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If you need legal advice and representation involving a divorce, family law dispute, criminal case, DUI or other traffic matter in Cook County, contact our attorneys at J. Aldrich Law, P.C. for a free initial consultation. We are conveniently located at 1700 Park St., Suite 203 in Naperville, Illinois. We serve all of Cook County, including: ,Berwyn, Blue Island, Burbank, Calumet City, Chicago Heights, Country Club Hills, Countryside, Des Plaines, Evanston, Harvey, Hickory Hills, Hometown, Markham, Northlake, Oak Forest, Palos Heights, Palos Hills, Park Ridge, Prospect Heights, Rolling Meadows, Cicero, Alsip, Arlington Heights, Barrington, Bartlett, Bedford Park, Bellwood, Bensenville,Bridgeview, Broadview, Brookfield, Buffalo Grove, Burr Ridge, Calumet City, Crestwood, Deer Park, Deerfield, Dixmoor, Dolton, East Dundee, East Hazel Crest, Elk Grove Village, Elmwood Park, Evergreen Park, Flossmor, Ford Heights, Forest Park, Forest View, Frankfort, Franklin Park, Glencoe, Glenview, Glenwood, Hanover Park, Harwood Heights, Hazel Crest, Hillside, Hinsdale, Hoffman Estates, Indian Head Park, Inverness, Justice, Kenilworth, La Grange, Lansing, Lemont, Lincolnwood, Lynwood, Lyons, Matteson, Maywood, McCook, Melrose Park, Midlothian, Morton Grove, Mount Prospect, Niles, Norridge, North Riverside, Northbrook, Oak Brook, Oak Lawn, Oak Park, Olympia Fields, Orland Hills, Orland Park, Palatine, Palos Park, Park Forest, Phoenix, Posen, Richton Park, River Forest, River Grove, Riverdale, Riverside, Robbins, Roselle, Rosemont, Sauk Village, Schaumburg, Schiller Park, Skokie, South Barrington, South Chicago Heights, South Holland, Steger, Stickney, Stone Park, Streamwood, Summit, Thornton, Tinley park, University Park, Westchester, Western Springs, Wheeling, Willow Springs, Wilmette, Winnetka, Woodridge, Worth.
As proud sponsors of the North Central College athletic program, J. Aldrich Law, P.C. is pleased to offer student discounts for North Central College students who need legal representation for local traffic tickets in DuPage County and Will County. Not all traffic citations require legal representation. However, some traffic offenses necessitate representation by an experienced traffic and criminal defense attorney, like North Central alumna Jacqueline Aldrich. Moreover, some drivers require attorney representation as a result of their traffic history in order to avoid a suspension of their driving privileges.
Most moving violations, that are not considered criminal misdemeanors, do not require court appearances. There are exceptions to this generalization, however, including but not limited to tickets resulting from traffic accidents and no insurance tickets. If your traffic citation indicates that a court appearance is not required, you have the choice of resolving the ticket by mail or demanding a court appearance. However, it is important to contact an attorney prior to making this determination. If you mail in your ticket and pay the fine, you are pleading guilty to the offense. If you do so and are not eligible for court supervision, you will receive an automatic conviction that will be reported to the Secretary of State. Your only recourse at that point would be to file a Motion to Vacate, which increases the cost of litigation. Additionally, if you are under 21 years of age and this is your second conviction in a 24 month period, or if you are 21 or over and this is your third conviction in 12 months, your license will be suspended for a minimum of 3 months.
If you need legal advice and representation involving a divorce, family law dispute, criminal case, DUI or other traffic matter in Kendall County, contact our attorneys at J. Aldrich Law, P.C. for a free initial consultation. We are conveniently located at 1700 Park St., Suite 203 in Naperville, Illinois. We serve all of Kendall County, including: Boulder Hill, Lisbon, Yorkville, Oswego, Plano, Platville, Newark, Millington, Millbrook, and Montgomery.
Although our office is located in DuPage County, we proudly represent clients in Kendall County, as well as Will County, Kane County, and Cook County, including the surrounding suburban districts of Bridgeview, Maywood, Rolling Meadows, and Markham. Our experience in multiple counties gives us a well-rounded perspective on how different judges, communities and prosecutors handle complex divorce, family law and criminal matters.
It's a new year, why not start 2016 with a fresh start? If you have been previously arrested, charged, or even convicted, you may be able to clean up your criminal record by filing a Petition to Expunge or a Petition to Seal your criminal record. A criminal history can cost you a job, admission to college or can have other negative consequences on your life and future. The process of Expungement entails petitioning the court for the entry of an order directing law enforcement agencies to destroy or return to you all documents related to a prior criminal arrest and/or charge. The benefit to expungement is that employers, colleges, universities, and the general public will no longer be able to see that old arrest or criminal charge.
2016 is bringing with it many important changes to the Illinois Marriage and Dissolution of Marriage Act. We have been highlighting some of those changes in our previous blogs. These important changes can be difficult to understand and confusing - especially to our clients who are used to the now "old" terminology of, for example "joint" and "sole" custody - that doesn't exist anymore. But that's why we are here. If you have any questions regarding any of the new changes, call us. We will be more than happy to go over those changes with you.
Many people worry about what to do if they are ever pulled over and suspected of driving under the influence. Whether you have had a few drinks or not, it is important to know what you have to do during a DUI stop and what you can refuse. Some DUI investigations are initiated because the officer suspects that the driver is driving under the influence. But others begin as a normal traffic stop, initiated for a minor traffic violation. Those ordinary traffic stops can quickly turn into a DUI investigation because of the time of day or night, the location of the stop, the smell of alcohol, or because of various other factors. Some officers simply presume that if you are driving past 11:00 p.m. or 12:00 a.m., particularly on a weekend, that you must have consumed alcohol prior to driving.
Yet another revision to the Illinois Marriage and Dissolution of Marriage Act taking effect on January 1, 2016 is related to custody and visitation. Starting in 2016, within 120 days of the service or filing of a petition for allocation of parental responsibilities, both parents have to either file a joint proposed parenting plan or, if they are unable to agree, then each parent has to file their own plan with the court. The 120 days to file the parenting plan can be extended by the Court if good cause is shown and accepted by the Court.
Yet another change to the Illinois Marriage and Dissolution of Marriage Act taking effect on January 1, 2016 is with regards the definition of what constitutes "net income" for purposes of child support calculation. Starting on January 1, 2016 obligors paying child support will be able to deduct student loan payments that they are making. This is a big and an important change for both parents as student loan payments can, and often are, significant. In addition to that change in the definition of "net income", we are also expecting additional changes later next year.
Additional changes to the Illinois Marriage and Dissolution of Marriage Act that will become effective on January 1, 2016 is that Illinois will now only recognize one ground for dissolution of marriage: irreconcilable differences. Illinois courts will no longer proceed under any of the other divorce grounds, such as mental cruelty or adultery. It is enough to show that irreconcilable differences caused the irretrievable breakdown of the marriage. Additionally, the six month, or if the parties did not agree the two year, separation period has also been eliminated.
Another change coming to the Illinois Marriage and Dissolution of Marriage Act centers around removal of a minor child. Current restrictions are imposed only on a custodial parent seeking to remove the permanent residence of a minor child out of the State of Illinois. However, as of January 1, 2016, parties seeking to remove the residence of their minor child(ren) will need permission from the court (or an agreement from their former partner) to move more than 25 miles from their current residence if residing in Cook, DuPage, Kane, Lake, McHenry, and Will Counties, or more than 50 miles from their current residence if residing in any other county in Illinois.
Since there will no longer be a "residential parent," these new relocation provisions apply to the parent who has been allocated a majority of parenting time or equal parenting time. One benefit to this revision is that a parent who lives close to the border of a neighboring state will no longer have to obtain court approval to remove their child's permanent residence to the neighboring state if the new residence is within the 25 or 50 mile radius.
630-953-3000
1700 Park St., Suite 203F, Naperville, IL 60563
Evenings and Weekends by Appointment
