Divorce Lawyer Plainfield

The attorneys at Bugarsky & Navarro, LLC

understand that the divorce and custody
process can be a difficult time for
everyone involved. We pride ourselves in
giving personalized, dedicated attention
to each client, and will guide you through
the process, explaining your rights and
options under Illinois Family Law.

Family Law
Divorce : The divorce process in Illinois begins when
one spouse files a Petition for Dissolution of Marriage.
This is the initial document of the divorce papers to
open a divorce case in the court system. Depending on
the nature of the pleadings in the Petition, this
petitioning spouse may be asking for various types of
relief under Illinois law, including but not limited to
maintenance, a custody arrangement, child support, a
division of marital property, or other relief.

Exchange of Financial Information

Next, the parties commonly request an exchange of financial information. Upon
request, both parties will be required to fully disclose their incomes, assets and debts.
This information is required to fairly determine how the marital property should be
distributed under Illinois law. The process for requesting this information is called
Discovery, and can be initiated through requests in writing, or face-to-face interviews
under oath with the spouses, called depositions. If the parties are in agreement on all
matters related to the divorce, they have the option of skipping the discovery process,
though some minimal exchange of financial information may be required.

Custody
Joint Custody : Joint custody generally means that both
parents have an equal say or equal decision-making power
over the major decisions in their childrens lives, including
education, healthcare, and religion.
In order for joint custody to be awarded, both parents must be able to effectively
communicate about these major decisions. If the parents are unable to effectively
communicate, the court will not award joint custody. The question for the court then
will be which parent is in the better position to make the major decisions for the
children, and to facilitate a healthy relationship with the non-custodial parent?

Sole Custody : Sole custody, sometimes referred to as full custody, differs from
joint custody in that only one parent will have control over the major decisions in the
childs life. The parent who is awarded sole custody may be required to make an
effort to consult with the other parent, however, the parent with sole custody will
have the final decision-making power over areas such as education, healthcare, and
religion.
Although a parent with sole custody may make decisions for the childrens lives and
future, contrary to what some may believe, sole custody does not grant absolute
control over every aspect regarding the children. For example, even though a parent
has sole custody, he or she cannot move the child to another state without first
obtaining permission from the court.

Visitation Rights
Illinois law strongly favors maximum involvement by both
parents in their childrens lives. This includes the right of both
parents to visit and spend time with their children. Even
though one parent may have residential custody (where the
children live with one parent the majority of the time), or sole
custody (one parent can make the major decisions in the
childs life), the other parent still has the right to see and enjoy
time with the children.
Visitation rights are strongly encouraged by Illinois courts, and are only taken away in
circumstances where a parent poses a serious danger to the children.
Alienation ; In some cases, one parent will instill bad feelings in the children towards
the other parent, or will discourage the children from wanting to spend time with the
other parent. This is called parental alienation, and numerous psychological studies
have shown that this can be damaging to a childs mental health. Illinois judges
generally want both parents to cooperate in encouraging a close and loving
relationship between the children and each parent. If you feel your children may be
at risk of alienation by the other parent, the divorce and custody attorneys at
Bugarsky & Navarro can ask a judge to put a court order in place prohibiting both
parents from engaging in such alienating behavior which would discourage a healthy
relationship between the children and parents.

Child Support
Typically the parent who is not granted residential custody
will be required to pay child support. Even if the parties
agree to shared residential custody, how much child support
one parent may be required to pay will depend on the
financial circumstances of the parents and other factors.
The State of Illinois has a formula for calculating the amount of child support that must
be paid. This amount is determined by multiplying the net income of the payor (parent
who will be paying the child support) by:

20% for One child

28% for Two children
32% for Three children

40% for Four children

45% for Five children
50% for Six children

Illinois courts rarely deviate from the child support statutory guidelines. The courts
will deviate from the statutory guidelines only if they find those guidelines
inappropriate based on the best interests of the child and based on such factors as:
financial resources and needs of the child and both custodial and non-custodial
parents, the standard of living the child would have enjoyed prior to divorce, the
physical and emotional condition of the child and the childs educational needs.

For more information please visit

http://www.familylegalrights.com