Posted on June 12, 2019 in Immigration

Media coverage sometimes denigrates the enforcement actions taken by U.S. immigration authorities, calling them overly aggressive or harmful to families. Yet if agencies like Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) did not actively seek to capture and punish those who violate U.S. criminal laws and immigration laws, the U.S. could not maintain the public safety and homeland security that the citizens and lawful residents of the nation expect and deserve. Deportation and removal actions are an unpleasant but necessary reality.

That said, U.S. immigration law is complex and often intimidating. There are many unexpected ways that foreign citizens wishing to live in the U.S. can run afoul of the law.

Young people hoping to advance in life are particularly at risk of being taken lured into fraudulent immigration schemes. The skill of an experienced immigration attorney is often necessary to help holders of student visas to stay out of trouble with U.S. immigration officials.

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 Posted on June 11, 2019 in Family Law

Going through a divorce can be emotionally devastating, to the point that you feel depressed, anxious, and have difficulty concentrating. When your mind is not functioning properly, you may make mistakes that you will later regret. Here are some common divorce mistakes to watch out for.

1. Relying on the wrong advice. Your recently-divorced cousin in Texas and your twice-divorced aunt in Indiana may have all kinds of advice for you. But the divorce laws in those states are different than the laws in Illinois. Listen to your local lawyer when it comes to matters of the law and the court procedures in your county. You may also want to consult a certified public accountant or certified divorce financial analyst to help you with financial projections and tax implications.

2. Keeping the house without understanding all associated costs. You may love your home and neighborhood, or just not want the hassle of moving. But before you agree to keep your marital home, make sure you create a budget that includes all of the home’s expenses, including the mortgage, property taxes, insurance, lawn mowing, snow removal, and other maintenance expenses. Consider the age of all of the appliances and what it will cost you to repair or replace them if they break. Do not keep the home unless you are sure you will be able to afford it.

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 Posted on June 06, 2019 in Personal Injury

Picture this: You are in your car, stopped at a red light. The light turns green, so you hit the gas, but all of a sudden, a car running a red light comes out of nowhere and slams into the side of your vehicle. You put your hazard lights on and get out of your vehicle, trying to assess any damage to you or your car. You talk to the other driver and ask for their insurance information, but the other driver does not have insurance. What do you do in a situation like this?

Uninsured motorist collisions happen more often than you might think. According to the latest data available from the Insurance Information Institute, approximately 13 percent, or one in eight, motorists were uninsured in the United States in 2015. Even if a person has insurance, his or her coverage might not fully cover the costs of the damages sustained in an accident. If you are involved in an accident with an uninsured or underinsured motorist, here are a few tips to follow:

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 Posted on June 05, 2019 in Immigration

Over 700,000 people who illegally entered the U.S. prior to June 2007 and prior to age 16 have been allowed to remain in the U.S. under the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program. DACA began offering two-year deferrals of removal to these people in 2012 with the option of renewal every two years. Since the program was ended by executive order in 2017 and then resumed by federal court orders in early 2018, many people on DACA status have been in limbo, wondering whether they may lose their DACA status and be deported.

Numerous lawsuits have been filed in various federal district courts seeking to keep the DACA program alive. Two district courts have ordered USCIS to accept DACA renewals, and USCIS has complied with these orders on a nationwide basis. However, a decision by the U.S. Supreme Court may be necessary to determine the ultimate fate of the DACA program. At this time, a Supreme Court ruling is not expected until the first quarter of 2020 at the earliest.

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 Posted on June 04, 2019 in Family Law

When parents with minor children divorce in Illinois, the court asks them to submit a mutually agreed parenting plan that includes an allocation of parenting time and decision-making responsibility. The court will approve that plan as long as it appears to be in the best interests of the children. However, if the parents cannot agree, the court will have to determine the parenting plan. To ensure that the court has enough information to make decisions in the best interests of the children, the court may appoint a guardian ad litem (GAL) to conduct an investigation and report back to the court. A parent may also ask the court to appoint a GAL if they believe that the court needs to hear an independent perspective on certain matters, e.g., a child’s special needs or the fitness of a parent to care for a child.

What Does a Guardian Ad Litem Do in an Illinois Divorce Case?

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 Posted on May 30, 2019 in Family Law

When parents of young children get divorced in Illinois, they must file a parenting plan with the court that includes a parenting time formula or schedule with sufficient detail to enable court enforcement. Thereafter, if either parent wants to change the parenting time schedule, they can do so at any time by either making an informal agreement between themselves or going back to court to formally request a parenting time modification.

The Illinois Supreme Court has published a standard Parenting Plan form designed to ease the process of defining and modifying a parenting time schedule. This form spells out a reasonable process for changing your parenting time schedule.

Modifying Parenting Time by Agreement

For example, suppose you originally agreed to a schedule that designated Halloween as a holiday on which each parent would have the children every other year. However, you would prefer not to treat Halloween as a holiday anymore and instead treat it like a regular day.

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 Posted on May 29, 2019 in Immigration

We sincerely hope that you have not been a victim of a crime while temporarily visiting, studying, or working in the United States. But if you have, you should be aware of the immigration benefits available to crime victims under the nonimmigrant U visa program.

How to Qualify for a U Visa as a Crime Victim

To qualify for a U nonimmigrant visa, you must meet the following criteria:

• You were the victim of a qualifying crime, as a result of which you suffered substantial mental or physical abuse.
• You possess information about the crime that would be helpful to law enforcement.
• A federal, state, or local law enforcement official certifies, on a form that is attached to your visa application, that you are helping or have helped law enforcement in the investigation or prosecution of that crime.
• You must meet the standard criteria for admissibility to the US or obtain a waiver of inadmissibility.

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 Posted on May 27, 2019 in Personal Injury

For many American teenagers, getting their first driver’s license is a rite of passage that is eagerly met with excitement. Though this can be a fun time for teens, studies show that teenagers are one of the most accident-prone driving demographics. According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), car crashes are still the leading cause of death for teenagers between the ages of 12 and 19. It can be scary to allow your teen to drive on their own, but fortunately, there are things you can do to decrease the risk of your teen getting into an accident. Here are a couple of tips you can use to teach your teenager how to be the best driver possible:

Ensure Your Teen Gets Enough Experience

Accidents commonly happen when teenagers are young and inexperienced. Many schools offer programs where teens can take driver’s education and end the course by successfully getting their driver’s license, but these programs often do not provide enough necessary driving time. Most school programs only offer students about six hours of driving practice, while the total number of hours needed to become proficient is somewhere around 50 hours. Make sure you give your teen enough time to feel comfortable behind the wheel and know what they are doing.

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 Posted on May 23, 2019 in Family Law

When a couple has substantial assets, the division of property requires some of the most important decisions in an Illinois divorce. The decisions you make about assets such as your marital home can make a significant difference to your long-term security. Decisions about real estate in a divorce are particularly complicated due to issues including the mortgage, the property taxes, the real estate market, the property’s condition, and the exact value of your equity. It is important to consider all of these factors before making a decision about whether you should buy out your spouse’s share or sell the property and divide the proceeds.

Issues to Consider Before Buying or Selling Your Marital Home

Here are some variables to consider before making a decision about your marital home.

Can you sell the house for enough money to pay off the mortgage, the realtor, and other selling costs? Consult several realtors to determine a listing price for the house and to get advice regarding any repairs you should make prior to putting the home on the market. If you can sell quickly without taking a loss, this may be the smart thing to do, even if there will not be much in the way of proceeds to split. If you decide to go this route, here are a few tips to keep in mind:

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 Posted on May 22, 2019 in Immigration

If you are granted a green card based on marriage to a U.S. citizen, and your marriage is less than two years old, your green card will be conditional for two years after issuance. In order to obtain an unconditional 10-year green card, you must file an application either jointly with your spouse or individually if you are no longer married for legitimate reasons. The conditional period is intended to deter sham marriages made primarily to obtain immigration benefits. This gives U.S. immigration authorities more opportunity to confirm that your marriage was entered into in good faith.

How to Prove You Married in Good Faith

As part of your green card application, both you and your spouse may be questioned in depth by a U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) official. You must convince the USCIS interviewer that you entered into the marriage in good faith, intending to live as husband and wife, and not just for immigration purposes.

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