Posted on April 10, 2019 in Family Law

When one spouse has a significantly higher income than the other, the transition from married to single life can be particularly hard on the lower-earning spouse after divorce. This is especially true when the latter spouse has taken on most of the home and family duties in order to support the other’s career advancement.

To ease the transition, the higher-earning spouse often makes monthly maintenance payments to the other for a year or more after the divorce. However, there are many misconceptions about Illinois laws on spousal maintenance, also known as alimony. Both spouses should go into a divorce understanding what they can realistically expect when negotiating a maintenance agreement.

Q: What if I Do Not Think I Need Maintenance at the Time of the Divorce, But Change My Mind Afterward?

A: If you waive your right to maintenance in your final divorce settlement, you cannot go back to court later and try to obtain maintenance (750 ILCS 5/457e). Therefore, one important step in the divorce process is to work out a budget and determine how much money you will need to support yourself after the divorce.

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 Posted on April 08, 2019 in Personal Injury

Suffering an injury while on the property of another can be a frustrating experience. Initially, it is important to tend to the injury medically. However, medical treatment necessarily involves cost, and, especially if the injury can be attributable to a dangerous condition, but these costs may be reimbursable from the property owner under the doctrine of premises liability. Retaining the services of an experienced premises liability attorney is essential to ensure that reimbursement is obtained.

One complication that can affect the outcome of an injury case is if the injury occurs on public property, such as in a park, at city hall, or on a sidewalk. In Illinois, certain laws in these circumstances which affect how a lawsuit may be brought against a governmental entity. Recently, a woman who tripped on a sidewalk in Naperville re-filed her lawsuit against the city, claiming that she tripped on the sidewalk in front of the Will County Courthouse in Naperville.

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 Posted on April 04, 2019 in Family Law

A divorce settlement may require a higher-earning spouse to pay monthly spousal maintenance, also known as alimony or spousal support, to a lower-earning or stay-at-home spouse. The divorce decree will specify the amount of the monthly payment and the duration of payments. If the decree specifies “indefinite” payments, you might assume the payments are guaranteed to continue until the recipient dies or remarries.

However, the use of the term “indefinite” does not guarantee the recipient payment of maintenance for life. It is important for both spouses to understand when and how an award of maintenance could be modified in the future. If a spouse expects to depend on a fixed amount of income for the rest of their life, extra care must be taken in drafting the marital settlement agreement.

Maintenance Payments of Indefinite Duration Can Be Modified

The Illinois appellate courts have ruled that both the duration and amount of spousal maintenance can be modified upon a showing of a substantial change in circumstances, meaning that either the recipient’s needs have significantly decreased or that the payor is no longer able to pay. You also have the right to appeal court decisions regarding maintenance.

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 Posted on April 03, 2019 in Immigration

Buried in the headlines during the December 2018-January 2019 government shutdown was the expiration of the Violence Against Women Act (VAWA), which is a federal law helping to fund domestic violence shelters, regulate civil and criminal penalties against abusers, and establish community resources for abuse victims. However, what is often lost in the shuffle is that VAWA also grants a potential avenue for immigrants who have been victims of abuse to acquire lawful permanent residence in the United States. As of this writing, VAWA has been extended through February 15, 2019, but if it expires again, it could leave applicants fleeing abuse in the proverbial lurch as funding for legal assistance dries up.

Domestic Violence Is an Immigration Issue

The average person may not connect the dots as to how domestic violence and immigration have anything to do with each other, but in reality, the two are closely intertwined, especially for spouses. It is not uncommon for a foreign national to meet and marry a U.S. citizen, only to have that U.S. citizen abuse or mistreat them, up to and including refusing to help them obtain legal status in the country. Many immigrant spouses, especially women, feel that they have no choice but to remain in abusive marriages, especially if they have U.S. citizen children - often, they are told that if they try to leave, they will be deported and never see their children again.

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 Posted on March 28, 2019 in Family Law

After a divorce, a child’s connection to their grandparents and other close relatives can provide a much-needed sense of stability. But what if one parent does not care for their in-laws and does not support the children having visitation time with those grandparents? What rights does a now-divorced step-parent or half-sibling have to spend time with a child that they lived with for years? Illinois law (750 ILCS 5/602.9) provides a mechanism for grandparents, great-grandparents, step-parents, and siblings--including half-siblings and step-siblings--to assert their right to visit and electronically communicate with a minor child who is at least one year old.

Conditions Necessary to Petition for Grandparent Visitation

Four conditions must exist in order for the aforementioned relatives to petition the court for visitation and electronic communication with the child:

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 Posted on March 27, 2019 in Immigration

When someone comes to the United States and states intent to seek asylum, they must prove that they have what immigration law refers to as ‘credible fear.’ If someone is able to show that they have a fear of returning to their home country, and that fear is legitimate or credible, they will be permitted to remain in the U.S. and apply for asylum. However, there are many misconceptions about what actually goes on at a credible fear interview. If you are in a position where you will face a credible fear interview, it is a good idea to understand what exactly will occur.

Screening at a Port of Entry

Credible fear, as defined in U.S. immigration law, is when a “significant possibility” exists that you can establish (in an asylum hearing, before an immigration judge) that you have been persecuted or have a well-founded fear of persecution “on account of your race, religion, nationality, membership in a particular social group, or political opinion” if returned to your country. In other words, you will pass a credible fear screening if you can demonstrate a tangible and genuine fear that you would be subject to physical, mental or emotional mistreatment upon return home as a result of any of the characteristics specified in the law.

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 Posted on March 25, 2019 in Personal Injury

From Lollapalooza and South-By-Southwest to Madison Square Garden and Carnegie Hall, the United States is filled with venues used for hosting musical and other performing arts events. Throughout the year, people flock to these venues to catch the latest and greatest top performers. Having a large gathering of persons in a venue can, unfortunately, lead to injury for some, including some that are severe or even deadly. If this occurs, retaining the services of an experienced premises liability attorney can be crucial to receiving compensation for costs relating to one’s injuries.

Unfortunately, due to the law at the time, a Springfield man was able to only recover the legal maximum of $100,000 (a year later the law was amended to allow a recovery of up to $2 million) as a result of injuries he suffered from a 25 foot fall at the Sangamon Auditorium on the campus of the University of Illinois at Springfield, which occurred as the man was actually trying to save another concertgoer who suffered fatal injuries.

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 Posted on March 21, 2019 in Family Law

Conflicts over the division of assets in a divorce are sometimes based more on emotional or sentimental value than on financial value, particularly when family heirlooms or gifts are involved. There can also be a dispute over whether an item qualifies as marital property that must be divided or not.

Under Illinois divorce law, most income earned and assets acquired during the marriage are considered marital property. However, per 750 ILCS 5/503(a), “property acquired by gift, legacy or descent” is non-marital property. Anything acquired in exchange for such property is also a non-marital asset.

To help clarify these rules, let us consider the following items and how they would be treated in a divorce:

An antique desk that your spouse inherited from a grandfather while you were married. Inherited assets that have not been commingled with marital assets are non-marital property, so your spouse would get to keep the desk. Suppose, though, that your spouse sold the desk for $3,000 and used it to make a down payment on a new family car, and you made payments on the car loan out of your joint checking account. Because the inheritance was commingled with marital assets, its value is now marital property. Your spouse cannot claim that $3,000 as non-marital property.

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 Posted on March 20, 2019 in Immigration

With the unsettled state of U.S. immigration law in recent years, many immigrants who apply for U.S. citizenship are also retaining citizenship in their former country of origin. This status is referred to as dual citizenship, and contrary to many people’s beliefs, it is possible for a person to hold more than one nationality at once, at least according to U.S. law. If you are looking to naturalize, it may actually be to your advantage to retain your old citizenship in addition to applying for U.S. citizenship status.

Why Keep Both?

In theory, one naturalizes to a new country because something in their old one is insufficient. However, given the potentially precarious state of the U.S. immigration system, as well as its ever-increasing wait times for naturalizations and green cards, it simply seems safer to many to refuse to give up their original nationality, if possible. Under U.S. law, it is not necessary for a new citizen to formally renounce their old country of citizenship; thus, many simply do not. The primary reason given by many, in addition to wanting a backup plan of sorts if the U.S. immigration system changes, is ease in traveling back and forth to maintain business relationships and see family.

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 Posted on March 18, 2019 in Personal Injury

Exercise is an activity that many people enjoy, not only for the health benefits but also for relief from the stress of everyday life. Nevertheless, it should be understood that, as with any physical activity, there is a risk of injury while working out at a gym. In most cases, the injury is due to overexertion – sprains, strains, pulled muscles, even broken bones. However, in some cases, the injury is more appropriately attributed to either an employee of the gym or to the gym itself, either a machine breakdown or an aspect of the physical building. If such an injury occurs, retaining the services of an attorney experienced in premises liability can be crucial to obtaining compensation for the costs associated with recovering from the injuries.

Recently, a Missouri jury found in favor of a gym and against an attorney who claimed that a weightlifting coach’s inadequate training caused her to suffer a herniated disc. If you have been injured at the gym, it is important to understand the various options available to you for recovering compensation.

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