WHEN YOU CONSIDER contacting a family law attorney, be assured the attorneys at Griffin & McCarthy, LLP make every effort to use litigation as a last resort and apply negotiation, mediation, and settlements foremost. In fact, there are many steps in the dissolution process before litigation is used.

Eight Steps to Know

if you are considering divorce

• Initial Consultation
• Preparation of Pleadings & Filing
• Serving of Papers
• Preparation of “Disclosure Statement” of Finances
• Formal Request for Financial Documents & Other Information
• Mediation
• Settlement Conference
• Pre-Trial Conference (if no agreement is reached)

If you would like to set up an initial consultation with one of our attorneys, please contact us for an appointment.

initial consultation

At your first family law consultation, you will meet with one of our attorneys and may discuss some or all of the below matters:

• You and your spouse’s work history, income, assets and debts.
• Custody and visitation rights, if children are involved.
• Available options, including: immediately filing; attempting counseling; trial separations; exploring mediation.

preparations of pleading & filings

At this point, if you are petitioning for divorce, the petition and associated paperwork is filled out, signed, and filed.

serving of papers

The respondent (the party that is not petitioning for divorce) must be personally served with process to bring him or her into the jurisdiction of the court. Griffin & McCarthy, LLP either uses a sheriff or a special process server to serve the respondent with the filing paperwork.

Upon being served, the respondent must file an appearance with the court either by his or herself (pro se) or through his or her attorney. The respondent must also file an "answer" to the allegations of the petition that denies or admits the allegations.

If you have been served with a divorce filing and need a lawyer, please contact us for an appointment.

disclosure of finances &
formal request for financial & other documents

During this discovery stage, attorneys for both the petitioning and responding parties examine the financial situation of both parties, which includes obtaining such financial documents and tax returns, social security statements, bank and mortgage statements, and more. Determining each party's financial situation is vital to allocating assets.

In addition to handling cases involving sophisticated personal financial holdings, the attorneys at Griffin & McCarthy, LLP are experts in dealing with divorce cases that include complex business assets, such as medical, dental, and consulting practices.

mediation

Mediation offers parties who are willing to sit down with each other an opportunity to create their own negotiated settlement within the limits of Illinois law. Mediation can help minimized the emotional upset associated with litigation and court action. When children are involved, mediation is usually less confrontational and provides a better setting for parents to voice their concerns, which helps produce a more agreeable joint parenting agreement.

Griffin & McCarthy, LLP strongly supports the mediation process and will work with mediators to bring your agreement to a final resolution. If an agreement cannot be reached, then litigation may be necessary. Griffin & McCarthy, LLP will represent your interests in our trial preparation and at trial with efficiency, expertise, and empathy.

settlement conference

If you and your spouse reach and agreement through attorneys and/or mediation, no trial is needed and your agreement in incorporated into a document called a "Marital Settlement Agreement." This becomes part of the Judgment for Dissolution of Marriage that is entered on your final court date and, after which, you will be legally divorced.

pre-trial conference

If no agreement is reached, then a Pre-Trial Conference is held with your assigned judge. For this meeting, both parties draft a Pre-Trial Memorandum that summarizes their respective positions on the matters being disputed. At the conference, the judge may offer an opinion that helps settle the case. But if the two parties still cannot settle their matter after this meeting, then a trial date is set.