Trial
Most divorce cases in Illinois do not go to trial. Most divorce cases are simply an exchange of minimal discovery and then negotiations based on a mutual feeling for what is fair or a mistaken understanding that the law requires…
Read More
Divorce is expensive. Attorney’s fees during and after an Illinois divorce cost are usually in the thousands of dollars and must be paid. Illinois divorce law recognizes that the parties to a divorce or parentage action can ask their spouse,…
Read More
They say that a picture is worth a thousand words. At your Illinois divorce trial, give the judge a picture instead of having your witness drone on. A document. A report. A picture. Exhibits are all so much more effective…
Read More
I just spent three days in Houston, Texas at the National Family Law Trial Institute’s Advanced Cross Examination training. The best family law trial attorneys in the nation coached me and other lawyers from across America on how to best…
Read More
The steps of an Illinois divorce are simple: file a Petition For Dissolution of Marriage, file the necessary temporary motions, complete discovery, prepare and negotiate a final Judgment of Dissolution of Marriage, Marital Settlement Agreement and/or Allocation of Parenting Time…
Read More
You cannot just show up in an Illinois divorce court with a bunch of documents for a judge to review. Documents are an “out of court statement to prove the truth of the matter asserted.” Therefore, documents are hearsay and…
Read More
An Illinois divorce judge is the finder of fact during an Illinois divorce trial. The Illinois divorce judge determines what are true facts based on the testimony of the witnesses presented. A judge can use many different factors to determine…
Read More
In an Illinois divorce trial each party has the right to call their own witnesses in order to take testimony and/or present evidence. The initial questioning of a witness is called direct examination. After a witness is called to testify…
Read More
A divorce trial doesn’t unwind a single incident the way a personal injury or criminal case does. Rather, a divorce takes the totality of a relationship and creates binding orders based on the cumulative past behaviors of both spouses. How…
Read More
While questioning a witness in an Illinois divorce hearing or trial, the witness may provide an answer…that is not the answer to your question. Answering a question with an evasive or equivocal answer is either dumb, rude or manipulative. Answers…
Read More