Anderson & Boback Family Law Attorneys

Illinois Coronavirus Stay-at-Home” Order Impact on Parenting Orders As you are all aware, the Illinois governor has ordered that starting today at 3:00 p.m., all the residents of Illinois are  ordered to stay-at-home . Grocery stores will still be open and so will pharmacies. If you aren’t a first responder or some other emergency personnel, in law enforcement or health care, you are likely one of the people that is ordered to stay in your home. So if you are following the  stay-at-home order  and remaining in your home, can you go out to exchange your child with the other parent as detailed in your parenting order (Allocation or Custody Judgment)? The short answer is “yes.” Gov. J. B. Pritzker states that in his order that complying with court orders is considered essential travel, and all domestic relations attorneys were given a set of orders by our Chief Judge which states that everyone is supposed to comply with their parenting orders. Judge Dickler is als...

We are facing very uncertain times at the moment. With the WHO, CDC and the Federal Government’s coronavirus guidelines on social distancing and recommendations against large gatherings, you may find yourself at home working remotely, or being stuck at home confined with your significant other and/or family, with seemingly no escape in sight. There is a way, however, to put extra time at home to good use (other than catching up on Netflix or good books) when it comes to  planning for divorce . This time of home isolation and social distancing is a great opportunity to try to plan for the future if divorce is something you are contemplating or seriously considering. Planning for Divorce When You’re Stuck at Home Here are some tips to follow in the event you find yourself at home with spare time for planning for divorce: (1) Gather and Organize your Financial Documents. Most divorcing parties exchange financial documents, particularly when they have accounts or debts in ...

When there are allegations of child abuse, many wonder if it’s possible for a child’s statements to be used in a hearing before a judge without the child having to testify. In other words, can your child’s hearsay statements be used in court? Does your child have to appear in court and repeat what was previously said, or can the child’s words be used in the hearing even though she isn’t there? Hearsay and Use of a Child’s Statements in Court In many orders of protection cases, parents try to use their child’s statements against the other parent. So, when is it allowed? There are a couple of statutes that the Illinois Courts look to regarding hearsay statements, and you should be aware of each and how they are used. Section 606.5 of the Dissolution Act (750 ILCS 5/606.5 (West 2018)) specifically pertains to hearings and addresses hearsay statements made by a child in subsection (c). “Previous statements made by the child relating to any allegations that the chil...

The buzz word of a “collaborative divorce” is extremely trendy at the moment. We get a lot of the phone calls at our divorce law firm asking about a collaborative type of divorce and it seems this phrase is used interchangeably with “settling a divorce out of court”.  These methods, however, are not one and the same. Collaborative divorce is one possible method to employ in order to resolve a matter out of court, but it is not the only way to settle a case out of court. Divorce and family law cases have been settled out of court for years, long before it was cool to have a “collaborative” divorce. Settling a Divorce Out of Court There are various methods to settle a divorce out of court. In fact, most people are surprised to learn that the majority of divorce cases settle out of court. No one wants to talk about those cases, though, because they aren’t interesting. Everyone always wants to talk about the contested divorce cases with the crazy facts, because thos...

When you are in the process of a divorce, your spouse’s attorney may send a notice to your attorney that they intend on taking your deposition. A deposition notice will tell you when and where you are to appear and what, if anything, you are to bring with you. Your attorney will likely work with you to make sure you are prepared for your divorce deposition , as preparation if very important. People present at your deposition will be your attorney and your spouse’s attorney. Your spouse may be there as well. If there are any other attorneys involved in your divorce case, such as a Child Representative or a Guardian Ad Litem, they will also likely be present if your deposition will include questions about the children. There will also be a court reporter who will take down every word that is said by anyone in the room during the deposition period. A typical divorce depositions can last up to 3 hours. A Judge does not attend the deposition and will not even review the...

This area of law is difficult since there are judges that don’t believe that parental alienation exists. Any lawyer practicing   family law   knows that alienation exists, however. The question then becomes, “how do you demonstrate that the other parent is   alienating your children ?” if the court doesn’t recognize alienation as a problem? Understanding Parental Alienation It is helpful to first understand what alienation is. Parental Alienation is the process, and the result, of psychological manipulation of a child into showing unwarranted fear, disrespect or hostility towards a parent and/or other family members. The parent is typically alone with the child when this happens, however, and it is your burden to prove the other parent is doing that. How do you do that when you aren’t there to hear what is being said? Typically you become aware of it because of how your child is acting toward you. Are There Signs of Alienation? Here are some examples of a chi...