Divorce can affect nearly every part of your daily life-from finances and property to where your children live and what your family looks like moving forward. Understanding your options can help you make informed decisions before agreeing to terms with long-term consequences.
Illinois is a no-fault divorce state. This means a marriage can end because of irreconcilable differences, without proving wrongdoing.
Illinois law requires addressing issues such as property, support, and parental responsibilities before or as part of the final judgment.
Some divorces can be resolved through agreements between spouses, while others involve significant disagreements over children, finances, property, and other issues.
Establish a parenting schedule that determines when the children will spend time with each parent.
Decisions concerning education, healthcare, religion, and extracurricular activities.
Determine which assets and debts are marital or non-marital property and divide the marital estate.
Based on the parents’ financial circumstances, parenting arrangement, and applicable Illinois guidelines.
One spouse may request maintenance or “alimony.” The court considers several factors when determining if maintenance is appropriate.
Some spouses can negotiate agreements that resolve most or all divorce issues. The court may need to decide unresolved matters.
Not every divorce requires lengthy disputes. A divorce is generally considered uncontested when spouses can reach agreements on the issues that must be resolved.
Those issues can include property division, debt allocation, parenting time, parental decision-making, child support, spousal maintenance, and other financial or family-related matters.
A divorce becomes contested when spouses cannot agree on issues such as parenting schedules, the marital home, business interests, retirement accounts, and property valuation.
