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Making the Most of Your “Right of First Refusal” in Your Illinois Parenting Plan
Any divorce As a divorcing parent, one of the most challenging concerns you may currently be facing is the prospect of seeing your child less often than you are used to. For a parent who is heavily involved in his or her child’s daily life, transitioning to a shared parenting schedule after divorce can be very difficult. This is one reason that disagreements about parental responsibilities and parenting time can become heavily contested during a divorce. The “right of first refusal” is an important element in an Illinois parenting plan that any parent in a child custody dispute should be aware of.
What Does “Right of First Refusal” Mean?
When you file your divorce petition, you will be asked to create a parenting plan and submit it to the court. This plan outlines how you will share parenting time, make important decisions about your child, and handle other co-parenting issues. The parenting plan also includes a provision explaining the right of first refusal. This is the right that parents have to be informed when the other parent cannot fulfill his or her allotted parenting time. The other parent must be given a chance to “refuse” the additional parenting time before the original parent can hire a babysitter or make other childcare arrangements.
Three Important Considerations for Divorcing Parents in Illinois
Any divorce can be complicated personally, legally, and financially. However, parents often face a unique set of issues when ending their marriage. Many parents’ primary concern during divorce is that of their children. They worry about the effect the split will have on their kids’ emotional well-being, growth and development, and schoolwork. They also worry about how issues like child custody and child support will be handled in the divorce. If you are a parent considering divorce in Illinois, make sure to keep the following considerations in mind.
You Can Get Temporary Financial Support While the Divorce is Ongoing
If you are a parent considering divorce, you may have concerns about the financial consequences of the split. Many parents–especially stay-at-home parents–rely on their spouse’s income. Fortunately, Illinois law allows divorcing parents to request temporary child support or spousal support orders before the split is finalized. “Temporary relief” child support orders require the parent with less parenting time to pay child support to the parent with more parenting time while the divorce is ongoing. This means that you do not have to wait until your divorce is settled to get financial support from the other parent.
What Is “Discovery” in an Illinois Divorce?
Getting divorced is not as easy as simply deciding not to be married anymore. Most divorcing spouses must address several key issues during their divorce including the division of marital assets and debts, spousal support, and child custody. “Discovery” refers to the fact-gathering stage of divorce. The evidence and information exchanged during discovery will affect the outcome of the divorce, so this is a crucial component of the divorce process. If you are planning to divorce in Illinois, it is important to know what is involved in discovery so that you can protect your rights and be as prepared as possible.
Exchange of Financial Information and Other Records
Most divorce issues revolve around finances. Accurate, up-to-date financial information is needed to determine how marital property and debts will be divided between the couple, the amount of child support a parent will pay, and whether a spouse is entitled to alimony or spousal maintenance. Spouses are expected to provide this information willingly, but in some cases, it takes some digging to uncover the documentation needed. Non-financial information may also be required in order to address the allocation of parental responsibilities and parenting time and other divorce issues.
How Are Child Support Payment Amounts Determined in Illinois?
Child support allows parents to share the costs of raising a child even if they are unmarried or divorced. If you are thinking of getting divorced or you are an unmarried parent, you may have questions about your child support rights and responsibilities. You may be curious as to the amount of child support you or your child’s other parent will pay. In Illinois, child support is usually determined by statutory formulas, but there are also cases in which courts deviate from these formulas.
Child Support Calculation in Illinois
Prior to 2016, child support in Illinois was almost exclusively based on the paying parent’s income. The higher the income of the paying parent or “obligor,” the higher the child support payment. Illinois now uses the Income Shares Model to determine child support payment amounts. This calculation method uses both parents’ income to reach an appropriate child support payment.
What Are the Benefits of Creating a Prenuptial Agreement in Illinois?
If you are like most people, you may assume that “typical” marriages do not require a prenuptial agreement. You may even think that premarital agreements are only used by the extremely wealthy. However, prenuptial agreements and other marital agreements can be powerful legal tools. Through a prenuptial agreement, you and your soon-to-be-spouse can define your property rights and responsibilities and start your marriage with a frank and honest discussion about financial concerns.
Differentiate Between Marital and Separate Property
When a couple marries, they combine many of their assets and debts. Assets and debts obtained by either spouse during the marriage are considered marital property. Assets and debts obtained before the wedding and certain gifts as well as inheritances are separate property and not subject to division during divorce. Through a prenuptial agreement, you and your spouse can decide which assets and debts are marital and which are owned by only one of the spouses. This is beneficial in the event of divorce and can also help spouses with estate planning concerns when a spouse passes away.
When Does an Illinois Divorce Case Go to Trial?
If you have ever watched a television show or movie depicting divorce, you may have seen dramatic courtroom scenes depicting divorce lawyers arguing facts in front of a judge. However, the vast majority of divorce cases are settled outside of court. If you are planning to divorce, you may be unsure of what to expect. Educating yourself about the divorce process and speaking with a skilled divorce attorney are two important ways to ensure that you are as prepared for your impending divorce as possible.
Issues that Must Be Addressed in an Illinois Divorce
Undoing the legal marital relationship is often more complicated than people realize. Before the divorce is finalized, the couple must reach an agreement about the terms of their divorce. They will need to determine how to divide marital property and debt, what to do with the marital home, and figure out the ownership of vehicles, furniture, and other personal property. If the couple has children, they will need to fill out and submit a “parenting plan” describing the allocation of parental responsibilities and parenting time. In addition, Spousal maintenance (alimony) is another issue that may need to be decided on. If the couple can reach an agreement about the terms of their divorce, they may design their own divorce settlement and present it to the court for approval. Once the court approves the settlement, it is formalized into a legally binding court order.
When Is Spousal Maintenance Ordered in an Illinois Divorce?
If you are considering divorce, you may have questions about alimony. Typically called spousal support or spousal maintenance under Illinois law, alimony is only ordered in certain situations. If you and your spouse agreed to spousal maintenance in your prenuptial agreement or another marital agreement, the court will most likely uphold this agreement. However, if there is a question as to the prenuptial agreement’s validity or enforceability, the spousal maintenance agreement may not be legally binding. In the absence of a valid marital agreement, spousal maintenance is awarded on a case-by-case basis.
Financial Support for Divorcing Spouses
Spousal maintenance is usually awarded by Illinois courts when there is a significant difference in the spouses’ financial situations. You may be entitled to spousal maintenance if you sacrificed employment advancement or educational opportunities for the betterment of the marriage or family. You and your spouse have the opportunity to negotiate your own arrangement for spousal maintenance; however, if you cannot reach an agreement, the court will make a decision for you.
How Can an Order of Protection Help When Divorcing an Abusive Spouse?
Ending a marriage is difficult in any circumstance. However, ending a relationship with someone who has physically, emotionally, mentally, or financially abused you may seem impossible. If you have been a victim of domestic violence at the hands of your spouse, you should know that there are legal protections available to you during your divorce. An Emergency Order of Protection is similar to a restraining order and may offer you, your children, and even your pets the legal protection you need when leaving an abusive spouse.
Domestic Violence Often Escalates When a Victim Tries to Leave
Most abusive relationships follow a similar pattern. At the beginning of the relationship, the abuser is generous and kind. However, as the relationship progresses, he or she becomes more demanding and controlling. This control often evolves into physical violence or psychological manipulation. Many abusers become enraged when their victim tries to end the relationship or leave their shared home. In fact, The National Domestic Violence Hotline reports that 75 percent of injuries caused by domestic violence occur when a victim tries to leave the relationship. If you are thinking about leaving your abusive spouse, having a plan in place to protect yourself is crucial.
How Can I Change My Child Support Order?
Child support payments allow divorced or unmarried parents to effectively split the costs associated with raising children. In Illinois, the amount a parent pays in child support is largely based on the difference between the parents’ net incomes. When there is a significant change in a parent’s financial circumstances, the needs of the child, or in the way the parents divide parenting time, a child support order modification may be necessary. However, changing your child support order is not always as simple as it may seem.
Calculating Child Support Payments in Illinois
Illinois child support orders are determined using the Income Shares method. First, the parents’ individual net incomes are added together to find the combined net income. The combined net income is then compared to a chart created by the Illinois Department of Healthcare and Family Services to find the “basic child support obligation.” This figure represents the total financial support for which both parents are responsible. The basic child support obligation is allocated to the parents based on their respective shares of the combined net income. In shared parenting situations, meaning each parent has at least 146 overnights with the child each year, the amount the obligor parent pays in child support is reduced by his or her allotment of parenting time.
Can I Still File for Divorce in Kane County Amidst COVID-19?
With COVID-19 and social distancing orders still duly present throughout the U.S., especially in Illinois, many families have spent months together in close-quarters. For some, this time in quarantine has brought spouses and their children closer than ever. For others, the time together has only reaffirmed their thoughts of filing for divorce. Because the pandemic came on so suddenly, with businesses closing their doors at a moment’s notice, those who were considering divorce or were even in the middle of divorce proceedings may have had to put their plans on hold for the past few months.
Luckily, attorneys were deemed essential workers and many law firms remained open, either physically or virtually, to continue working with clients. Courthouses, including Kane County courts, closed for a period of time to protect their employees and avoid infecting those coming in and out of the courthouse for their legal proceedings. As Illinois public health orders have progressed from one phase to the next, the Kane County courthouses have reopened at limited capacity.
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