RSSChicago Illinois Family Law Blog
New Tax Law in Effect January 2019
Effective January 1, 2019, the taxability of maintenance payments (spousal support) from one spouse to the other has changed. The Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, which was signed into law in December 2017, reversed the 77-year-old tax law that had allowed the higher-earning spouse to deduct his/her maintenance payments and required the lower-income spouse receiving the payments to pay the tax.
Five (Overlooked) Things to Do When You Separate
1. Change the password on your email account; better yet, set up a new email account that your spouse doesn’t know about. Do not give your spouse the opportunity to access your account and see potentially confidential information (for example, an email from your attorney).
Let’s Get This Done
For James and Erin Clark, after five years of marriage, the honeymoon was over. It was over clearly, literally, figuratively, definitively, mutually—the list of “ly” adverbs could go on indefinitely, except they were missing the only one that really counts: legally. They each wanted a divorce to be done yesterday, and they were willing to do whatever it took to get the process completed as quickly as possible.
While each spouse may be ready and willing to sign the papers and make it official, here in Illinois there are a few legal requirements couples like the Clarks will need to undergo before a divorce is final.
How Sweet It Is…Until It Isn’t
“You’re nobody ‘til somebody loves you,” Dean Martin famously crooned, “so find yourself somebody to love…but be sure to sign a prenup, Frank!” You can almost hear ol’ Deano adding that last line for his buddy, Frank Sinatra, while performing this hit song in their hugely popular act at the Sands Hotel back in the 1960s. Perhaps you should heed his advice…?
The Surname Situation
The following fictional story illustrates a common situation after a divorce in Chicago. If you need help filing a name change, please don’t hesitate to contact Nottage and Ward, LLP.
Sarah and Tom Mickelson had one daughter, 2-year-old Amy, when they both decided it was in everyone’s best interest that they no longer live together.
October Is Domestic Violence Awareness Month
Victims of domestic violence understand that the physical and emotional trauma lasts long after the actual abuse has stopped. One of the greatest challenges is the lack of support from institutions such as law enforcement, society at large, and even friends and family members who don’t understand what it means to be a victim of assault.
October has been designated Domestic Violence Awareness Month to change this.
The Business of Divorce
This fictional scenario is one that Chicago couples face every day.
Tom used to take his wife Abby’s pork tamales to his office every Thursday. It didn’t take long before they were a big hit—not just in his office, but in the whole building. “We were going through so many that I had to charge for them and keep receipts. Abby and I thought, why not make a real business out of this? We could do the food truck thing. That’s what people do, right?”
How Alienation Can Poison Parenting Time
In most divorces, there is one thing the couples have in common: pain. The divorcing couple has built a life together, and at one point, they loved each other. And now, as time has passed, that love has deteriorated into hard feelings or absence of feelings altogether. Often, the only thing holding the couple together is the child they share.
A Divorce with No Name
What do former New York Governor Eliot Spitzer, former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani, former Fox News television host Bill O’Reilly, actor Richard Gere, reality television star Bethenny Frankel, and a slew of millionaire celebrities all have in common?
They were each personally involved in what is called an anonymous divorce.
Summer Meant Dill
This fictional story explores a common situation that many Illinois parents face. We encourage anyone with questions to contact a Chicago child allocation attorney.
Recently, we had another one of those Chicago weekends where it felt like summer would never quite arrive and chilly rainfall delayed the celebration for kids all over town, who couldn’t wait to tear off on a bike ride or go swimming with friends. This affected me personally as I saw my 8-year-old daughter—Erin—watch a puddle building in the yard just outside our living room window, her gloom accompanied by the thudding drip of the rain. Let me tell you, it was a sad sight.
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