Posted on November 04, 2015 in Family Law

By Maxine Weiss Kunz

Many changes are coming to family law as of January 1, 2016. These changes include changes to custody (a term of art that is going out the window) as well as changes to financial aspects of the act. Below are a list of some of the major changes that will be in effect as of January 1, 2016:

• No more use of the word “custody” is the big claim to fame with the new Act. Instead, the court will decide on Allocation of Parental Responsibility. These allocations include who will make decisions related to a child’s health, education, religion and extracurricular activities. One or both parents can be assigned each of the 4 categories of decision making.
• No more use of the word “visitation” either. Now we will call this category “parenting time.” The term of art is considered more user friendly.
• No more double trials (we hope). What this means is that temporary support hearings will be heard on a non-evidentiary basis with few exceptions. You will no longer have to call a witness in temporary support hearings. The court will make temporary decisions based on financial affidavits and argument of counsel. There are exceptions to this rule, which will likely apply if a litigant’s financial affidavit is called into question.

  Continue Reading ››

 Posted on October 26, 2015 in Divorce

By Maxine Weiss Kunz

Fault grounds in divorce in Illinois are abolished as of January 1, 2016. What does that mean? In short, the following grounds should no longer be plead in a petition for dissolution of marriage and will no longer suffice as grounds for a divorce:

• Adultery (cheating);
• Desertion (left the home);
• Habitual drunkenness (alcoholism);
• Drug addiction;
• Attempted murder;
• Mental cruelty (emotional abuse);
• Physical cruelty (physical abuse);
• Infecting your spouse with a sexually transmitted disease (STD).

What remains as grounds for divorce is the no fault grounds of “Irreconcilable Differences.” This is the ground that asserts the marriage has broken down to the extent it can no longer be repaired and that divorce is imminent.

Continue Reading ››

 Posted on October 19, 2015 in Divorce

By Amanda Oliver

One of the most common questions in any divorce or paternity action is “will he/she have to pay my fees?”  The answer is, “maybe.”  The court has wide discretion to order one party to contribute toward the litigation expenses of the other party.

A particularly frustrating situation arises when a party is forced to bring the opposing party back to court to enforce an Order.  By way of example, one party may have failed to pay child support or maintenance in accordance with the Order or Judgment previously entered.  The party that has done nothing to violate the Court’s Order is often times, and rightly so, upset by the inherent injustice of having to pay to enforce the Order.

Pursuant to Section 750 ILCS 5/508(b) of the Illinois Marriage and Dissolution of Marriage Act, a party may recoup attorney’s fees and costs associated with the enforcement of orders.  Specifically, Section 508(b) states in pertinent part that “in every proceeding for the enforcement of an order or judgment when the court finds that the failure to comply with the order or judgment was without compelling cause of justification, the court shall order the party against whom the proceeding is brought to pay promptly the costs and reasonable attorney’s fees of the prevailing party.”

Continue Reading ››

 Posted on October 14, 2015 in Parentage

By Justin Green

Effective January 1, 2016 a person is presumed to be the parent of a child if:

(1) The person and the mother of the child have entered into a marriage, civil union, or substantially similar legal relationship, and the child is born to the mother during the marriage, civil union, or substantially similar legal relationship, except as provided by a valid gestational surrogacy contract, or other law;

(2) The person and the mother of the child were in a marriage, civil union, or substantially similar legal relationship and the child is born to the mother within 300 days after the marriage, civil union, or substantially similar legal relationship is terminated by death, declaration of invalidity of marriage, judgment for dissolution of marriage, civil union, or substantially similar legal relationship, or after a judgment for legal separation, except as provided by a valid gestational surrogacy contract, or other law;

Continue Reading ››

 Posted on October 06, 2015 in Press Releases

Lincolnwood divorce lawyer Maxine Weiss Kunz of Weiss-Kunz & Oliver, LLC has been named a “Top 10 Under 40 Family Law Attorney” by the National Academy of Family Law Attorneys (NAFLA).

The Lincolnwood law firm of Weiss-Kunz & Oliver, LLC is pleased to announce that Founding Partner Maxine Weiss Kunz has been named a 2015 “Top 10 Under 40 Family Law Attorney” for the state of Illinois by the National Academy of Family Law Attorneys (NAFLA).

NAFLA employs a comprehensive selection process to determine the top family law attorneys in each state. Selected attorneys must be nominated by a licensed practicing attorney and meet the minimum requirements for membership. The NAFLA processing committee then selects a portion of the nominated attorneys to advance to the final selection stage, in which the NAFLA Board of Governors formally determines the top family law attorneys in each state.

Lincolnwood divorce lawyer Maxine Weiss Kunz is one of the Founding Partners and Principals at Weiss-Kunz & Oliver, LLC. She graduated with her Juris Doctorate from Chicago-Kent College of Law and earned her B.A. from Indiana University. She dedicates her legal practice to family law matters including: divorce, adoption, premarital and postnuptial agreements, parentage and paternity, dissolution of same sex marriages, child representation, collaborative law, mediation, and appeals. She is a certified Guardian ad Litem and Child Representative for the Cook County court system and is also a certified mediator and collaborative lawyer within the state of Illinois.

Continue Reading ››

 Posted on September 29, 2015 in Divorce

Once you decide that divorce is inevitable, how do you tell your spouse? This is a personal decision with legal components. You may wish to consult your lawyer before going through the below options.

The obvious answer may be to tell them outright. You can advise your husband or wife of your desire to dissolve or separate from your marriage orally or in writing (email, text, etc.). However, unless you have consulted a lawyer and gained their agreement, it is often best NOT to put your intentions in writing.

Another option is to tell your spouse during a therapy session. This is a good option for a spouse that anticipates an angry or depressed response.

Alternatively, you can have your lawyer tell your spouse you want a divorce or legal separation. This can be done either informally or formally. Informally is usually done by a letter written from your lawyer to your husband or wife. The letter normally includes the underlying Complaint (Petition for Dissolution of Marriage, Petition for Dissolution of Civil Union, Petition for Legal Separation, or the like) and sets forth your intentions.

Continue Reading ››

 Posted on September 01, 2015 in Infidelity and Divorce

The website Ashley Madison, which openly facilitates adulterous relationships, was recently hacked, exposing thousands of its customers' identities. It is important to understand how adultery affects a potential maintenance award in a divorce proceeding. Under Illinois law, courts will look at the following factors to determine whether a maintenance award is appropriate:

• The income and property of each party, including marital property apportioned to and non-marital property retained by the party seeking maintenance;
• The needs of each party;
• The present and future earning capacity of each party;
• Any impairment of the present and future earning capacity of the party seeking maintenance due to that party devoting time to domestic duties or having forgone or delayed education, training, employment, or career opportunities;

  Continue Reading ››

 Posted on August 17, 2015 in Child Custody

Changes are coming to the custody and visitation portions of the Illinois Marriage and Dissolution of Marriage Act (IMDMA). However, at this time and in prior years, there are distinct differences between the terms “custody” and “visitation.” Many litigants of custody battles do not know if they should be awarded custody of their children.

Each parent to a divorce usually believes they want “custody” of their children. However, often times what that parent is asking is whether the child(ren) can spend more time with one parent than the other. Technically, this is not custody of a child. Technically, under the current statute, the term of art “visitation” determines how much time each parent spends with a child.

Custody, in contrast to time, is decision making. The parent that decides the choice of doctor for a child is making a custody decision as one example (medical decision making). If the parents can agree on the choice of doctor, it may be appropriate to award joint custody to the parents. Other major custody issues involve decision making related to extracurricular activities (enrollment and selection), child care, religious training or lack thereof, and the like. If two parties can agree on all of these decisions, than they are strong candidates for joint custody.

Continue Reading ››

 Posted on August 03, 2015 in Child Custody

Under Illinois law, grandparents, great-grandparents, and siblings of a minor child who is one year or older, have standing to bring an action in circuit court by a petition requesting visitation. The petition must be filed in the county in which the minor child(ren) reside.

A grandparent, great-grandparent, or sibling may file a petition for visitation rights to a minor child if there has been an unreasonable denial of visitation by a parent and at least one of the following conditions exist:

• The child’s other parent is deceased or has been missing for at least 3 months;
• A parent of the child is incompetent as a matter of law;
• A parent has been incarcerated in jail or prison during the 3 month period preceding the filing of the petition;

  Continue Reading ››

 Posted on July 17, 2015 in Lincolnwood Divorce Lawyer

Attorneys have a law degree. We all know that. They have a JD and technically speaking they are doctors of the law. But there are additional certifications and licensure that attorneys can seek following law school and while they are in practice. One of those certifications is from the National Institute of Trial Advocacy, also known as NITA.

NITA provides valuable and dynamic teaching methods to attorneys licensed to practice in Illinois and other jurisdictions. NITA employs expert faculty to enrich lawyers in advanced skills and provide them with Continuing Legal Education credits as required for each attorney to maintain their licensure. Attendees at NITA practice advanced skills in all areas of law, from jury selection to expert witness examination to family law (divorce law).

One of the courses taught by the National Institute of Trial Attorneys each year involves a 8-day (yes, 8 days) certificate program in family law advocacy. Divorce cases are a component of family law. This course includes advanced techniques in examining and cross examining expert witnesses, including custody evaluators (604(b) and 604.5 evaluators) and financial experts (CPAs and the like). In addition to daily drills and lectures, each attorney puts on a mock trial at the end of the program to duplicate and show off the skills they learned from the preceding 7 days of drills. That trial involves expert testimony and cross examination.

Continue Reading ››