Every parent has a legal and moral obligation to financially support his or her child. When parties divorce, the court will usually require the noncustodial parent to pay a percentage of his or her net income as child support. What happens, though, when the noncustodial parent’s net income is difficult to calculate or fluctuates from year to year? Or, what happens when the noncustodial parent is unemployed or underemployed?
In some instances, Illinois courts will impute income to the noncustodial spouse. Essentially, the court will, for purposes of calculating the amount of child support owed, assume that the noncustodial parent is making a certain amount of money even if he or she is unemployed or earning less than the stated amount. Illinois courts may impute income where the noncustodial parent (1) is voluntarily unemployed, (2) is attempting to evade a support obligation, or (3) has unreasonably failed to take advantage of an employment opportunity. A common theme running through these circumstances is that the court may impute income where the noncustodial spouse has acted in bad faith.
An example of a parent being voluntarily unemployed occurred in In re Marriage of Adams, 348 Ill. App. 3d 340 (3rd Dist. 2004). In that case, the trial court ordered the father to pay child support. He had previously been employed as a television news helicopter pilot earning $55,000 per year. However, he voluntarily quit his job and moved to Germany where he thought he would have better career opportunities and where his girlfriend lived. The Court found that it was proper to impute income to him based on his prior employment.
Paying for a child’s college education is a significant financial issue in any family, but with divorcing or divorced families, it can be especially tricky. Often times, if parents divorce when their children are young, the marital settlement agreement does not specify each parent’s obligation because that event is many years down the road. Therefore, when the time eventually arrives, planning for college should include not only traditional items such as exploring potential schools, financial aid packages, and travel and boarding arrangements, but also a review of the settlement agreement well before enrollment in a specific institution.
Recently, the United States Supreme Court heard oral arguments on two consecutive days in two cases which have generated national headlines and filled the broadcast airways with the topic of marriage equality. The Court’s decision in these two cases, Hollingsworth v. Perry and United States v. Windsor, will be delivered by the end of the 2012-2013 Term in mid-June and may likely have a profound effect upon the view of marriage in this country.
When people ask why I chose family law, I tell them that it’s one of the few areas of law where one not only deals at close range with clients, but one that touches on a plethora of areas of the law. After over 20 years in practice, it has become obvious that the multi-disciplinary nature of divorce extends far beyond the issues of income taxes, bankruptcies, and the business entities that we deal with to value the estate. It extends into areas of trust and estate planning, insurance and a variety of other areas that those experiencing divorce often don’t foresee. The purpose of this Article is to highlight a few of the most common areas where what appears to be ordinary planning can have an unexpected negative result in the event of a divorce.
The population of the United States is getting older. The most recent census, conducted in 2010, revealed not only that there are now more Americans age 65 and above than at any other time in U.S. history, but also that this age group grew at a faster pace during the prior decade than the total population. Moreover, the 65-and-older set is expected to increase even more rapidly over the next decade as more baby boomers start to turn 65 and as new medical advances continue to extend life expectancy.
The statistics are deeply troubling. 1 in 4 girls and 1 in 6 boys will be the victim of child sexual abuse by the time they reach 18. Ninety-three percent of these victims are abused by someone they know who is in a position of trust or authority. However, only 1 out of 10 victims ever disclose their abuse.
Typically, each new year brings a sense of anticipation and a fresh start. However, it may not feel this way for those going through or contemplating a divorce. In fact, the new year may create uneasy feelings and a concern about the future. Planning and forward thinking can make the process easier, reducing anxiety, stress, or uncertainty. The following are a few tips to help couples contemplating divorce get organized and approach the beginning of the new year more positively.
Some parents have estranged relationships with their children. Whether the estrangement was caused by bad decisions, alienation by the other parent, geographical constraints, service in the military and separation from the child for a long period of time, or other reasons, there is no better time than the present to take the first step. Some parents might be afraid of being rejected by their child, but children need their parents. Taking the first step to reconnect can sometimes be the hardest, but it is also the most important.
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