Illinois Divorce Laws -
What to Expect When Help Yourself Divorce Prepares Your Illinois Divorce

Grounds for Divorce.
If you use Help Yourself Divorce to prepare your divorce papers, you and your spouse must have been separated for at least 6 months before you can file. Your divorce will be filed based on the no-fault grounds of living separate and apart for 6 months.

 

Residency Requirements.
At least one spouse must have been a resident of the state of Illinois for 90 days before you can file for divorce.

If you and your spouse have minor children, the court must have jurisdiction over them. Generally this means your children must have lived in Illinois for at least six months and currently live in Illinois, or have lived in Illinois within six months of filing.

 

Filing for Divorce.
You can file the divorce documents in the Illinois county where either you live, or where your spouse lives.

 

Service.
You are required to prove to the court that you served your spouse with copies of the divorce papers. The way you provide service is by mailing or hand-delivering a copy of the papers to your spouse. Your spouse must be willing to sign and file with the court a document admitting receipt of the papers, which serves as proof of service.

 

Waiting Period/Final Hearing.
There is no specified waiting period before your divorce can be finalized. How long it takes will depend on the schedule of the court. Your divorce is finalized during a brief uncontested divorce hearing, which only the petitioner is required to attend. Your spouse can attend if desired, but he or she is not required to.

 

 

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IMPORTANT: Help Yourself Divorce is a paralegal service, not a law firm. Seek help from an attorney if you need legal advice.