the Court to hear and render decisions in a pending case....

A Living Trust is created by a trust document and designates one or more individuals or corporations to act as trustee.  The trust document directs the trustee to accept title to, or ownership of, real and personal property as trustee for the benefit of the trust’s...