Chicago Illinois Family Law Blog
Actress Halle Berry Ordered to Pay Ex $20,000 a Month in Child Support
In the celebrity world of divorce, alimony and child support, everything is on a grander scale due to the exorbitant salaries and lifestyles of the rich and famous. This fact is perfectly demonstrated by a recent news article in NewsOne.com, which states that Hollywood actress Halle Berry has been ordered to pay her French-Canadian model ex-boyfriend $20,000 a month in child support for their daughter Nahla, now four years old.
Berry and Aubry had met in 2005 while Aubry was modeling on a photo shoot. Nahla was born in 2008 and then the couple ended their relationship two years later. Since then, they have been involved in an ongoing court battle, first to recognize Aubry’s paternity and then onto child custody and support. Tensions between the couple had increased amidst allegations that Aubry endangered their daughter’s health and safety in connection with an incident involving the child’s nanny, whom Aubry allegedly pushed into a wall while she was holding Nahla. Child endangerment charges were dropped due to lack of evidence.
The Five Hardest Parts about Being a Single Mom
One of the most contentious aspects of a divorce involving children is child custody. In some cases, the child will live with both parents throughout the year, while in others, the child will permanently reside with one parent while being granted visitation by the other. Raising a child on your own is no easy task, however, and many single parents find that there are a lot of obstacles that make it harder than it would be with a spouse. To help you be prepared for the toughest parts of being a single mom or dad, CircleofMoms.com has come up with the five toughest parts of single parenting:
Learning from Celebrities’ Divorce Mistakes
Celebrity marriages and divorces are in a class all their own. Not only do celebrity marriages and splits occur at a much higher frequency, but they are also much more extravagant. Much more money and much more media attention make celebrity divorces very different from those experienced by average people. But that does not mean we can’t learn a thing or two from the mistakes celebrities make. When considering marriage, or divorce, avoiding these celebrity mistakes can make things move much more smoothly in your relationship.
Who Gets Custody of the Dog after Divorce?
Pets have become a large part of people’s lives, much more so than in the past; they are considered part of the family, whether it is a dog, cat, rabbit, snake, or even guinea pig. So what happens when a marriage ends? Divorcing couples regularly fight over property division and who gets the kids, but where does pet custody come in?
According to an article in the Chicago Tribune, pet custody issues in divorce have become more and more common, thanks to the evolution of societal views on animal companions. But the courts do not consider pets like children who must have a custody arrangement. Pets are considered property that will be awarded to one spouse or the other unless they come up with their own shared custody agreement.
Divorce Hotel a New Option for Troubled U.S. Marriages?
The Divorce Hotel, a company based in the Netherlands, offers married couples a different option when deciding what to do about their divorce, and it is often the cheaper option, at least in the Netherlands. A couple takes a long-weekend trip to a hotel, married, and returns home as exes. According to The Huffington Post, the Divorce Hotel will be making its way to Los Angeles and New York sometime in the near future.
The Divorce Hotel is not actually a specific physical hotel but a partnership between the company and multiple “boutique” hotels. The Divorce Hotel helps divorcing guests feel at ease by, on the one hand, making them feel at home in a comfortable, homey environment, while, on the other hand, taking them out of their comfort zone, which also frees them from partners and/or in-laws. None of the hotel’s other “regular” guests know who is there for a divorce and who isn’t. All divorces happen in specific departments of the hotel and all conversation concerning the divorce proceedings occur in private. Staff members are always around for divorcing couples who may find the process more emotional.
Family Law Attorney Leslie Fineberg Discusses Common Summertime Parenting Issues
As an experienced family law lawyer with the Illinois law firm Nottage & Ward LLP, Leslie Fineberg is well aware of the many problems that can arise when divorcing spouses try to come to an agreement regarding child custody and support. Whether the ultimate arrangement is reached by the court or by the couple through mediation, it can be a highly contentious subject. Who will the child live with? How often can the non-custodial parent get visitation? When the kids are on vacation during the summer, who do they live with?
Reasons You Should Never Use to Justify Getting Back Together after Divorce
The time it takes to heal after a divorce can vary greatly depending on the person and the circumstances surrounding the separation. There’s no denying that divorce can have a profound effect on a person’s emotional, physical, and mental well-being; however, it is not uncommon for divorcees to eventually start dating again. In some cases, divorcees may actually return to their former spouses once the dust has settled. But is that a good decision?
According to The Huffington Post, it depends on the couple. If the ex-spouses are able to learn from their mistakes and resolve the issues that broke them up in the first place, they may have a chance at reconciliation. Unfortunately, that is the rare exception. There are plenty of reasons why getting back with an ex is simply a bad idea.
Electronic Discovery Upsets Status Quo: Attorney Jeffrey Knipmeyer Discusses Evolution of the System
Our previous blog posts have discussed how electronic discovery is making it more difficult for spouses to keep secrets and how spouses may gather evidence of deception against their husband or wife; for today’s post, the experienced Chicago family law attorney at Nottage and Ward, Jeffrey Knipmeyer, discusses how electronic discovery is reshaping the nation’s family law system.
Electronic discovery is being used by spouses and lawyers alike in order to obtain evidence to be used in court. In fact, according to Yahoo! Finance, 92 percent of divorce attorneys have seen more cases using evidence collected using smartphones in the last three years. Additionally, 66 percent of these divorce attorneys claim Facebook as the top source for compromising information on the Internet. It is not only advancements in Internet-based technology that has created new methods for finding evidence, but there are now programs that attorneys and other professionals, like forensic accountants, can use to investigate large amounts of information for evidence of deception. These new methods beg the question, when is it illegal?
Electronic Discovery Upsets Status Quo: Is All Fair in Love and War?
In our previous blog post, we discussed how electronic discovery has made marital mischief harder to hide. In summation, it is because technological advancements have made it easier to trace. But who can look for it and can the discovery of deception by one spouse actually be used against the other?
Electronic discovery is finding its way more and more often into marital disputes. Oftentimes, an angry spouse does his or her own snooping to validate suspicions that the spouse is hiding something. But these investigative tactics are not necessarily legal and though discovering deceptive actions may still be used as leverage, they may not result in a more favorable divorce settlement.
Electronic Discovery Upsets Status Quo: Why Marital Mischief is Getting Harder to Hide
Technological advancements have made, and continue to make, many changes in our society on both personal and professional levels. One aspect of society that is being made more difficult by such advancements is secrecy. It is becoming harder and harder for people to keep secrets and none feel this more than dishonest spouses. It used to be much easier for spouses to hide assets and relationships back when your husband or wife could not track your phone and Internet activity; now, electronic discovery is changing the balance of the scales.
Understanding how electronic discovery is changing the family law system is an important factor in the success of a divorce in Illinois and across the nation. In this three-part blog series, the experienced Chicago divorce attorneys at Nottage and Ward will make some key points about how electronic discovery has changed the divorce process.
We are proud sponsors of Little Black Pearl Art and Design Center.
To learn more, click here.
Proud Member of Friends of the Chicago River.
To learn more, click here.
Client Reviews
5 Leslie has been the strongest representation I could ask for
Leslie has been the strongest representation I could ask for in a very complicated, emotional matter. She has continuously looked out for my best interest and the best interest of my son. She is always prompt in getting back to me and in keeping me well informed about my case.
Read More Client Reviews
