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Since texting became popular about a decade ago, drivers have taken their eyes off the road and hands off the steering wheel in order to text. Texting and driving, which is illegal in Illinois, is a common form of distracted driving that often leads to serious accidents and injuries. In order to prevent texting-while-driving accidents and keep yourself as well as others safe on the road, you should adhere to these four tips:
Red light runners cause thousands of injuries and hundreds of fatalities each year. According to the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety, 137,000 people were injured while 771 lost their lives in accidents that involved red light runners in 2015.
More than 50 percent of those that were killed were pedestrians and people in other vehicles who were struck by red light runners. Unfortunately, drivers often run red lights without thinking it is a big deal. Three of the most common reasons for red light running include:
The penalties for a DUI often include hefty fines, jail time, a driver’s license revocation, and a permanent criminal record. If your DUI has left you with these life-altering penalties, you may consider appealing your DUI case. By filing an appeal, your DUI charges may be reduced, dismissed, and/or removed from your criminal record altogether.
In the event that you do decide to file your appeal, the appellate court may reverse your conviction, affirm it, or send it to a trial court for a hearing. Since the appeal process for a criminal case can be lengthy and complicated, you should consult an experienced Illinois DUI lawyer. You may be convicted of a lesser charge if strong evidence is given in court.
An Illinois DUI lawyer may bring up a number of issues for your DUI appeal. They may prove that the trial court made an error in applying the law to your case or the police or prosecutor took actions which prevented you from receiving a fair trial. Misconduct by the prosecutor and jurors as well as misrepresentation by your attorney and errors by the judge in admitting evidence against you may all support your appeal.
The final judgment in a divorce case is meant to be a permanent decision regarding all outstanding issues in the dissolution of a couple’s marriage. However, if you are unhappy with the ruling, and you believe it was made in error, you have the right to appeal the decision.
How the Process of Appealing a Divorce Works in Illinois
In an appeal, the appellant is the individual who appeals the court’s decision, while the appellee is the party against whom an appeal is taken and who responds to the appeal. Once an individual appeals a ruling, the case goes to appellate court instead of trial court.
The appellant may challenge the application of the law to a certain case, the way the trial judge interpreted the law, or the evidence used. An appeal may be filed after the trial court has made a final ruling. An individual has up to 30 days after the final ruling to file a Notice of Appeal, which is intended to convey their intention to appeal.
Individuals who may be eligible for alimony or child support tend to assume that they must wait until their divorce is complete to receive any form of financial relief. Thankfully, this is not the case; depending on the circumstances, divorcing parties may be eligible for temporary support. Learn more about the measures that can improve your current financial situation, even if your divorce is still pending, and discover how an experienced divorce lawyer can help.
Temporary Child Support
If you and your spouse share a child together and they spend most of their time with you, you may be entitled to child support – and you do not have to wait until the divorce is over to receive it. Instead, you may be eligible for temporary child support while your case is pending. You can seek this through the courts, or through the Illinois Department of Children and Family Services (DCFS). An attorney can help you determine which option may be most appropriate for your situation.
Couples rarely reach the decision to divorce at the same time. Instead, one party may reach the conclusion and start laying the groundwork before they discuss the matter with their spouse. The result is a blindsided individual who is at a distinct disadvantage in the divorce planning process. Thankfully, it may be possible to recognize the signs of divorce before your spouse decides to tell you. Just look for the following financial clues.
Changing How They Manage Their Money
Spouses who are planning on divorce are typically advised to open their own account. The goal here is to separate your income from your spouse’s, even before the divorce process starts. It gives them the opportunity to start saving and planning for their new life. So, if your spouse has stopped their direct deposit, is making large cash withdrawals, appears to have stopped or reduced their retirement contributions, or is acting like they may be hiding money, he or she may be preparing for divorce.
Parents do not typically consider the thoughts or feelings of their adult children when deciding whether they should divorce. Most assume that their child’s life will not be directly affected, but this can be incorrect. In fact, an expert from Texas A&M is now speaking out about how divorce can affect young college students – and many families are better for it.
Divorce and Adult Children – When It Hurts
Children may not ever do well with the news of a divorce, but as they get older, they start to gain more insight into life and relationships. Young adults are different. Though they may be independent, they still need support from their parents. Divorce can leave them feeling as though that support may not be available. Another possible issue is that divorce may cause unnecessary stress when young adults are dealing with big life issues of their own. For example, if they are in college, their grades may still slip because they are distracted by thoughts of the divorce or how each of their parents is doing through the process.
Under Illinois state law, each child has the right to receive support from each of their parents – that includes mental and emotional support and physical bonding time. Sadly, when a divorce starts, there are parents who will stop at nothing to get their way. Some may even go so far as to kidnap their own children so they can “get even” or win in negotiations. Learn more about parental kidnapping, including what it is and what your rights are, should it ever happen to you.
What is Parental Kidnapping?
Any parent that willfully, intentionally, or maliciously takes their own children and attempts to hide them or otherwise deny the other parent access may be charged with parental kidnapping. Some never leave the state. Others relocate to an entirely different country. Either way, parental kidnapping is both a family law tragedy and a crime.
The number of concerns couples have while going through a divorce is overwhelming, regardless of the circumstances that led to the split. When facing the additional pressure of experiencing a pregnancy during the process, however, an already complicated situation can instantly become more challenging for all parties involved, especially when attempting to consider the current needs of the family as well as the future needs of the little one on the way.
How Does Pregnancy Affect Divorce in Illinois State?
One of the biggest questions that expectant parents have when facing the decision of divorce is whether or not the pregnancy will affect the divorce filing process, and vice versa. Here are some factors that every expecting parent should consider when determining whether or not a divorce while pregnant is the right choice for their family:
If you have a pending divorce or child support case in the state of Illinois, you may have already heard the news: Child support, which was once calculated using a percentage-based formula in Illinois, is now being configured using an income-shares model. What does all this terminology mean, and how might it affect the outcome of your family law case? Learn the answers to these questions, and discover what an experienced family law attorney can do for you in your child support case or divorce, with help from the following information.
How the New Income-Shares Model Works
While the old child support law relied primarily on the income of the paying parent and the number of children shared, the new model considers the income of both parents, the cost of raising a child (based on the family’s income and expenses), and the amount of parenting time that each parent spends with the child. Parents who spend at least 146 nights per year with their child also receive a reduced obligation in child support, which can help mitigate the fact that they already bear almost half of the financial burden in terms of food, housing, and personal items.
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