When you are deeply in love with your spouse, it can be nearly impossible to imagine that your spouse would ever do anything to hurt you, let alone cheat on you. To be fair, episodes of infidelity are rarely the result of a person intentionally looking to cause pain for their spouse or committed romantic partner. In many cases, in fact, unfaithfulness is often the manifestation of much deeper problems in the relationship, including a lack of communication, feelings of isolation, and discontent with one another. Infidelity, however, may be the last straw that leads the offended spouse to file for divorce, often with the expectation that such behavior may afford him or her additional considerations in the divorce process.

Limited Legal Impact

It is completely understandable that a spouse whose partner is guilty of infidelity would feel betrayed and angry and would wish to hold the cheating party accountable for his or her behavior. If you ever found yourself in that type of situation, it would only seem fair for your spouse to be responsible for breaking up your marriage in that way. Unless you and your spouse negotiated an infidelity clause in a valid prenuptial or postnuptial agreement, however, you are most likely going to be out of luck, at least as far the law is concerned.

Infidelity, along with all other negative or destructive behaviors like mental or physical cruelty or abandonment, can no longer be used as official grounds for divorce in Illinois. Recent changes to the law provide that all divorces in the state are to be granted on the grounds of irreconcilable differences, regardless of what may have occurred during the marriage. The law also prohibits a divorce judge from considering a spouse’s “misconduct” when dividing marital property or deciding whether to award spousal maintenance (alimony).

The National Survey on Drug Use and Health reports that approximately 19.7 million adults in the U.S had a substance abuse disorder in 2017. Millions of other individuals struggle with other types of addictions such as gambling addiction or compulsive shopping.

If you are considering ending your marriage through divorce and your spouse is an addict, you will likely face a more challenging divorce than most. There are certain things you should keep in mind when divorcing a person with a substance abuse or addiction issue so that you can protect yourself both emotionally and financially.

Gather Important Financial Documents

Getting divorced is the end of a romantic relationship but it is also the end of a financial relationship. If you plan to divorce, make sure you collect important financial records including:

Making the decision to end your marriage is one of the hardest choices a person will ever make. If you are a parent who is considering divorce, your choice is even harder. You not only have to worry about how you and your spouse will manage the split, but also how your children will react to the divorce. Although no one would argue that divorce is challenging for everyone involved, the good news is that a great deal of research has been done about divorce and children. Experts say that there are several things you can do to help your kids deal with your divorce as well actions which you should avoid during this difficult time.

Keep Adult Conversations Away from the Children

If you are like most divorcing individuals, you probably have several points of contention with your soon-to-be-ex-spouse. Understandably, heated arguments with your spouse are bound to happen. Experts say that children overhearing their parents fight can cause them serious emotional and psychological harm. Additionally, experts warn against badmouthing the children’s other parent in front of them as this can make kids feel like they have to choose sides.

Continue the Kids’ Normal Routine as Much as Possible

Children gain a great deal of comfort and reassurance from routines. If you used to get ice cream every Friday after school before the split, experts encourage you to continue this tradition after you have decided to divorce. Keeping school and extracurricular activities the same helps children understand that while many things about their lives are changing, they do not have to worry that everything is changing at once. Furthermore, experts say that it is beneficial for parents to keep household rules like bedtimes and chores consistent during their separation or divorce.

Deciding to end a marriage is already a tremendously difficult decision to make. Financial stressors like an overspending spouse only add to the complications associated with divorce. Unfortunately, divorce can sometimes bring out the worst in people. Some divorcing individuals make extravagant purchases before a divorce is finalized in order to get back at their soon-to-be-ex. Bitter spouses may frivolously spend money simply to keep it out of the final divorce settlement. Others use overspending as a way to cope with the emotional pain of the separation. Whatever the reason, when a spouse makes reckless financial decisions during the breakdown of a marriage, the other spouse deserves to be pardoned from those debts.

Recovering Dissipated or Wasted Assets

If you have recently learned that your soon-to-be-ex-spouse sold a valuable shared asset or spent thousands on a secret paramour, you may still be able to recover these funds. “Dissipation of assets” refers to the wasting of marital property or wealth through excessive spending, gambling, unwarranted borrowing, or fraudulent transference to a third party. A spouse who wastes funds in this way may be required to pay the marital estate back. In extreme cases of dissipation, the non-offending spouse may be given a disproportionately larger share of the remaining assets. Courts also have the authority to rescind transmissions of assets like real estate and stock if the transfer happened with fraudulent intent.

Contact a Wheaton Family Law Attorney for Help

If you are considering divorce while in a challenging financial situation, talking to a qualified divorce attorney can help you understand how to best protect your financial interests. Contact the experienced DuPage County divorce lawyers at Mirabella, Kincaid, Frederick & Mirabella, LLC today by calling 630-665-7300.

If you are a stay-at-home parent on the verge of divorce, your life is likely to change dramatically. The very nature of a stay-at-home mom or dad—as opposed to a parent who works from home—means that he or she relies on his or her spouse to provide financially for the family. In the wake of divorce, a stay-at-home parent could be at a very serious disadvantage. Fortunately, such parents often have a number of options available to help offset some of the financial effects of a divorce, and a seasoned family law attorney can assist you in exploring them all.

Spousal Support

Maintenance—also called alimony—is one of the most common tools that the courts use to help stay-at-home parents following a divorce. According to Illinois law, the court has the authority to order maintenance if either spouse has a legitimate need. The court must consider a number of factors in determining such a need, and your stay-at-home parent status is certainly one of them, but that alone is not necessarily enough to justify an award.

The court must take the entirety of your situation into account, including concerns such as: