Property division

When spouses are going through a divorce, their marital assets need to be divided. Yet, not all marital assets are tangibly a couple’s possession at the time of the divorce. They still could be very valuable, but that full value may not be realized until later. An...

Illinois is an equitable distribution state. This means that the marital estate is divided in a just and fair manner based on several factors. One of these factors is the dissipation of marital assets by a spouse. However, most people are unaware of what it means or...

As you journey through your divorce, you will learn many lessons. One you would do well to learn early on is that it can bring out the worst in people. Whether from a place of hurt, vengeance or greed, some spouses try to hide their assets in the property division...

When you marry, you likely believe it will last forever. Because you honestly believed this, there’s a good chance you didn’t take steps to protect yourself or your business during your marriage.  While this may be disappointing, you still have options. Some of these...

Property distribution is a big part of the process when filing for divorce. You have likely thought of all the usual property (your house, bank accounts and retirement funds) – but there are some “hidden assets” you shouldn’t overlook.  Divorce can be messy and...

It is easy to focus on high-value assets such as the family home or holiday cottage when preparing for property division in a divorce. Yet they might not be the attractive option they seem. Here is why: Real estate requires a lot of upkeep While houses protect you...

If you’re like many divorcing couples, your home is your most valuable shared asset. Many couples opt to sell it and split the profit so they’ve each got a nice bit of money to start their new lives.  In a seller’s market like we’re seeing now, getting a good price...

When dividing a pension plan, a Qualified Domestic Relations Order will often be used. This order specifies that someone other than the employee should benefit from the pension. This person would be the ex-spouse after the divorce. This is a useful tool because it...

No couple enters into marriage with the goal of divorcing one day -- but divorce can happen to anybody. When a couple decides to end their union, one of the questions they have to grapple with is how marital property will be divided. Like other aspects of divorce, the...

During a divorce, one of the things you’ll need to do is to decide how to divide your debts. One of the debts that you may share is your partner’s student loans. Student loans that are taken out during your marriage could be marital debts in some cases. The fact that...