Posts By: MICHAEL C CRAVEN

Chicago Divorce Attorney Discusses New Domestic Violence Laws

One of the new laws increases the penalties for individuals who are repeat domestic violence offenders.  Currently, many repeat domestic abusers are charged with a misdemeanor crime under Illinois law.  This will all change come January 1st. Under the new law, repeat domestic violence offenders could easily face a felony charge  Prison time for repeat offenders is also enhanced.  Persons with four or more domestic violence convictions can face as much as 14 years behind bars. Joliet Democra...   Read more ...  

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Chicago Divorce Lawyer Explains New Child Support Law in Illinois

Children Receiving Child Support Illinois Governor Pat Quinn recently signed a new law, effective immediately, to help combat the non-payment of child support from those who are past due in their child support obligations. This new law allows gambling winnings reported to the IRS to be seized to pay outstanding past due child support. Not all gambling winnings are subject to seizure, only certain winnings such as those more than $1,200 from a slot machine or $600 on a $2 horse wager.   Thi...   Read more ...  

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Michael C. Craven Recommends Health Care Forms for Children Over 18

Medical-Release-Forms-for-Children For many parents, this part of the summer is marked with getting their kids ready to start or go back to college. With two daughters going off the college this fall, I am aware of the long lists of tasks and purchases our college-bound children create. If you are anything like me, you probably still consider your children mere kids. However, as a Chicago family law attorney I know that our kids are legally emancipated adults. As such, they have certain rights...   Read more ...  

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Creating and Maintaining a Close Father-Daughter Relationship Through Divorce

Father Daughter Relationships During Divorce Children play a central role in divorce cases. When couples with children divorce, child custody is often the most important issue in the case. The custody laws help determine whether to grant joint custody, the scope of visitation rights, child support, and much more. But as a Chicago divorce lawyer, I know that there’s more to the divorce process than just the legal rules. It’s crucial for divorcing and divorced parents to maintain a healthy re...   Read more ...  

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Update on Illinois Removal Cases

Removal-Cases-Include-Mediation-in-Child-Custody I recently wrote about removal under Illinois family law, and wanted to share an important update on that topic. On July 1, the Illinois Supreme Court amended its rules to expand mediation in child custody cases to include removal. The change will take effect on September 1, 2013. In 2006, the Illinois Supreme Court issued rules to streamline child custody cases throughout Illinois. That reform focused not only on speeding up child custody cases...   Read more ...  

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Landmark Ruling for Illinois Civil Unions

Civil-Unions-for-Same-Sex-Couples On June 26, 2013, in the landmark ruling of United States v. Windsor, the U.S. Supreme Court struck down the Defense of Marriage Act (“DOMA”). In place since 1996, DOMA restricted validly married gay couples from access to federal benefits. In another case decided the same day, Hollingsworth v. Perry, the Court reinstated a lower court opinion that struck down California’s gay marriage ban (called Proposition 8 or “Prop 8”). The Court held that the ci...   Read more ...  

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