If you are a parent who is in the middle of divorcing your spouse, you may be feeling overwhelmed at the thought of the back-to-school season. For many parents, the beginning of the school year is already stressful. Ending a marriage during this hectic season only adds to the stress. Fortunately, there are steps you can take to mitigate this stress – for both you and your kids.

Establish Consistency and Reduce Conflict with a Temporary Child Custody Order

You probably already know that divorcing parents must abide by a “parenting plan” which describes the parenting time schedule (previously called visitation) and allocation of parental responsibilities. However, the parenting plan does not go into effect until after the divorce which may take months or years to finalize.

Fortunately, you can petition the court for a temporary child custody order that dictates parenting time while the divorce proceedings are ongoing. This may help avoid confusion and arguments as well as give your child the consistency and stability he or she needs during this difficult time.

In a divorce, each spouse must provide current, accurate financial information. Whether the divorce is settled out of court or it goes to trial, financial data is crucial. Spouses cannot reach a settlement on the division of property and debts or spousal maintenance without this information. The court cannot determine a reasonable child support payment amount without accurate financial information. Nearly every aspect of your divorce case is influenced by finances. So, what happens if a spouse lies about income or property during the divorce?

Undisclosed Assets and Hidden Property

In an attempt to sway the terms of the divorce in their favor, some spouses lie about their financial situation in the divorce. They may “forget” to disclose an offshore account or fail to mention their expensive jewelry collection. They may transfer wealth or real property to friends or family members to shelter it from division. Some spouses overpay the IRS or use a small business to hide assets. This type of financial manipulation during divorce is unlawful. If a divorcing spouse is caught lying about finances under oath, they may be held in contempt of court and subject to serious penalties.

Ensuring Your Divorce Settlement or Judgment is Based on Truth

Any agreement spouses come to regarding the terms of their divorce should be based on complete, up-to-date financial information. Undisclosed assets and financial deception must be uncovered in order for this to happen. Divorce attorneys often use discovery tools like requests for production, interrogatories, and requests for admission to gather financial records and information in a divorce. The spouses and their respective attorneys may be asked to attend depositions in which testimony is gathered while the spouses are under oath. Divorce lawyers may also work with specially trained accountants called forensic accountants to trace assets and reveal hidden income or property.

If you are getting a divorce from your spouse, it is important to learn about all of your options. An alternative resolution option many divorcing couples find beneficial is mediation. The mediation process involves working with a trained mediator to negotiate various issues in your divorce, from child custody to division of assets. Mediation may help you and your spouse reach an agreement and avoid the often stressful process of divorce litigation. However, mediation is not right for everyone. 

Advantages of Mediation

During mediation sessions, you and your spouse will sit down in a quiet room and try to come to an agreement on how your divorce matters will be dealt with. Rather than providing legal advice, a mediator will facilitate the discussion and help you stay focused on the issues at hand. Here are several benefits of mediation:

Going through a divorce is never easy. If your spouse makes allegations of abuse against you, it can make the process even more stressful. You may understandably be upset that your spouse is making up horrible lies about you and worry that the allegations will negatively affect the outcome of divorce or child custody proceedings. If you have found yourself in this situation, it is important to maintain your composure and take the necessary steps to rectify the situation.

How False Allegations Can Affect Your Divorce

Family law judges take accusations of domestic violence or abuse very seriously. A judge may order an emergency order of protection that requires you to leave your home or prohibits you from contacting your spouse and children.

Because change is hard on children, Illinois courts typically try to maintain the “status quo” in child-related legal matters. Consequently, an order of protection may give your spouse an advantage in your custody case. Since your kids will be with your spouse during the protection period, your spouse may argue that granting joint custody could disrupt their routines. 

In a perfect world, your divorce would get settled quickly and not involve any complications. Unfortunately, however, there are several matters that can complicate your Illinois divorce, including a personal injury settlement. If you are waiting for your personal injury claim to settle while getting a divorce, you should educate yourself on how your settlement may be divided between you and your spouse.

Defining Marital Property in Illinois

In the state of Illinois, marital property refers to any assets acquired during a marriage. There are particular types of property that are non-marital, such as items received as a gift or inheritance to one spouse, property obtained before the marriage, property obtained after legal separation, legal judgments given to one spouse, and assets excluded from marital property by mutual agreement. One might assume that personal injury settlements would be considered non-marital property in a divorce. However, in the state of Illinois, personal injury settlements, workers’ compensation benefits and disability benefits can be, and often are, part of the marital estate.

Perhaps the most important element in determining whether a personal injury settlement should be considered in a divorce is the date of the incident that caused the injury. For example, if you were injured in a slip and fall accident before you got married, any compensation for your losses would be considered non-marital--even if you receive the settlement during your marriage.