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Recent Blog Posts
Time-Management Tips for Single Parents
Parenting is one of the most difficult jobs a person can have, whether or not they have a partner by their side. It can be a tough transition moving from a two-parent household to trying to balance parental responsibilities solo after going through a divorce. Although the initial transition can be difficult, many families are in the same boat. It is more common for children to be raised by single mothers rather than fathers.
According to the 2017 U.S. Census Bureau, one in four children is being raised without a father. This means that out of about 12 million single-parent families with children under the age of 18, more than 80% were headed by single mothers. Whether you are a single mother or a single father, balancing a full-time job and a full-time parenting job is extremely strenuous. Read the following tips to help you save time on an everyday basis:
- Identify Time: Wasters and Address Them: Create a “key bowl” to avoid struggling to find your keys every morning or use the time spent waiting for your children in the parking lot to catch up on your favorite Netflix show. It is better to utilize this time for your benefit rather than wasting the extra five minutes every day.
Tips on How to Tell Your Children You Are Getting a Divorce
Deciding to get a divorce is often discussed at length by both spouses. Many couples will make a pro-con list to compare the good things in the relationship to the bad ones. Most parents think that getting a divorce will adversely affect their children; however, this is often not the case. Studies have shown that it is better for children to grow up in a household where they have examples of healthy relationships, even if this means realizing that what is best for their parents is to be apart. Just because this is usually best does not make breaking the news to your children any less difficult. Continue reading to learn about the best way to tell your child that you and your spouse are getting divorced.
Telling Tips
Telling your children that you and your spouse are filing for divorce is difficult no matter the circumstances. The following tips may not make it easier to tell your children the truth; however, it will help your child in the long-run.
Tips to Avoid Divorce (Before and After the Wedding)
Getting married and starting a family is ingrained in Western cultures, especially in the United States. By the age of 50, 90 percent of people have been married at least once. Due to the high percentage of individuals who decide to get married, there is also a large divorce rate. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, divorce rates are not as high as many think. 3.2 people out of every 1000 individuals go through divorce. Divorce rates may be decreasing; however, they will never become obsolete. Continue reading to learn different ways to avoid divorce whether you are on the path to your wedding or have already said “I do."
Avoiding Divorce
Love Is Not Ageless: Studies have repeatedly shown that getting married as a teenager is extremely risky. This is not only due to the lack of relationship experience but also the lack of financial security. Money problems can bring even the best relationships under extreme duress. After a certain point, divorce rates begin to increase as age does. Statistics show that the best age window to tie the knot is between 28 and 32.
Divorce vs. Legal Separation: Why Choose One Over the Other?
When married relationships are no longer working for either spouse, most couples separate for a period of time before seeking out divorce. Most states require a couple’s separation, that is living under separate roofs, for a specific period of time before divorce can be initiated. The purpose of this forced separation is to allow each spouse to see what their life would be like without their significant other in order to decide if this is the best choice for them. While divorce is one of the most common answers if a couple is unhappy in their marriage, legal separation is also a valid response.
Legal Separation
If a couple is considering separation for a long period of time, a written agreement regarding their assets, debt, alimony payments, child custody, and visitation rights is advantageous for both spouses. While living under separate roofs and leading different lives may seem like a good way to move on, without legal documentation both spouses are still on the hook for the other’s finances. This includes debt incurred by either spouse.
How Substance Abuse Can Affect Divorce Proceedings
Substance abuse is one of the most common reasons why couples decide to divorce. With over 20 million Americans over the age of 12 suffering from addiction, substance abuse has become an epidemic throughout America. Individuals who suffer from drug and alcohol addiction can end up hurting their spouses and children mentally, physically, and emotionally. Many spouses will attempt to seek help for their addicted partner. While rehabilitation does work for some, many continue to have issues in the long-run. Continue reading to see how substance abuse can affect divorce if your spouse struggles with addiction.
Areas of Divorce Affected By Addiction
- Child Custody: This is one of the primary areas in which addiction can have extreme ramifications. High intakes of drugs and/or alcohol can greatly impair one’s mental state, making it nearly impossible for a parent to fully care for their child. If one parent has struggled with substance abuse, the other parent is almost guaranteed full custody. One of the only ways in which the judge can be swayed is if said parent is actively participating in rehabilitation and is showing serious improvement.
Fostering a Child in Illinois
Deciding to take responsibility of and care for a child without parents is a life-changing gift for children in the foster care system. Children within the foster care system range from the age of birth to 18 years old and many stay in the system until they reach adulthood. These children have been placed into the hands of the state as a result of abuse, neglect, or abandonment by their biological parents. While it is in the best interest of the child, being placed in foster care can be a traumatic and difficult way to live out their years of adolescence. Continue reading to better understand the foster care system and the legal process that goes along with it.
Fostering vs. Adoption
Though fostering and adopting a child can be similar, the two social services do not always go hand in hand. Adopting a child permanently removes the legal rights and responsibilities of the child’s biological parents and hands them over to the adoptive parents. An adoption also involves the changing of the child’s legal name. Adoptive parents can also receive financial aid from social services throughout the adoption process and after the adoption has been completed.
Proving Paternity
Finding out that you are about to become a parent should be a fun and exciting time; however, this is not always the case. For some men, they have to prove that they are the father, rather than being told by their soon-to-be co-parent. Proving that you are or are not the father of a child is a medical and legal process which can be more involved than just going to the doctor. Continue reading to learn more about the process of proving paternity.
The Need to Know
There are many reasons why people will seek to find out the identity of the biological father of a child. Many mothers and potential fathers want to know the child’s father because of the need for monetary and parenting support. If the father and mother are not married, the parent without primary custody, in which case is usually the father, will be required to pay child support. Many mothers also want help from the father in regards to raising their child. Knowing the identity of both parents is also important in regards to health benefits and insurance. The child will be covered by his/her father’s health insurance, social security, inheritance, and veteran’s benefits. It is also crucial to know a father’s identity to have a better understanding of the child’s health background as well as the child’s own sense of identity.
Online Conduct: How to Deal with Your Divorce in the Digital Age
Divorce is difficult no matter the circumstances. While divorce may have been legally difficult in the past due to societal values, divorce in the digital age can prove just as troublesome. Social media can become a face-less platform for one to publicly or privately vent about their marriage difficulties or impending divorce based on their account privacy settings. Whether your account settings are placed on private or not does not necessarily mean you are fully protected from your spouse or their attorney discovering your posts.
Privacy Protection
Switching your profile from public to private does not guarantee that your social media posts will not make it into your divorce proceedings. Use the following tips to better protect yourself in the digital age:
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Change your passwords often: Many use similar passwords for all of their accounts because they are easy to remember. Though this tactic may make logins easier for the account’s owner, it also makes it easier for others to hack into their account, especially those who are close to them. Changing passwords frequently is an easy way to block intruders from hacking into bank accounts, emails, and social media platforms.
Filing an Order of Protection
An order for protection is commonly known as a restraining order. Through the Illinois court system, one can file various different types of restraining orders based on the threats of violence that they are experiencing. Minors, those under the age of 18, can petition for a restraining order despite not being a legal adult. This is allowed simply because abuse does not discriminate based on age. Teens and women ages 16-24 have the highest risk rate for intimate partner violence. Continue reading to learn what is classified as abuse and which situations can be used to petition for an order for protection.
Types of Restraining Orders
Many incorrectly believe that an order of protection can only be filed if proof of physical abuse is present. Abuse can take many forms such as physical, emotional, and psychological. Anyone who violates orders of protection receives a Class A misdemeanor for the first offense and a Class 4 felony for any other violations. There are various types of restraining orders to accommodate for the different types of abuse that occur.
Military Retirement Plans After Divorce
Military marriages experience strains and stresses in greater capacity than other marriages due to the complications that their jobs put on both spouses. Though these marriages can be extremely stressful and difficult, the overall divorce rate among both male and female service members only averaged 3 percent in 2017. To be more precise, about 21,290 of 689,060 married troops divorced in 2017. The divorce process for members of the military is relatively uniform to those who are not in the service. The main difference for these individuals is how to divide their retirement plans.
Typical Military Retirement Plans
Retirement for members of the military is radically different for each member since not many individuals serve for 20 years, the requirement to get the normal retirement benefit. As a result, military retirement plans are made up of 3 components:
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