Kevin O’Flaherty, our Tinley Park mediation attorney in this article discusses the mediation process and the importance of resolving disputes without the stress of court.  Mediation is an affordable means of settling issues and an attorney may not be necessary during third-party mediation, though is beneficial to have one present to understand you're entitled to and to understand your rights.

Read the full article by our Tinley Park child custody mediation attorneys explaining child custody mediation.

In this article, we discuss how to legally identify a father when a child is born.  In addition to DNA testing to determine the father and The Vital Records Act, which both parties are in agreement, there are other ways under the law that include:

• The father is married to the mother or in a substantially similar relationship before the child was born.
• The father was married to the mother but the marriage was terminated within 300 days prior to the child being born.
• The child was born within 300 days to an invalid marriage, which the father had entered with apparent compliance with the law.
• He is listed on the birth certificate and was married at the time of birth of the child.

Read the full article by our Tinley Park family mediation lawyers explaining paternity law.

Kevin O'Flaherty explain changes to child support laws went into effect on July of 2017 in this article.  These are important because it changes how child support is calculated.  Under the old law, the non-custodial parent is ordered to pay a minimum amount without taking into consideration the custodial parents income.  The new law states that now, child support will be calculated on the net income of both parents, causing some to have their child support payment increased, while others' will be decreased.  The only exception to this is when a third-party is the recipient of child support, then the child support payments will not be affected.​

Read the full article by our Tinley Park divorce mediation attorneys explaining the changes in Illinois child support laws in 2017.