Understanding How Legal Separation Works in Illinois

 Posted on November 15, 2022 in Family Law

When a married couple knows their relationship is on its way out, divorce often seems like the only logical option. Legal separation is another type of separation you can file in court to recognize that you will now be living apart, but it does not have quite the same final effect as a divorce.

Legal separation can be particularly helpful for married couples who have important health insurance benefits dependent upon the couple remaining married. It can also benefit people who may belong to a religion forbidding divorce or who are just not sure whether divorce is quite right yet.

Divorce Issues During Legal Separation

A person begins a legal separation by submitting a petition establishing that they are living separate and apart from their spouse and supplying information similar to a dissolution of marriage petition. The person will be required to file for legal separation in the county where either their spouse resides, they both resided as husband and wife, or if a spouse cannot be located in Illinois, the county in which the person petitioning for legal separation resides.

A legal separation will not end the marriage. Even after a court grants judgment, the spouses will still be legally married until there is a judgment for dissolution of marriage. 

Courts can award support to spouses, meaning that even when you get legal separation status, you can still be dealing with child support or spousal maintenance issues. Illinois allows for couples to be legally separated for an indefinite period of time, so a spouse can file for divorce at any time after a court finalizes separation.

Legal separations also involve separation agreements, which may detail responsibilities such as allocation of parental rights and responsibilities, child support, and spousal maintenance. The separation agreement will be a court order.

Certain cases may involve a trial separation period, under which a couple can see what living separately will be like. There are no court orders during this phase of the process, so couples may reconcile, file for separation, or file for divorce. A trial separation is not the same as a legal separation. 

Contact Our Cook County Legal Separation Lawyers

Divorce is not always for everyone. When you are still trying to work out what might happen, let the Chicago legal separation attorneys at The Law Office of George J. Skuros guide you through the entire process.

Our firm knows how overwhelming so much of divorce can be for most people, so we work closely with our clients and help them overcome every obstacle they encounter. You can call 312-884-1222 or contact us online to schedule a free consultation.

Sources:

https://www.cookcountycourt.org/ABOUT-THE-COURT/County-Department/Domestic-Relations-Division/Court-Forms

https://19thcircuitcourt.state.il.us/2131/Legal-Separation