Divorce Advice for Men | Fathers Rights Divorce | Child Custody

By Rachel D.S. Schmidt

Attorney, Cordell & Cordell

When Gov. Pat Quinn signed the Civil Union Act in January, Illinois joined about a dozen other states in providing legal protection to same-sex couples.

The bill allows for civil unions defined as a "legal relationship" between two persons of either the same or opposite sex. Civil unions give same-sex couples many of the same rights traditional married couples receive from their state.

However, not all states recognize civil unions and the federal government currently does not recognize civil unions either.

Question:

All settlement attempts have failed with my ex-wife, including one that we both agreed to but she backed out at the last minute. 

I believe it is because I refused to provide the answers to certain questions of the interrogatories because I do not want to them to become part of the divorce file and thus, a public record. I will answer them for her, but I don't feel these answers should be a matter of public record.

Is there any way to force her to come to an agreement with me before we have to go through a costly, drawn-out legal battle?

Question:

My ex-wife and I lived in Canada when we got divorced so our divorce decree is from another country. 

Our decree contains ambiguous language regarding spousal support after I retire.

Is this order from Canada enforceable in the United States? Does the U.S. recognize foreign divorces and their orders?

Question:

My wife acted as her own attorney (pro se) for a couple months this past summer and learned how to file subpoenas.

She showed up at a hearing with all my financial statements from my personal checking account, which she got by filing subpoenas by herself without alerting my attorney.

Are there charges I can file against her to get her to stop requesting subpoenas? Don't I have to be notified when a subpoena is filed?

Question:

My ex-wife is a paralegal in the county where my child support case is pending.

She knows all the judges and court staff and even enters the courtroom through the back doors by the judge's chambers - not through the front doors like the rest of us.

Is this enough to get a change of venue?