Grounds (Reasons) for Divorce Made Easy in 2016

The revised Illinois divorce law, enacted January 1, 2016, eliminates all of the fault-based grounds for divorce and left us with a single, no-fault ground for divorce, "irreconcilable differences". The revised law also eliminates the two (2) year separation period that was required to dissolve a marriage, and replaces it with a six (6) month separation period which reads as follows, "If the parties live separate and apart for a continuous period of not less than 6 months immediately preceding the entry of the judgment dissolving the marriage, there is an irrebuttable presumption that the requirement of irreconcilable differences has been met."

As a result, you only need to state in your initial petition that irreconcilable differences have led to the irretrievable breakdown of your marriage and that you and your spouse have lived separate and apart for six (6) consecutive months by the time a judgment of divorce is entered.

However, don’t panic if both you and your spouse plan to live in the family home throughout the divorce because, although the law states "separate and apart", it does not mean that one of you has to move out. This provision simply means that, for at least six (6) months before entry of the final judgment, you and your spouse live together as two separate, unrelated individuals living under the same roof, without a sexual relationship. Easy, right???
 

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