Posted on February 15, 2018 in Immigration

After the December 11 attack in New York City that was perpetrated by a Bangladeshi immigrant, the president and current administration have gone on the offensive, arguing loudly about the evils of what is being called “chain migration.” They allege that chain migration, also called ‘extended chain migration,’ is a lax policy that permits too many immigrants into the U.S. without proper vetting.

While numerous experts have debunked such claims as manifestly paranoid, it is important to understand the legal arguments surrounding this issue, especially since the authority of the Oval Office may be turned arbitrarily on this aspect of U.S. immigration policy if nothing changes.

A Long and Complex Path

The perpetrator of the December attack in New York was a Bangladeshi immigrant who is not a U.S. citizen, but attained permanent residency after entering the country on an F43 visa. This is a visa granted to a child of an F1 visa holder, who is in turn the adult brother or sister of a U.S. citizen. This led the president to argue that ‘extended family chain migration,’ which is a term that had no meaning until a December 12 statement gave it one, “is incompatible with national security.” This is alleged because one family member who achieves U.S. citizen status can, in theory, sponsor several family members to come to the United States as well.

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 Posted on February 13, 2018 in Family Law

If you are going through a divorce, you should make sure your children are at the top of your priority list. After all, this is a time where your children may feel anxious and confused and will need to be cared for and reassured more than ever before. Here are five tips for parenting when going through a divorce:

1. Avoid Talking About Your Soon to Be Ex in Front of Your Children.

Although it is easier said than done, you should avoid talking about your soon to be ex in front of your children. If you are experiencing feelings of anger or betrayal, you can vent to a trustworthy sibling, friend, or therapist. Your children do not need to know about your emotions during this difficult time.

2. Ensure Your Children Are Not Messengers.

If you do not want to contact your ex, you may be tempted to ask your children to become the messengers. They may feel stressed and put into an uncomfortable situation if you do so. If you do not want to speak to your ex in person or even call them, you can communicate via text or email.

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 Posted on February 13, 2018 in Personal Injury

The weather in Lombard and throughout the Chicago area has been especially cold. Indeed, in late December, a report from ABC News 7 indicated that wind chills were pushing temperatures in and around the city well below zero, causing “dangerously cold” temperatures. When it snows in the winter, and when the temperatures drop rapidly, roads and highways throughout DuPage County can become especially hazardous.

An article from The Weather Channel emphasizes that black ice—which is a thin coat of ice on the road that is usually transparent—can appear, causing cars to slip and crash into one another. When inclement weather, from black ice to a snowstorm, causes a car crash in DuPage County, who is liable?

Negligence and Inclement Weather

If a car hits a patch of black ice and crashes into another vehicle, is the driver in that car (the car that hit the black ice) responsible for the crash? Liability in winter weather accidents in Illinois depends largely upon whether the driver was negligent. The Illinois Pattern Jury Instructions define negligence as “the failure to do something which a reasonably careful person would do, or the doing of something which a reasonably careful person would not, under circumstances similar to those shown by the evidence.” In other words, if a person does not act reasonably in winter weather, he or she could be liable for a resulting car accident.

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 Posted on February 08, 2018 in Immigration

Being brought up on criminal charges is always frightening and disconcerting. For non-citizen defendants, there is an added dimension to fear. Depending on the nature of the crime committed, it can sometimes be used as a tool for U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) to deport you. If you have committed a crime, it is imperative that you understand the nature of the charges against you and be aware as to whether it could result in immigration consequences.

Crimes of Moral Turpitude

Many foreign nationals living in the U.S. have had run-ins with law enforcement, though the end results can be anything from a warning to a murder conviction. A significant portion of the crimes that have been alleged against them fall under a category USCIS refers to as crimes of moral turpitude (CIMTs). If you commit a crime of moral turpitude within two years of your admission to the U.S., or more than one in a ‘single scheme’ within 5 years of admission, it is grounds for deportation.

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 Posted on February 07, 2018 in Family Law

Sometimes, a divorce ends on bad terms and parents are not able to co-parent effectively. Even therapy, mediation, and positive thoughts cannot make it possible for them to work together and raise their children. If you have gone through a high conflict divorce and believe co-parenting will not work for you, you should consider parallel parenting. Let’s take a closer look at what parallel parenting is and how it works.

Parallel Parenting Defined

When divorced parents choose the parallel parenting method, they recognize that they both love their children but contacting one another can do more harm than good. Parallel parenting can help avoid conflict and ensure that children still have a meaningful relationship with both parents.

How to Practice Parallel Parenting

The goal of parallel parenting is to limit contact with your ex-spouse while still providing your children with the love and care they need to live a high quality of life. Here are some tips on how to practice parallel parenting:

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 Posted on February 05, 2018 in Personal Injury

Car accidents in DuPage County frequently lead to serious personal injuries and substantial property damage. In addition to costing injury victims thousands of dollars (and sometimes much more) in medical bills and auto repair costs, those victims also lose thousands of dollars in lost wages due to the inability to work after suffering debilitating injuries. Generally speaking, if you are injured in an auto accident in Lombard, Illinois, what types of damages can you expect to receive and how do courts make decisions about these damages awards?

Different Types of Damages in a Motor Vehicle Crash in Illinois

In most car accident claims, Illinois law allows a plaintiff to seek compensatory damages, which are supposed to compensate the plaintiff for losses in the auto accident. The statute clarifies that compensatory damages are the combined total of both economic and non-economic damages. These two types of damages are defined as follows:

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 Posted on January 31, 2018 in Family Law

Family law is very complex. For this reason, there are many family law misconceptions that our firm frequently encounters. To help you avoid serious mistakes that could negatively impact the outcome of your family law case, we have compiled this list of five of the most common family law misconceptions:

1. Domestic violence claims must involve physical abuse.

Contrary to popular belief, domestic violence does not always involve physical abuse. Although physical abuse is the most serious form of domestic violence, there is also emotional abuse, sexual abuse, financial abuse, spiritual abuse, and technological abuse. Domestic violence may involve controlling access to a spouse’s money, diminishing their self-esteem, and preventing them from practicing their religious beliefs.

2. Prenuptial agreements start a marriage off on the wrong foot.

You cannot predict the future of your marriage but you can protect yourself and avoid a great deal of stress in the event that it leads to a divorce. Many people feel that prenuptial agreements can start a marriage off on the wrong foot when in reality, they encourage open, honest communication which is essential element to any strong marriage.

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 Posted on January 24, 2018 in Immigration

In today’s interconnected world, holding more than one nationality is somewhat commonplace. In the United States, however, it was illegal to hold dual citizenship until relatively recently, as the law barring the practice was only overturned in 1967. There are still restrictions in place that do bar dual citizenship in certain circumstances. Still, most of the time it is perfectly legal to do so assuming you meet the other requirements for citizenship.

Often Acquired by Chance

The majority of dual nationals within the United States or its territories have acquired the status simply due to chance or relationship. Children born to U.S. nationals while they reside in other countries will almost always qualify for dual citizenship. For example, a child born in Germany to married U.S. citizen parents will qualify for both German and U.S. citizenship; the first through location of birth, the second through their parents’ fulfilling citizenship and residency requirements under U.S. law.

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 Posted on January 24, 2018 in Family Law

Interfaith marriages are more common today than they were in the past. Unfortunately, interfaith divorces have also become more frequent. While most aspects of divorce are the same regardless of the religions of both spouses, a unique issue in an interfaith divorce is the religion of the children.

Even if one spouse converts to the other spouse’s religion before or during the marriage, they may return to their original religion once they get divorced. When this occurs, the children of the divorce are left with serious religious complications.

An Example of How Interfaith Divorce Impacts Children

For example, Jacob who is Jewish dates Heather who is Catholic. Prior to marriage, Heather converts to Judaism and once the couple is married, they have two children who they agree to raise Jewish. Years later when the couple divorces, Heather returns to Catholicism. Then, the issue of what religious services their children are allowed to attend and holidays they are allowed to celebrate comes up.

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 Posted on January 23, 2018 in Personal Injury

Although the temperatures in DuPage County are not currently conducive to riding a bicycle for everyday transportation to and from work, or to your neighborhood shopping market, a new study published in Accident Analysis & Prevention suggests that getting more cyclists on the roads could help to reduce the rate of overall traffic collisions among motorists, bicyclists, and pedestrians. It may be difficult to consider getting out on a bicycle in the winter months, especially in Illinois, but the study provides helpful information to consider as we slowly look ahead to warmer months and as we consider ways of reducing motor vehicle crashes in the New Year.

Bicycling Yourself Can Lead You to Take More Care Behind the Wheel

How can getting more bicyclists out on the roads in DuPage County and across the country reduce the total rate of motor vehicle collisions with bicyclists? The premise of the study is this: the more that drivers experience what it is like to ride a bicycle and to share the road with other motorists, the more likely those individuals will be to take particular care when they are behind the wheel.

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