Articles Posted in Divorce

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The dictionary definition of “dissipation” is waste by misuse, to spend or use wastefully or extravagantly, to squander, to deplete.  The definition contained in the Illinois Marriage and Dissolution of Marriage Act refers to a spouse’s wasting of marital assets during while a marriage is undergoing an irretrievable breakdown.  What does that mean?

dissipation-waste-of-marital-money-300x200

 

In the case of Marriage of O’Neill, the court stated, “dissipation arises when property is improperly used for the sole benefit of one spouse, for a purpose unrelated to the marriage, at a time when the marriage is undergoing an irreconcilable breakdown.”   If a spouse spends marital money frivolously on items or individuals not related to the marriage while the marriage is breaking down, the other spouse may make a claim for dissipation in a divorce. In many cases, this arises when one spouse spends marital money on an extramarital affair, extravagant travel, and/or expensive hobbies, none of which benefit the marriage or family. Often a spouse does not learn of his or her partner’s dissipation until the discovery or information-finding step in the divorce.

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Many couples continue to reside together in the marital residence during divorce proceedings, even when the thought of having to continue to live with their spouse is terribly unpleasant.  This may be especially true when there are children involved.

 

But what happens if the living situation becomes especially sour or openly hostile?  Specifically, what happens when the physical or mental health of one of the spouses, or even one of the children, is at risk?  Section 501 of the Illinois Marriage and Dissolution of Marriage Act provides a remedy for the situation during the pendency of a divorce.

exclusive-possession-marital-residence-eviction

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Divorce litigation affects children, especially if they are living in a contentious atmosphere.  In an effort to minimize the impact of the legal process on children, counties in Illinois have implemented programs and procedures to keep children out of the courtroom, and facilitate resolution of parenting issues in domestic relations cases.  A handful of these programs are summarized here.

 

Mediation

 

Counties in Illinois are required to offer mediation programs for divorcing parents.  If parents are unable to reach an agreement regarding parenting time and the allocation of parental responsibilities, and so long as there are no extenuating circumstances (such as domestic violence), the court will send parents to mediation to try to resolve these issues outside the courtroom.  Judges will often remind parties in a divorce that parents know their family situations and needs best.  As parents, they should take advantage of the opportunity to reach a resolution that is in the best interests of the family, rather than delegating that decision a third party outsider.

 

The mediator does not represent either party and does not give legal advice.  Rather, the mediator’s job is to facilitate conversation between the parties, and hopefully aid them in resolving the matters related to their children.  The mediator will the issue a report stating whether the parties reached a full resolution, partial agreement, or were unable to reach an agreement.


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Section 504 of the Illinois Marriage and Dissolution of Marriage Act addresses maintenance.  The Internal Revenue Service calls it “alimony” on tax forms, and it’s sometimes called spousal support.

 

Under the law, upon the entry of a judgment for dissolution of marriage (a divorce decree), one spouse may be entitled to maintenance, either for a specific duration of time or permanently.  Before awarding maintenance to one spouse, the court must first determine whether an award of maintenance would be appropriate.  Just because the parties have been married a long time or have disparate incomes,that does not necessarily mean one spouse is entitled to maintenance.  Before the court may make a decision about how much maintenance is appropriate and for how long, the law requires the court to first decide whether maintenance is appropriate, after considering the following factors:

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In Illinois, during a divorce, either party can ask the court to order the other party to pay some or all of his or her attorney fees while the case is pending.  Section 501(c-1) of the Illinois Marriage and Dissolution of Marriage Act provides in pre-judgment (pre-decree) divorce cases, the court can assess attorney fees in favor of the petitioning party and against the other party.  The purpose of these interim attorney fee awards is to “level the playing field” and allow an economically disadvantaged spouse to participate adequately in the litigation.  See, Marriage of Rosenbaum-Golden.  This may be necessary where one spouse uses his or her greater control of assets or income as a litigation tool, making it difficult for the disadvantaged spouse.

Pockets Inside Out

If the court decides that one party cannot pay his or her attorney fees but the other party can, it can order that the party able to contribute pay some attorney fees to the other party.  However, if the court determines that both parties do not have sufficient financial ability or access to funds with which to pay, the court will allocate available funds for each party’s attorneys, including any retainers or interim payments previously paid.

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When going through a divorce, one thing parties are tasked with is dividing the marital estate.  This involves dividing marital assets, and allocating the responsibility of marital debts as well.  Debt that is incurred during the marriage is presumed marital.

Student Loan Debt

But what if the debt is for student loans incurred by only one party during the marriage?  At first blush, it may not seem fair to require the spouse working during the marriage to be responsible for the student’s loans, or even be responsible for a portion of them.  At the same time, the student may not have income, or may have pursued his or her degree relying on the working spouse’s representation that he or she would help pay the loans.

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Imagine the following scenario:  Kim and her boyfriend Kanye decide they want to get married.  Kim and Kanye have acquired a lot of money, bling, and swag throughout their years of work in music and promotions.  Kim, being the more cautious one, decides that before she and Kanye get married, they should sign a premarital agreement (better known by some as a prenuptial agreement or “prenup”) to protect herself in the event that fame wreaks havoc on the fledgling marriage.

Money in mout

Kim’s attorney drafts a premarital agreement that provides, among other things, that Kim’s earnings from the businesses which she started before her marriage, including her reality show, clothing line, and promotional appearances, will remain her sole and separate “non-marital” income.   Kim’s attorney gives the agreement to Kanye, who briefly glances at it while laying down a track, and signs it, without having his attorney review it.

 

Three months after the wedding, Kim decides the whole “marriage thing” is not right for her and files for divorce, in Illinois of all places.  During their short marriage, she has raked in a grand total of $3,000,000 in earnings from her various non-marital businesses.  In court, Kanye argues that the premarital agreement should be invalid.  He also argues that, even if it is found to be valid, that Kim’s $3,000,000 in earnings are marital in nature and that he should get half.  What should the result be for poor Kanye?

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One thing that occasionally complicates a divorce is when a spouse has an ownership interest in a non-marital business.  Countless hours of hard work have gone into the business, there are stocks and ownership interests involved, or perhaps one spouse has control over the business and the other has none.  There are several important situations to consider when you are going through a divorce and business ownership is involved.  Some of these important implications are addressed below.

business divorce

Contribution and Reimbursement

All property that is acquired by either spouse during a marriage is presumed to be marital property.  This includes income generated during the marriage, even if the income is generated from working at a non-marital business.  For example, if a husband is working at his non-marital business and paying himself a salary of $100,000 per year, his salary is marital property.

 

When a spouse contributes personal effort during a marriage to non-marital property, such as a non-marital business, the efforts may also be deemed a contribution from the marital estate to the non-marital property.  The value of these efforts and contributions, if in the form of retained earnings or assets, can be subject to reimbursement to the marital estate, particularly if the contributing spouse has not been reasonably compensated.  So, if your spouse is paying him or herself a $50,000 salary, but the reasonable salary for the work he or she does is $100,000, the marital estate has a reimbursement claim for the difference.

 

Finally, it is important to note that only the appreciation of non-marital property resulting from significant personal efforts of the spouse are subject to reimbursement to the marital estate.  This means, for instance, that if one spouse has $100,000 in an investment account before the marriage, and at the time of divorce the account is worth $200,000 due solely to favorable market conditions, the marital estate is not entitled to $100,000 reimbursement even though the appreciation occurred during the marriage.

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Divorces in Illinois have been governed by the Illinois Marriage and Dissolution of Marriage Act, originally enacted in 1979.  Since then, changes in family dynamics, including recent developments in Illinois law related to same-sex marriage, parentage, adoption, and in areas of embryo preservation and rights, rendered the law outdated and in need of an update.  For years, Illinois legislators, judges, and prominent practitioners in the field have pushed for a revised version of the Act, but only recently has this been accomplished.

 

The revised law, which will become effective on January 1, 2016, has been updated in several significant ways that impact how divorces and related issues will be addressed.  The law will apply to new and pending cases and will change the way that divorcing parties navigate the process of divorce.

divorce word cluster

The following is a brief summary of some of the important changes to the Act:

 

Grounds:

 

Presently, a person seeking a divorce must allege “grounds” for the divorce.  Most commonly, people cite “irreconcilable differences” as the reason for a divorce.  To prove irreconcilable differences have arisen to cause a marriage to fail, the party filing for divorce must prove that the parties have lived separate and apart for a continuous period of in excess of two years, or agree with the other party to waive the separation period if they have lived apart for six months.  The must also prove that the marriage is over and not salvageable.  The other fault-based reasons include: impotency, adultery, desertion, habitual drunkenness, excessive use of addictive drugs, poisoning, extreme  and repeated physical or mental cruelty, one party being convicted of a felony or other infamous crime, or infecting the other spouse with a sexually transmitted disease.

 

The revised law eliminates all of the fault-based grounds for getting divorced, leaving the only grounds of irreconcilable differences.  Further, instead of having to prove a statutory period of separation, the new law eliminates the separation period as well. These changes shift the focus away from having the parties blame one another for the divorce in order to allow them to proceed as amicably and quickly as possible.

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Divorce matters can be complicated, regardless of the employment status of the parties.  But when one or both of the spouses is a member of the military, several issues come into play.  This article will address health benefits, retirement pay available to spouses of military service members, and child support.

 

Real American Military Family

 

  1.  Military Benefits Available to Former Spouses:

In most divorces, upon the entry of a judgment for dissolution of marriage (a final divorce decree), a spouse is no longer eligible to be covered under the other spouse’s medical benefits.  However, for military divorces, there are special rules.

 

“20/20/15 Spouses”: A military member’s former spouse qualifies for medical benefits for a full year, beginning from the date of the divorce so long as all of these are true:

  • The parties were married for 20 years or more (from the date of marriage to the date of entry of a divorce decree or annulment),
  • The service member performed 20 years or more of military service which entitles him/her to retirement pay; and
  • There is a 15 year or more overlap of the marriage and military service.

 

If the 20/20/15 former military spouse has employer-sponsored medical insurance, he or she is not eligible for the one-year transitional care.  If that employer-provided plan is optional, the former spouse can opt out of that plan and choose to participate in the one-year military benefit pan.

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