Posted on December 08, 2021 in Main

Employees have the right to be free from sexual advances and offensive behavior at work. Although multiple federal and state laws prohibit sexual harassment, workplace harassment and discrimination continue to be problems in Illinois and throughout the U.S.

Unfortunately, many victims of workplace sexual harassment never report the harassment. They fear that nothing will be done to stop the harassing behavior, or worse, that they will face retaliation for reporting the harassment. If you are in this situation, you should know that retaliation is unlawful. Your employer may not “punish” you for filing a sexual harassment or discrimination complaint. If they do, you may be entitled to legal remedies including monetary damages.

What Does Employer Retaliation Look Like?

When an employee is sexually harassed at work, he or she should report the sexual harassment according to the company's sexual harassment policy. Often, this means reporting the harassment to the human resources department. The employer is required by law to address the harassment properly and prevent further harassment. Unfortunately, some employers take the opposite approach and retaliate against the person who reported the harassment.

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 Posted on December 02, 2021 in Main

Divorce can have major financial repercussions for both spouses. When divorce places a significant financial burden on a spouse, that spouse may be entitled to alimony or spousal maintenance as it is called in Illinois. However, spousal maintenance is only awarded in certain circumstances. Whether you are the family's breadwinner or the lesser-earning spouse, it is important to know how spousal support may impact your divorce.

Entitlement to Spousal Maintenance

There are three main avenues through which spouses may receive spousal maintenance in Illinois. The first is a prenuptial agreement or postnuptial agreement. If you and your spouse signed a marital agreement entitling one spouse to maintenance, the court will likely uphold the agreement.

Spouses may also agree on a spousal maintenance arrangement. Collaborative law or divorce mediation may help the spouses negotiate the exact terms of the spousal maintenance agreement. Alternatively, the spouses may negotiate maintenance through their attorneys.

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 Posted on November 30, 2021 in Main

Employees in the United States have options for addressing discrimination due to sexual harassment. Those who have experienced these forms of harassment in the workplace may be able to take legal action to address issues such as a hostile work environment or actions by managers or other employees that have affected their careers or their ability to maintain employment. These issues can affect workers even at high profile companies that have a positive reputation. This was recently demonstrated in a lawsuit filed against Tesla, the maker of electric vehicles.

Lawsuit Alleges Sexual Comments and Other Forms of Harassment

In November of 2021, a 38-year-old woman who works the night shift at Tesla's plant in Fremont, California filed a lawsuit against the company. Her suit claims that she experienced sexual harassment on a daily basis and that the company has a “pervasive culture” of sexist behavior.

In the lawsuit, the woman described multiple types of disturbing behavior that she experienced. In addition to derogatory comments about her body and other sexual comments made to her and her female coworkers, she also experienced groping and inappropriate touching, including male workers rubbing their bodies against hers or claiming that touching was unavoidable due to the need to work close to each other. She also had supervisors proposition her while claiming that they controlled her career and advancement. While she alleges that had filed multiple complaints, she also alleges that the company did not respond, and that the harassment she experienced caused her to suffer extreme emotional distress.

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 Posted on November 23, 2021 in Kane

When a couple divorces, they must determine how to divide the property they accumulated during the marriage. According to Illinois law, nearly every asset that a couple obtains during the marriage is considered marital property in a divorce. Assets that were obtained before the divorce are nonmarital or separate property – with some exceptions.

If you are getting divorced, you may have questions about how your retirement assets will be handled. You may ask, “Does my spouse get a portion of my retirement funds?” Or “Will I have enough money to retire if I get divorced?”

Who Gets Retirement Savings?

If you are like many people planning to divorce, you may assume that your retirement savings are yours alone. After all, your retirement assets were earned based on your hard work. However, retirement assets are typically treated just like any other asset during divorce. Unless you have a prenuptial agreement or another type of marital agreement that gives you sole ownership over retirement assets, any assets you earned during your marriage are likely marital property. This means that your spouse does have a right to an equitable share of the retirement assets. Assets that you earned before you got married are non-marital assets.

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 Posted on November 18, 2021 in Main

Did you know that experts consider divorce to be one of the most stressful life events a person can experience? Getting divorced can take a major toll on your mental health. It can be even harder to cope with a divorce or separation during the holidays. If you are in the midst of a divorce, consider the following tips for reducing your stress.

Accept Your Feelings and Do Not Bottle Emotions

Experts liken getting divorced to losing a loved one. Many divorcing spouses go through the same stages of grief that someone mourning a death would go through. You may feel angry, depressed, guilty, frustrated, and confused – perhaps within the same hour. You may also feel excited and hopeful about your post-divorce future. Whatever feelings you experience, accept them and recognize that this type of emotional volatility is completely normal during a divorce.

Work With Professionals Who Can Make the Process Easier

Many people try to handle divorce on their own. However, doing so can make the process much more difficult than it needs to be. Having a support team can make all the difference in the world. An experienced divorce lawyer can handle the legal, financial and logistical aspects of your divorce while mental health professionals including therapists and counselors can help you cope with the emotional and psychological aspects of the split.

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 Posted on November 12, 2021 in Main

Child support helps parents pay for housing, childcare, education and extracurriculars, and other child-related expenses. Illinois courts use an Income Shares Model to calculate child support payments. This model uses both spouses' net incomes to determine a child support payment amount that provides the needed financial support without overburdening the paying parent. However, determining child support is not always as straightforward as it may seem. One situation that can make child support calculations more complicated is a parent's unemployment.

Is an Unemployed Parent Required to Pay Child Support?

Illinois courts prioritize a child's best interests above all else during child-related legal matters. A child's financial needs do not change because a parent becomes unemployed. Consequently, a parent without an income is not automatically absolved of their child support obligation. However, a parent who is struggling to fulfill his or her obligation may be able to request a child support modification and reduce his or her payments in some situations.

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 Posted on November 10, 2021 in Main

The fast-food chain McDonald's has been one of the most popular restaurants in Chicago and across the U.S. for decades. However, the restaurant's reputation has been soiled by what many employees are calling ongoing, unaddressed sexual harassment against workers. Just recently, McDonald's staff in cities throughout the country walked off the job in protest of workplace sexual harassment. This walk-off is not the first of its kind. In fact, McDonald's workers have organized strikes multiple times in the past over allegations of discriminatory actions and workplace harassment issues.

Restaurant Workers Say They Were Verbally and Physically Harassed

Workers should be able to focus on their jobs. However, demeaning and inappropriate language and behavior in the workplace can sometimes make it impossible to do so. Harassment and discrimination can take countless different forms. Sometimes, sexual harassment takes the form of unfair treatment toward workers of a certain gender. Other times, sexual harassment involves displays of explicit or outright pornographic images or videos. Unfortunately, some workers are even subject to sexual assault on the job. One McDonald's manager is accused of raping an employee who was just 14 years old at the time. The manager had previously been sentenced to ten years in prison after sexually assaulting a child but still managed to gain the position of manager at the fast-food establishment.

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 Posted on November 10, 2021 in Kane

Reaching the decision to divorce can be just as difficult as the divorce itself. Married couples may try to make the marriage work for years before finally admitting defeat. Typically, by the time a couple files a Petition for Dissolution of Marriage, the marriage is beyond saving. However, relationships are complex and sometimes, a divorcing couple changes their mind. Read on to learn about your options if you have changed your mind about ending your marriage through a divorce in Kane County.

Filling a Motion to Dismiss Divorce Proceedings

Divorce is final. Once a divorce is complete, the spouses' marriage is over. If they decide that they made a mistake in getting divorced, their only option is to get re-married – which can come with its own complications. However, if both parties agree, you can completely stop divorce proceedings before the final divorce judgment is issued. You can file a Notice to dismiss the Petition for Dissolution of Marriage and stop the divorce from proceeding. However, if the parties do not agree, and a Counter- Petition for Dissolution of Marriage had been filed, the divorce proceedings will continue.

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 Posted on October 29, 2021 in Kane

There is no getting around the fact that divorce has considerable financial implications for both spouses. Going from a two-income household to a one-income household can turn your life upside down. The division of property and debts, spousal maintenance, and child support can also change your financial situation substantially. When starting the divorce process, spouses must consider the role of finances and make plans to prioritize their post-divorce financial wellbeing. For many divorcing spouses, this requires an honest assessment of their financial situation – perhaps for the first time ever.

Do Not Wait to Educate Yourself About Your Finances

Many married couples divide household chores and responsibilities. One spouse handles financial concerns like paying the bills, applying for credit cards, or balancing the checkbook while the other spouse handles non-financial concerns. Unfortunately, being “out of the loop” regarding finances can make you extremely vulnerable in a divorce case. Without being aware of your assets, debts, and income, you cannot make informed decisions during the divorce process. Financial ignorance can also make you blind to financial deception during the asset division process.

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 Posted on October 14, 2021 in Main

Sexual harassment is considered a form of illegal sex-based or gender-based discrimination. Every employee deserves to work in an environment where they feel safe and respected. Despite numerous federal and state laws designed to protect workers from sexual harassment and discrimination, unlawful harassment continues in workplaces across the United States.

When most people think about sexual harassment, they assume that the harassment involved opposite-sex individuals – usually a male aggressor and a female victim. However, sexual harassment does not always follow this stereotype. Sexual harassment victims and perpetrators can be of either gender. Sometimes, the victim and the perpetrator are of the same gender, which can make it even harder for victims to report harassment.

Same-Sex Sexual Harassment Victims Are Often Reluctant to Report Harassment

Same-sex sexual harassment is often insidious. It may come in the form of favoritism or biased performance reviews instead of derogatory remarks whispered at the water cooler. Sexual harassment involving same-sexed individuals is often difficult to recognize. For many victims, it is also difficult to report.

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