Orland Park Divorce Lawyers

Experienced Divorce Lawyers Serving Orland Park, Illinois

A divorce legally terminates a marriage, which means that couples who decide to get divorced must also grapple with a host of related and often complicated legal issues. For instance, before a court will grant a divorce, a couple must determine how to divide and allocate their marital assets, as well as whether an alimony award is appropriate. Couples with children will also need to come up with a parenting plan and child support agreement, that suits the needs of all parties.

Contending with these types of legal issues is often difficult, even for couples with a relatively amicable relationship, so if you and your spouse have decided to dissolve your marriage, you should contact an experienced Orland Park divorce lawyer who can ensure that your divorce is resolved as quickly and as smoothly as possible.

No-Fault Divorce

Illinois is a no-fault divorce state, which means that couples who decide to dissolve their marriages are not required to prove that one of the parties was responsible for the breakdown of their union. Instead, divorcing parties need only prove that irreconcilable differences have caused their marriage to become irretrievably broken, and that:

• Efforts at reconciliation have failed; and
• Future efforts at reconciliation would not be in the family’s best interests.

In most cases, demonstrating this element requires proof that a couple has been living separate and apart for at least six months. Fortunately, this does not necessarily mean that two spouses must have been living in different residences, only that they now live separate lives. Proving this shows that irreconcilable differences led to the breakdown of the marriage in question.

Contested vs. Uncontested Divorce

There are two types of divorce in Illinois — contested and uncontested divorce.  In a contested dissolution proceeding, a couple disagrees about some or all of the following legal issues:

• Property division, which includes determining who will retain which marital assets;
• Whether one of the parties will be required to pay spousal support;
• How time-sharing and parental decision-making responsibilities will be divided; and
• Whether one of the parties will be required to pay child support.

Uncontested divorces, on the other hand, involve dissolutions in which both parties agree on all divorce-related legal issues. Even in these situations, however, a court will only grant a divorce if it approves of the agreement negotiated by the parties. Alternatively, a person could be granted an uncontested divorce if one party files for divorce and his or her spouse does not submit a reply within 30 days of receiving a summons.

Contact Experienced Orland Park Divorce Lawyers

If you and your spouse are thinking about filing for divorce, you need the advice of a dedicated attorney. To speak with one of the experienced Orland Park divorce lawyers at Law Office of Demetrios N Dalmares and Associates Ltd. about your own case, please call our office or submit one of our brief online contact forms today. A member of our legal team is standing by and eager to help you through each step of your case.