Evidence presented to the trial court indicated that the cost of supporting a child had substantially increased and that defendant's income had substantially increased so as to enable him to pay this additional amount; in light of this evidence it was error for the trial court not to order the defendant to pay modified amount plaintiff sought for child support.
Death of Obligor Subsection (c) of this section provides that the obligation to support, unless otherwise agreed in writing or provided in the judgment, will survive the death of the parent obliged to provide child support and seeks to protect the dependent child of divorced parents from loss of support through disinheritance, a loss from which a child of non-divorced parents is indirectly insulated.
An order under 750 ILCS 5/513 for education and maintenance of a child, whether of minor or majority age, is intended to be included within subsection (c) the same as a support order and is not terminated by the death of a parent obligated to pay for these expenses. An order of support for a non-minor child, although only to be granted under special circumstances under 750 ILCS 5/513 is the same as any other order of support and does not terminate upon the death of the parent obligated to pay the support unless otherwise agreed in writing or expressly provided in the judgment. Subsection (c) authorize modification of child support, when a parent obligated to pay support dies, "to the extent just and appropriate in the circumstances"; however, no modification of a support order is warranted where the decedent has adequately provided for the children.
No modification of a support order is warranted where the person obligated to pay support has adequately provided for the children in a testamentary device. Subsection (c) of this section seeks to protect the dependent child of divorced parents from loss of support through disinheritance, a loss from which a child of nondivorced parents is indirectly insulated; a divorced parent is still free the disinherit a child of his divorced marriage, subject only to the limited obligation of support. Since an original decree made no provision for support of the minor children by the father, the former wife's petition filed after the father's death constituted in effect an effort to enforce a claim against plaintiff's estate for child support unrelated to the divorce decree, and, since the death of the plaintiff rendered it impossible for the trial court to enter any personal decree against him, there could be no basis for granting relief provided by an amended decree under former Ill.Rev.Stat., ch. 40, para. 19.
Delayed modification
Where at the time the petition for modification was filed, the defendant was receiving his full salary, he had incurred additional expenses because of a heart attack, but he had also recently received an inheritance, the trial court properly found that reduction of his alimony and support payments was not justified at the time of the filing of the petition, but that a modification was justified effective six months later.
Determination
Support should be determined by accommodating the needs of the children with the available means of the parties.
Divorce and family law comes in when a married couple decides to go separate ways. Usually, when a couple is undergoing divorce, disputes surface. These disputes are related to the family. They can be custody issues, child support issues, child visitation issues, and so on. The purpose of having these rules and regulations in place is not to inconvenience anyone. Instead, they are in place to help the entire family move through this difficult phase in a more amicable manner.
The best approach to adopt, is to seek the advice of a divorce lawyer. Usually, the first consultation is free, and there are no fees involved. If, during the first consultation, it is determined that hiring a divorce lawyer is the best option to take for the best interests of everyone, then you may go ahead and engage the services of a professional lawyer.
A lawyer practicing family law will be able to advise you on the options available. Not everything has to be settle by the court. There are alternative measures that can be taken to solve some of the problems at hand. Sometimes, your lawyer may even advise you that going to a court of law should be your last line of defense. This is because if the problem has to be presented before a court, there can only be one winner. Someone's pride will be hurt in the process. It is mostly a win-lose situation.
However, if the issues can be settled with alternative solutions, everyone is happy. In other words, it is more likely to achieve a win-win with alternative measures.
When you take the time to ponder over your divorce issues, you will come to realize that the advice from your divorce lawyer has deep implications. These implications involve your relationships with other members of your family, especially your children. Relationships between parent and child cannot be bought with money. And they are perhaps the most important issue surrounding a divorce. Hence, it is not uncommon to see the majority of time and resources spent on custody issues.
When it comes to child custody, professional lawyers understand that the objective is obtain fair custody. They will provide the necessary information to help make your decisions easier.
When you have firm up your mind, you may then engage your lawyer's help to execute your plans. For different states, different legal documents may be required. The primary role of your lawyer is to help prepare these documents to initiate your family law matters. If there are other options that you are not aware of, your lawyer will be able to advise you accordingly so that you don't make the wrong decisions. For example, if you are the father of a child, you have to take action to establish the relationship with the child. Otherwise, parental interest may be lost entirely.
Determine your own needs and communicate them to the divorce lawyer during the first consultation. This will help them come up with a proper legal plan to settle the matters at hand.
Both David Siegel & Gen Wright are contributors for EditorialToday. The above articles have been edited for relevancy and timeliness. All write-ups, reviews, tips and guides published by EditorialToday.com and its partners or affiliates are for informational purposes only. They should not be used for any legal or any other type of advice. We do not endorse any author, contributor, writer or article posted by our team.
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