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Four Tips for Divorce Self-Care During the Holidays
Divorce is never easy. If you’re facing your first set of fall and winter holidays while separated, working through a divorce, or as a newly-divorced Chicagoan, you may feel anxious, depressed, or simply numb – as if you have no desire to celebrate at all.
Three Tips for Choosing the Right Chicago Divorce Lawyer for You
Making the decision to divorce is never easy. When you choose the right divorce lawyer for you and your needs, you gain an ally who’ll stand beside you and help navigate the divorce process and protect your legal rights.
Should You Go for Divorce Mediation?
Perhaps the most stressful and hurtful part of going through a divorce is struggling over the division of property and assets. Even couples that have remained friendly can begin arguing once money is at stake. Some couples are unable to agree on terms of the division of property or child custody. So, in the end, they let the courts decide. Others find it much more efficient and cost effective to work with a neutral third-party mediator who can facilitate a negotiation that could end in an amicable resolution.
Why It’s Important to Find a Specialized Divorce Attorney
No two divorces are identical. Even though about half of all marriages end in divorce, each case is unique. Only you know what unique issues are important to you and your spouse. You may have property, custody issues, and other complications on the horizon that will require attention. Therefore, a one-size-fits-all divorce attorney will not fit your specific needs.
Even the most cordial of separations can get messy. Negotiations can become complicated when money, property, and children are involved. Your goals for the future may differ significantly from your spouse, so you may have to fight for your best interests. Remember that you have rights and your opinion matters.
Serving Divorce Papers over Facebook
After you have decided to get a divorce, you must file a divorce petition with the court. Then, you will have to serve your spouse divorce papers. This process allows your spouse to know that papers have been filed at the courthouse and that the divorce process has begun. This will also tell him or her what is being asked and how much time is left to respond. The court will then require proof that your spouse was served with the petition.
For some people, serving divorce papers is a complicated requirement. In one such case, a woman was granted the right to serve divorce papers via social media. According to a recent CNN news report, a Brooklyn woman has been given the right to serve her former spouse a summons for divorce via Facebook.
Planning for a Divorce
There are steps you can take to protect yourself and your family before going through a divorce. If you are about to get married or believe that you and your spouse are going to get divorced, it may be in your best interest to seek out a confidential, pre-divorce planning session. During the meeting, you can sign a retainer with the attorney, which will establish an attorney-client relationship.
During a pre-divorce planning session, you and your attorney will review where you are now, and where you would you like to be. Once you have a goal in mind, you can begin to develop strategies to obtain those goals. The process of getting a divorce and of living a post-divorce life will go smoother if you plan ahead.
Annulment vs. Divorce – What Is The Difference?
While the two words are often used interchangeably, divorce and annulments are two radically different actions that take place in family law. The confusion stems from improper usage in the media, to religious entities using the phrasing in a completely different context. In Illinois, what is commonly referred to as annulment is legally referred to as an action for Declaration of Invalidity of Marriage. In both instances, the end result is a complete separation in the eyes of the court. But annulment takes the idea a step further, declaring that the marriage was never valid to begin with – thus nullifying its existence from the very start. In the state of Illinois a successful annulment is actually known as a “judgment of invalidity.”
Is It Okay For Me To Date During my Divorce Proceedings?
When it comes to dating while going through divorce proceedings, the divorce attorneys at Nottage and Ward, LLP in Chicago urge our clients to exercise caution and discretion. While it likely will make no difference from a legal standpoint whether or not you are dating during your divorce proceeding, you may want to take into account the practical problems this may be bring to the table during your case.
Going through a divorce can be one of the most stressful and emotional times of your life. Now, let’s consider how it looks to your spouse if you are openly dating before the proceedings are finalized.
Business Valuation and Divorce
Often times when a petition for divorce has been filed, each spouse begins to circle the wagons to protect their individual futures and financial self-interests. This becomes a particularly sticky issue when one spouse owns a business. That person (still typically the husband) may try to hide as much of those business assets as possible to minimize their financial losses during a divorce.
Your spouse may report that his business is in trouble, but has his lifestyle changed? During the divorce, your spouse may come to court, hat in hand, claiming that his business has taken a hit of late; but is that true? Is he (or she) still living the same lifestyle despite those claims? If so, one has to ask, where is the money coming from?
Does your spouse’s business pay his personal expenses? If so, he may claim that he actually has “no income” because he isn’t accepting a paycheck. Also, if this is the case, it can appear that the business has taken a hit in both its net income and in its valuation.
How Friends Can Help During a Divorce
As anybody who has gone through a divorce can attest, it can be a difficult and challenging time, even in so-called amicable break-ups. As a friend of a person going through a divorce, you don’t quite know what to say. You want to be there for your friend and help, but you don’t want to say anything that might make the situation worse.
So, what do you do? An article in the Huffington Post suggests that saying or doing something is better than ignoring the situation and not saying anything. Here are some suggestions of things you might say and do for a friend going through a divorce.
- “You know I have your back.” Sometimes a friend going through a divorce just needs to know that you are on their side and you will be with them no matter what.
- “You’re not a bad person.” A lot of blame during a divorce can be self-directed and sometimes just hearing this is enough to get a friend through the day.
- “This sucks.” Yes, this may seem obvious and should go without saying, but sometimes a friend who is going through a divorce needs to hear that somebody else understands that.
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