Who Qualifies To Receive Spousal Support In My Illinois Divorce?

Going through a divorce can leave you with many questions, mainly about your financial future. Fortunately, we're here to help. 

What is spousal support? 

Spousal support is a court-ordered provision for a spouse after separation or divorce. It is also referred to as alimony or maintenance.

Who qualifies to receive spousal support in my Illinois divorce? 

• In Illinois, courts don't observe fault in the determining of spousal support. They do however take into consideration:
• the length of the marriage;
• the age, emotional, and physical state of both spouses;
• the standard of living established during the marriage;
• both spouses' property and income, including marital and non-marital; 
• the financial obligations of each spouse;
• the earning capacity of the spouse requesting spousal support;
• any element that the court believes is fair and just. 

If both spouses are able to support themselves, the court may not award any spousal support, even in the case where one spouse out earns the other substantially. In that situation, the court may compensate the lower earning spouse by distributing more of the martial property to them.

Can I receive spousal support during the divorce proceeding? 
Yes, however Illinois courts won't decide on a permanent spousal support order until the divorce proceedings have ended. You may receive temporary support while the divorce is underway. The amount can be decided by both spouses. If an agreement cannot be reached, a judge can order one spouse to pay temporarily. This temporary order usually ends when the final judgement of divorce is reached.

How long does spousal support last? 
This depends on the situation. Short-term rehabilitative maintenance can last as long as it takes for a spouse to gain the necessary skills to become financially independent. Longer-term maintenance can be set for a time period then reviewed at a later date to determine whether it should continue as is, be decreased, increased, or terminated.

Can the spousal support schedule or amount be changed? 
It can. Alimony can be made modifiable or non-modifiable by spouses, if they agree. If they do not agree to make spousal support non-modifiable, the payment commitment terminates automatically when the spouse receiving support remarries, lives with a new partner, or dies.

For more in depth information pertaining to your specific situation, contact Illinois Divorce Attorney Vincent Ruggiero at 630-654-0044 for assistance with your spousal support matters in DuPage, Will, Kane, and Cook Counties.

What Not To Post On Social Media While Going Through A Divorce

Social media sites, such as Facebook, have become a tool we rely on daily for communication and entertainment. While social media has many benefits, it also poses a unique challenge when it comes to divorce and child custody issues. It is very important that whomever is going through these types of proceedings is aware that their own words posted on the Internet can be used against them in court.

The end of a marriage is an emotionally charged event, motivating some to vent on social media about their former spouse. However, you may want to think twice before you hit "post," you may have to explain yourself in court. Despite social media privacy settings, it is possible for information that you only intended for a secure group of people to be accessed by others not intended. For that reason, one should be cautious about how pictures and content could be misinterpreted or perceived.

Parties involved in a divorce look to their former spouse's social media accounts for information that can be used against them. The following are social media tips while going through a divorce:

• Posting false comments online could land you in hot water for libel. 
• Resist the urge to "check-in" places. While it may seem harmless at the time, check-ins at the local bar could affect a child custody hearing or a spouse's accusation that there is a problem with alcohol. If you're involved in an especially contentious divorce, or are being threatened with violence, you shouldn't advertise your whereabouts on the Internet. 
• Be sure to change your social media passwords. 
• Do not post any videos or photos you wouldn't want a judge or your former spouse's attorney seeing. 
• Avoid posting derogatory statements or photos of your former spouse. If it were to result in the loss of employment, you could be left paying the bigger price in the end. 
• Review what your friends post about you. Ask anyone to remove any damaging photos of you that are posted. 
• Posting content about "work being super busy" will cause major damage if you are claiming that you have no income. 
• Additionally, posts about major purchases, expensive dinners, and vacations won't help if you support your claim for spousal support or additional child support. 
• Deleting your social media account is a logical option if you are worried that you won't be able to resist posting certain information online. Beware, just because your account has been deleted it doesn't mean that past content can't be retrieved. 

For more in depth information pertaining to your specific case, contact Illinois Divorce Attorney Vincent Ruggiero at 630-654-0044 for assistance with your divorce matters in DuPage, Will, Kane, and Cook Counties.

What Is The Divorce Rate In The US?

Though the divorce rate is thankfully falling, still over 40 percent of marriages in our country end in divorce. A few speculative reasons why the divorce rate is lower as of late include the state of our economy, couples marrying later in life, fewer couples marrying, and the increase in cohabitation prior to marriage. [The paternity court call (which decides child custody and support for unwed couples) is growing enormously.] In 2011, there were 877,000 divorces (excluding data from California, Georgia, Hawaii, Indiana, Louisiana, and Minnesota), which is down about one percent from 2010.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 20% of marriages end in divorce within five years, 35% end in divorce within 10 years, 43% end in divorce within 15 years, and 50% of marriages end in divorce within 20 years. Even with those statistics, a married couple is still more stable than an unmarried couple cohabiting. The likelihood of a premarital cohabitation ending within five years is 49% compared to 20% for married couples. And 62% of premarital cohabitations end within 10 years, compared to 35% for married couples.

Even though our country's divorce rate is accurate, the statistical analysis ought not stop there. For example, couples between the ages of 20 to 24 have the highest rate of divorce and are twice as likely to get a divorce compared to couples who marry between the ages 25 to 29 years old.

Reasons for divorce differ just as much as the two people involved, so many factors come into play. For more in depth information pertaining to your specific scenario, contact Illinois Divorce Attorney Vincent Ruggiero at 630-654-0044 for assistance with your divorce matters in DuPage, Will, Kane, and Cook Counties.

Vincent C. Ruggiero, Esq.
Contested Divorce, Custody, Maintenance,
Property & Business Division - Lawyer 1984,
CPA, Certified Mediator, Former "Fellow"
Illinois Collaborative Law Institute
website: RuggieroFamilyLaw.com
office: 630.654.0044
fax: 630.654.0150

Ruggiero and Associates, Divorce

Vincent Ruggiero, an attorney since 1984, concentrates in high-conflict divorce cases, yet has efficient and friendly staff to keep costs to a minimum in so-called uncontested divorce cases. Read for free the FAQ section of his information-packed website at www.RuggieroFamily.com, or call for an initial consultation at 630/654-0044. Mr. Ruggiero is also a CPA, certified mediator, licensed real estate broker and is a formerly i) a law associate of one of the 20 largest law firms in the nation ii) bank vice president iii) real estate college instructor and iv) fellow with the Illinois Collaborative Law Institute.

Ruggiero and Associates, Family Law

Initial Consultation
The initial consultation is your first meeting with a divorce lawyer. Sometimes a prospective client is simply information gathering, which is fine, and at other times that person has resolved to go forward with the divorce process. The divorce process can stop at anytime, so the initial consultation binds you to nothing. Ruggiero & Associates charges its hourly rate (see below) for an initial consultation. At the end of the initial consultation the client may or may not decide to proceed with the divorce and may or may not decide to proceed with our firm. If representation is mutually acceptable, the terms of a written Legal Engagement Agreement ought to be discussed in detail and a retainer (discussed below) is then typically paid. The Legal Engagement Agreement should provide both the attorney and the client the right to cancel their professional relationship on a prospective basis at any time.

Retainer
The retainer is akin to a down payment. The retainer remains the client's money even after it is initially tendered to the attorney and is kept in a segregated client trust fund until such time as those fees are earned by the actual services provided by the attorney. For example, if the retainer was $5,000.00, and the divorce was completed for $3,000.00, the $2,000.00 difference of unused retainer would be returned to the client promptly. Many prospective clients compare the retainers between attorneys, which is really comparing apples to oranges. If anything, compare the hourly rate between the attorneys, not the retainer amount, because even whether a retainer is charged or not charged, or whether the retainer quoted was high or low should have no bearing on your final bill. In fact, in a contested case, it is more often than not that the fees exceed the initial retainer amount, in which case the retainer may need to be replenished, or the bill is typically paid on a monthly basis thereafter once the retainer is exceeded. Another retainer may be requested prior to the commencement of a trial.

Hourly Rate
Hourly rates differ among divorce attorneys, and even between attorneys in the same firm. Rates obviously differ due to the skill and experience of the attorney. Mr. Ruggiero's hourly rate for both office and court time is $325.00. Clients are billed for telephone calls, e-mails, writing and reading letters, office consultations, trial preparation, discovery, depositions and court appearances. Clients may be for transportation to and from court, and Ruggiero & Associates charges a one-hour minimum court appearance fee. Because of the competency of the staff at Ruggiero & Associates, certain services may be provided by an associate or paralegal in an effort to reduce overall fees to the client. Certain clients of Ruggiero & Associates prefer to and are capable of performing certain tasks themselves with minimal attorney oversight. Additionally, each month we provide a detailed invoice stating the day the work was performed, the description of the work performed, the length of time it took to perform the work, the cost and either the balance of your retainer - or the amount that is now owed in the event the initial retainer has been exhausted.

Flat Fee
Attorneys in Illinois cannot by law charge a flat fee for a divorce.

Your Spouse's Fees
In some cases, a spouse may be ordered to contribute fees towards the opponent's fees. This depends on the facts of each case. Generally, each party pays his/her own fees, but under the Leveling the Playing Field law, if there is a substantial disparity in the income or assets of the spouses, fees to the opponent may be awarded in whole or in part.

Third-Party Costs
Third-party costs are those costs in addition to attorney's fees. In an uncontested case (i.e. a case in which all issues are agreed to by the parties early in the case), third-party costs are generally less than $500.00 (e.g. court filing fees, sheriff service of process fee, court reporter fee for transcripts; court clerk fee for certified copy of divorce decree). In a contested case (i.e. a case in which one issue or more needs a judge's ruling to resolve), third-party costs (and attorney's fees) may be substantial and depend on the facts in each case. For example, in a custody case, there may be costs for a court-appointed representative for the child, mediator, evaluator or psychologist. In a case involving a self-employed spouse, a business valuator may need to be retained. If the case involves a pension or expensive property, an actuary or appraiser may be needed for an opinion as to value. Often these costs are paid in advance by the party requesting the service, though sometimes the costs are apportioned according to the relative financial abilities of the parties. Costs (exclusive of attorney's fees) in a highly contested case may easily exceed $10,000.00 depending on the amount and type of information needed to convince a judge to rule in your favor.