Recent Study Addresses Shared Parenting After Divorce

For many parents who have recently gotten divorced or are thinking about filing for divorce in the New Year, the prospect of shared parenting can produce anxiety and frustration. While some parents get along with one another throughout the divorce proceedings and continue to work together amicably afterward, this is not always the case. For many Chicago residents, it can be difficult to even imagine reaching a compromise with your ex-spouse about anything, especially an issue concerning the children. For[...]

Did No-Fault Divorce End Saturday Morning Cartoons?

Superman, Batman, Wonder Woman, and other stalwart superheroes were once a fixture on Saturday mornings. Some people still wonder what happened to these shows, especially since many superhero movies are so popular. There is some evidence that no-fault divorce may have been at least partially responsible for the demise of Saturday morning cartoons. So, in a way, Cook County family law judges may have closed the Hall of Justice, thus achieving something that always eluded the nefarious Lex Luthor and[...]

How Do I Calculate Child Support Under the “Income Shares” Model?

Many families in Illinois are just learning about the new “income shares” model for child support that took effect on July 1, 2017. As we have previously discussed, Illinois child support used to work in such a way that the custodial parent paid child support to the noncustodial parent. This was known as the “percentage of obligor net income” model.  Now, however, the state uses an “income shares” model. This means that the net incomes of both parents are taken[...]

Illinois Debate Surrounding Equal Parenting Time

Are you in the process of getting divorced in Chicago and thinking about child custody issues? For many parents in the Chicago area who are considering divorce, the changes to Illinois law concerning parental responsibilities and parenting time at first may not seem as though they will result in significant practical changes. However, one of the underlying emphases of the shift in child custody law is that both parents should be spending time in the role of parent. In other[...]