One of the toughest intersections I face in family law is when a family law case also involves an active bankruptcy case...and the most common reason for divorce is $$. I'm not a bankruptcy expert. I typically consult another attorney or two when I have these cases just to make sure I'm doing everything right. I think in the future it might be wise to even co-counsel with another attorney who's a pure bankruptcy lawyer.

All that to mention a horrible experience we're having that mostly stems from the fact that our Cook County Domestic Relations judge didn't know her bankruptcy law and she gave us a totally unworkable judgment. She essentially didn't know that before a marital residence got sold that the parties' Chapter 13 plan would have to be paid off. She thought that we could just sell the marital residence and split the proceeds and then my client could just keep paying the Chapter 13 plan all-the-while. So now we're stuck and we're back in court trying to get the Judgment modified...what a waste!!

Be better than this judge in your practice!!

Child oft support's forgotten basics...



I get about one call per week (and often a new client) that relates to a terrible problem for payors of child support...could this be you?



Sadly, 90% of these cases were people who did not use an attorney when their initial divorce was finalized. And it always goes back to this basic fact about one's child support obligation, your child support obligation DOES NOT STOP UNLESS YOU GET INTO COURT TO STOP IT!! It does not get lowered unless you get into court to lower it! And I'm always getting these, usually father's, coming in either after they've been put in jail for contempt of court or they're some $30,000 in the whole on back child support. And my sad answer in 99% of cases is that I can't do anything about the back child support. Once child support hasn't been paid for 30 days, it becomes a Judgment against that person and Peter the Lawyer nor the judges in these cases can do anything about it.



So gang, let's be smart, if you become unemployed or you have an income drop, get into court and modify your child support downward. Don't chince on a lawyer for this type of thing...it's a 1 or 2 court appearance thing and it's not going to cost you an arm and a leg.

If you're a lawyer who works in the family law field this is nothing new to you. If you're someone who pays child support through the IL Dept. of Healthcare and Family Services...LOOK OUT!

This just happened to our client:

We represented a gentleman in some matters related to modifying child support. Judge enters an order that says client must pay X in current support and Y towards an arrearage. It's right there in a court order. Now, some 2 months later, client's employer gets a Notice of Withholding from IDHFS that is inconsistent with the court order...OF COURSE IT'S HIGHER. If I did this as a lawyer, I think I could lose my law license. But since it's this big state bureaucracy, they're almost bullet-proof. This case is in court later this month and I'm going to ask either that this client's child support cannot be paid through a Notice of Withholding OR that there's specific language in the order that says something like any Notice of Withholding must be consistent with this court order or it's not enforceable.

I'm hearing rumblings about a class action suit against IDHFS...tell me your stories and maybe we can do something about this.

Today's Sun-Times has a note about Orders of Protection being available online in Kane County. The piece reads like a petitioner would be able to file his/her case online and then show up for court for the actual hearing. Perhaps a good thing...

I'm against domestic violence but I'm also a family lawyer who knows that Emergency Orders of Protection are the most abused cause of action in the whole family law field, so I'm leery.