Maintenance, formerly known as alimony, is a relief granted to a party in a dissolution of marriage case that equitably restores to the party a standard of living to which they became acclimated during the marriage. For spouses going through a divorce in Illinois, questions arise around including maintenance in…

Visitation interference occurs when the custodial parent in some way interferes with your ability to spend parenting time with your child or visit with them. In Illinois, a parent has a couple of options when the other parent interferes with their parenting time. You may proceed with a criminal prosecution…

We receive inquiries regularly from parents of children in Illinois regarding whether or not they can remove their child from the state of Illinois when they are estranged from their child’s other parent. The answer varies, depending on different situations. Temporary Removal for a Vacation or Trip Parents are free to…

People often are confused about the difference between a Civil Union and a Domestic Partnership, and what their rights are if their partner, to whom they are not married, leaves them or predeceases them. …

One of the most hot-button terms in parenting cases in Cook County is “alienation”, meaning that one parent is actively seeking to keep the child from having a relationship with their other parents. The current laws on parenting favor both parents being active and involved in a child’s life, and…

In a recent case In re the Marriage of Roman-Kroczek, 2021 IL App (1st) 210613, the Illinois appeals court heard an appeal related to the award of attorney’s fees, which was not the first appeal in this divorce case. The wife’s name is Krystyna and the husband’s name is Bohdan…

In Illinois, there are two main ways to go about changing your minor child’s name: by agreement, and by Court adjudication of the issue. As with all things related to co-parenting a minor child, the easiest and least costly method by which to proceed with changing your child’s name is…

As Chicago family law attorneys, grandparents often inquire about custody and tell me that their son or daughter is incapable of parenting their child. Since they consider their offspring and the child’s other parent unfit, grandparents seek to obtain custody of their grandchildren. Rights of Grandparents In Illinois While the State of Illinois does recognize…

John Churchill believed that his ex-wife, Amy Churchill, was engaged in a de facto marriage, and because of that, sought to terminate his maintenance obligation. He tried two times to terminate his maintenance payments and both times the trial court denied his request. …