Palatine Divorce Lawyers

Palatine Divorce Lawyers

The childhood home of Ted Nugent has witnessed many changes over the years. The American family has changed, as well. Today, for the first time in history, most children grow up in “non-traditional” homes, such as stepparent households, single-parent households, or adoptive households. These families face some unique emotional and financial challenges. Frequently, a solid divorce order makes these challenges much more manageable.

The compassionate Palatine divorce attorneys at Andrea Heckman Law understand the challenges that today’s families face. Many of the people on our professional team come from non-traditional families themselves. So, we fully understand your needs and goals. As such, we work hard to develop cost-effective and long-lasting solutions which benefit your family, now and in the future.

Starting a Divorce

Illinois is now a pure no-fault state. Fault-based grounds for divorce, such as adultery and cruelty, are no more. One spouse’s testimony that the relationship has irretrievably broken down is normally sufficient. So, this part of a divorce filing is rather straightforward.

The temporary hearing, however, is a different matter. Most Cook County family law judges convene these hearings about two weeks after the divorce is filed. So, judges make important decisions based on little evidence.

These decisions usually include injunctions, protective orders, and other such ground rules. Additionally, the judge makes preliminary decisions about child custody, alimony, and child support. Although these orders are technically preliminary, once judges make these decisions, it is not easy to reverse them.

Only solid evidence changes a judge’s mind. The divorce discovery process usually provides this evidence, if it is available. Financial discovery could be as simple as an exchange of tax returns. Or, if the couple’s financial profile is complex or there is evidence that a spouse is concealing assets, financial discovery can be quite complex.

On the emotional side, divorce discovery usually includes a social services investigation. A social worker examines the case, performs an investigation, and makes a recommendation as to custody and visitation. This recommendation is not binding, but it is extremely weighty.

Ending a Divorce

One of the reasons lawmakers eliminated fault-based divorce was to introduce more civility into the process. Emotional courtroom showdowns might look good in the movies and on TV, but they are often contrary to the civility goal, especially in the co-parenting era. Before 2016, divorced spouses largely went their separate ways, even if they had minor children. Now, the law expects both parents to assume an active role in the child-rearing process.

That relationship requires cooperation and compromise. Frequently, mediation sets a better stage for these things than a courtroom showdown. In mediation, a neutral third-party mediator — often an unaffiliated Palatine divorce lawyer — facilitates a conversation between the spouses and their lawyers in an effort to come to a mutually agreeable resolution to all pending issues in the divorce. 

After the divorce, the spirit of cooperation and compromise is important. Without these things, the parents will be back in court over almost every dispute, and that is a costly way to solve problems.

Nevertheless, it is important to have divorce paperwork legally modified. That is the only way to ensure that the new orders are legally enforceable.

Contact an Experienced Attorney

Most marriage dissolutions involve emotional and financial issues. For a free consultation with an experienced divorce lawyer in Palatine, contact Andrea Heckman Law.