Family Law Attorneys Bridgeview

Family law matters are wide-ranging, but they focus on issues that affect your family, which makes them important matters. If you have a concern related to a family law issue, you are well-advised to check in with an experienced family law attorney in Bridgeview today. 

Family Law Matters

Again, family law is a broad area of the law, but some of the most common applications include matters that relate to:

• Divorce and the divorce process
• Nuptial agreements, including prenuptial and postnuptial agreements
• Parental responsibilities (and other matters that relate to child custody) 

Let’s take a closer look at each area. 

Divorce and the Divorce Process

No matter how you approach it, divorce is a difficult transition that is also a complicated legal process. Although no two divorces are ever exactly alike, the following terms make up the basic building blocks of every divorce:

• Parental responsibilities and parenting time (what many people think of as child custody arrangements)
• The equitable (or fair) division of marital assets
• Child support
• Spousal support (often called alimony)

Nuptial Agreements

Traditionally, prenuptial agreements have had a bad reputation, but they can be important tools for guiding the financial component of one’s divorce and for ensuring one’s children’s inheritances (for second marriages). Both prenuptial and postnuptial agreements are nothing more than legal contracts that help establish the ground rules in the event of divorce (or upon the death of one of the spouses), and they are not weapons that make divorce more likely. Consulting with an experienced family law attorney can help you better understand this important distinction. 

Parental Responsibilities and Parenting Time

In the State of Illinois, child custody is dealt with in terms of parental responsibilities and parenting time. Parental responsibilities refer to who will be making the important decisions on behalf of the children moving forward, including questions related to the following:

• Your children’s education
• Your children’s religious upbringing
• Your children’s medical care
• Your children’s extracurricular activities

These responsibilities can be joint (you share the decision-making process) or sole (one of you makes these important decisions on behalf of your children). 

Parenting time, on the other hand, refers to what you might think of as visitation, and it determines the schedule that your children will spend with each of you. Illinois courts have basic parenting time templates that they commonly employ, but you and your divorcing spouse can be as creative as you like in the determination of parenting time (as long as you are able to come to a mutual agreement on the matter). While parenting time can be sole, courts are very reluctant to cut a parent out without having a compelling reason for doing so. 

Seek the Professional Legal Guidance of an Experienced Family Law Attorney in Bridgeview

The skilled family law attorneys at Pinkston Law Group, P.C., in Bridgeview, Illinois, have the experience, legal savvy, and drive to help you resolve your family law concern favorably. We’re here for you, so please don’t hesitate to contact us for more information today.