The law never sleeps. While I am not sure this is a quotation I can attribute to anyone, in particular, the sentiment is all too true. Recently the Illinois legislature made even more changes to the Illinois Marriage and Dissolution of Marriage Act (IMDMA) by the passage of Public Act 100-0520. These changes follow on the…
“Why do I have to pay 32% of my income for child support? She doesn’t have to pay anything for support of the children!” As a family law practitioner, I have often heard this statement or some variation, from people obligated to pay child support. One respected judge would often respond by saying, “Well, if…
While Illinois still is without a budget, the Legislature is at work correcting its prior errors and clarifying things it previously did. For a third straight year, that means more changes to Illinois family law are coming. On August 12, 2016, Governor Rauner signed into law a bill clarifying and making corrections to the massive rewrite…
In past articles, we have described the substantive and procedural changes to the Illinois Marriage and Dissolution of Marriage Act (IMDMA) dealing with parenting. Custody and visitation are terms that have been replaced with parenting time, care taking functions are now defined, and significant decision making authority can now be allocated to either or both…
While changes to the substance of the provisions in Illinois Marriage and Dissolution of Marriage Act (IMDMA) dealing with custody and visitation may be the most significant of the changes the new law introduces, effective January 1, 2016, there are procedural changes to parenting in divorce as well. The procedural changes to parenting in divorce…
We continue with our summaries of the changes to Illinois Marriage and Dissolution of Marriage Act (IMDMA) by focusing on the revisions to custody and visitation. Changes to parenting in divorce are, perhaps, the most significant of the changes that will take effect with the new law. In fact, the terms Custody and Visitation will no…
Sweeping changes were made to Illinois Marriage and Dissolution of Marriage Act (“IMDMA”), including changes to Section 513, which is the new divorce law on college expenses in Illinois that regulates the allocation of post-secondary education expenses for non-minor children. These changes go into effect January 1, 2016, and eliminate some confusion and room for disagreement that led…
One of the first things that happen in divorces in which there is a disparity in income between the spouses is that the spouse with less income (or no income) files a petition for temporary support. The new revisions to the Illinois Marriage and Dissolution of Marriage Act (“IMDMA”) effective January 1, 2016, will drastically…
One of the most significant changes to the practice of Illinois family law in recent years involved the revisions to Section 504 of the Illinois Marriage and Dissolution of Marriage Act (“IMDMA”) regarding maintenance, effective January 1, 2015. Since that date, the award of maintenance has been governed by a formula for the first time in…
Following successive major changes to Illinois marriage law in 2011 (civil unions), 2013 (same-sex marriage) and 2014 (spousal maintenance (alimony) provisions) the Illinois legislature has now passed, and the Governor has signed, a complete rewrite of the Illinois marriage and divorce law (Marriage and Dissolution of Marriage Act (IMDMA)). The last time the Marriage Act…