The amount of time your divorce will take depends on several factors: whether you and your spouse reach an agreement, whether each party cooperates in providing all necessary information, whether a trial is necessary, and court schedules. No one knows for sure how long a divorce will take because each case is very different, but the more agreements the parties are able to reach the quicker the case will be resolved.
Most divorce attorneys charge by the hour, so the total cost depends on the amount of time it takes for your case to be resolved. You can help control the costs of your case by attempting to reach agreements directly with your spouse, by promptly providing all documents requested by your attorney, and by making sure to hire an attorney who won’t overcharge you.
Child support is determined by a statutory formula that takes into account both parties’ incomes and the amount of parenting time each party is awarded. If you are the parent with the majority of parenting time, you will likely receive child support. If you have equal parenting time, you may still have to pay child support. This depends on the difference in the parties’ incomes. You can use Illinois’s child support estimator to get an estimate of your child support
Whether you will receive maintenance is determined by several statutory factors, such as length of marriage, the income(s) of the parties, the lifestyle of the parties during the marriage, and whether one party took time off work to care for children. If the court determines you will receive maintenance, the amount is determined by a statutory formula based on the incomes of the parties.
You can ONLY make your spouse move out by a court order. In a divorce case, the judge can order your spouse to move out if living together jeopardizes the physical or mental health of you or your minor child.
If you have minor children and have not reached an agreement on the allocation of parental responsibilities (custody and visitation), you will be required to go to mediation. In Illinois, the only issues that must be mediated are decision-making and parenting time. Other issues may be mediated by agreement of the parties.
Illinois is an equitable division state, which means marital assets are divided fairly. This frequenting means that each party receives half of the marital assets, but there is no specific requirement that you receive half.
The court determine issues related to children (decision-making and parenting time) based on what is in the best interest of the child. When determining best interest, the court looks at several factors, such as which parent has been the children’s primary caregiver, which parent will help the children have a relationship with the other parent, whether there has been any domestic violence in the household, and the wishes of the parents and children.
In divorce cases, attorney’s fees can be awarded in two circumstances. First, if you do not have the ability to pay your attorney’s fees and your spouse does have the ability to pay your attorney’s fees, he/she can be ordered to pay some or all of your fees. Second, attorney’s fees can be awarded as a punishment if the other party fails to comply with a court order or other court deadline, and you have to file a motion to enforce the order or deadline.
Kids cannot decide where they live until they turn eighteen. As kids get older, judges will give more weight to their opinions on where they want to live, but until eighteen the judge makes the final decision.