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According to the U.S. Census, over 30,000 Illinois couples divorced in 2009. Each of those couples were required by state law to divide up all of their property. An Illinois divorce lawyer understands that for many couples, the process of determining who owns what can be one of the most contentious areas of a divorce. There are often significant financial ramifications that result from the division of assets, which may lead one or both parties to fight for what they believe belongs to them.

It may sound calculating and cold, but if you are thinking about filing for divorce, you can protect yourself before retaining a DuPage County divorce attorney.  This is especially true if your spouse has been the one paying the bills and managing the household finances. Divorce is an emotional life-changing experience and you cannot predict how your spouse will react. By following these 10 suggestions, you are protecting yourself in the event your spouse becomes uncooperative and behaves irrationally such as closes bank accounts, cancels credit cards, or attempts to hide assets. Doing these 10 things before you file for divorce may also help shorten the length of the divorce process, save you thousands of dollars in legal fees, as well as help you prepare for the future.

Often spouses are overwhelmed with emotion and endless questions when they are facing a contested divorce.  A contested divorce means that both spouses do not completely agree 100% on all issues involving child custody (parental responsibility), visitation (parenting time) and division of assets.  Because most divorce cases are settled prior to trial, it is important to find an attorney who can guide your case efficiently through the following steps.  You also need an attorney who continually looks for ways to negotiate a settlement as early as possible in order to minimize costs and stress.  The more issues you and your spouse can agree on with respect to custody (parental responsibility), visitation (parenting time) and division of assets, the lower your attorney fees should be.