McLean County Divorce -- Bloomington Law Group LLC: Why Discovery is Important

Wednesday, February 4, 2015

Why Discovery is Important

"This divorce case illustrates the difficulty a spouse has in extricating herself from a marital settlement agreement whose terms were, in retrospect, not as generous as she would have liked. Petitioner Deborah Lyman and respondent Robert Lyman entered into a marital settlement agreement (MSA), which was incorporated into a divorce judgment. Deborah filed post-judgment petitions claiming fraud and breach of the MSA pursuant to section 2-1401 of the Illinois Code of Civil Procedure (Code) (735 ILCS 5/2-1401 (West 2010)). She argued that she was fraudulently induced to enter into the MSA because Robert informed her that his businesses were ceasing to operate and would lose their value. Robert moved to dismiss Deborah's amended section 2-1401 petition pursuant to sections 2-619(a)(4) and (a)(9) of the Code (735 ILCS 5/2-619(a)(4), (a)(9) (West 2010)). Robert also moved for sanctions against Deborah under Illinois Supreme Court Rule 137 (Ill. S. Ct. R. 137 (eff. Feb. 1, 1994)). The trial court granted Robert's motion to dismiss and motion for sanctions, from which Deborah appeals. For the following reasons, we affirm in part, reverse in part, vacate in part, and remand this matter with directions to the trial court to conduct a hearing to determine whether to award attorney fees to Robert under section 508(a) of the Illinois Marriage and Dissolution of Marriage Act (Act) (750 ILCS 5/508(a) (West 2010))."

http://www.state.il.us/court/Opinions/AppellateCourt/2015/1stDistrict/1132832.pdf

Best Regards,

Jon D. McLaughlin

Bloomington Law Group LLC

Flanagan State Bank Building

2401 East Washington Street

Bloomington Illinois 61704

Skype: jmclaug2

facetime: jondwainmclaughlin@gmail.com

Blog: www.McLeanCountyDivorce.Blogspot.com

www.BloomingtonLawGroup.com

Jon@BloomingtonLawGroup.com

Office: (309) 319-6206

Cell:(309) 433-5034

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Bloomington Illinois Divorce Attorney -- Jon D. McLaughlin

I grew up in Provo, Utah, but moved to Oklahoma in order to finish my bachelor’s degree in philosophy and ancient greek at Oklahoma State University. I then attended law school at the University of Illinois. While in law school, I was an Associate Editor of a journal published by the university. Also during this time, I worked for law firms in Tulsa, Oklahoma, and Indianapolis, Indiana, and for the Honorable Joe McDade (a Federal Judge, sitting in Peoria).

While still in law school, the Illinois Supreme Court allowed me to practice law and represent clients under Rule 711. This allowed me to gain valuable experience, early on, that has served me well in my subsequent practice.

After law school, I moved to Bloomington, Illinois, and have been practicing law here since that time. While I have handled business transactions and litigation in the past, some involving more than $10,000,000, I now limit my practice to family law matters. I handle divorce, custody, child support, visitation, and other matters that require the court’s attention. I have had much success in getting my clients promising results because of my firm and aggressive approach.

I am a Guardian ad Litem, which means that the courts appoint me to investigate child custody, visitation, and other matters. These appointments have helped me become a better advocate for children and to toughen my position in fighting for my clients.

I am a Mediator, approved by the Eleventh Judicial Circuit of Illinois, to conduct court-ordered Custody Mediation for parties who are in the midst of custody and/or visitation disputes in the Bloomington-Normal area. In addition to being certified to mediate custody and visitation issues, I am also certified to mediate financial issues in divorce and family law cases in McLean County. These issues include Child Support, Maintenance (Alimony), the assets and debts of the parties, and other matters relating to the financial side of family law cases. I am also a member of the Mediation Council of Illinois. Due to my experience in the area, I am able to advise my clients as to how they can achieve the best results in mediation. In the Eleventh Circuit, mediation is mandatory in visitation and custody disputes. Therefore, it is important to be well-advised when participating in mediation and negotiating a possible resolution to your case.

The majority of my cases are tried in McLean County; however, I also practice in other surrounding counties.

Associations and Memberships: McLean County Bar Association (Treasurer, 2009-2010); ABC Counseling (Board of Directors, 2009-Present); Illinois State Bar Association.

Publications: Mandatory Arbitration Clauses in Employee Manuals, 44 Lab. & Emp. L. (Ill. Bar Assoc., Springfield, Illinois), December 2006; Extinguishing Pension Plans by Partial Termination & Aggregation, U. Ill. J. Bus. L. Soc’y (Feb. 1, 2007); What Relevance Does The ADA Have To HIPAA-Regulated “Bona Fide Wellness Programs”?, U. Ill. J. Bus. L. Soc’y (Feb. 10, 2007); Damages in Delayed Construction Claims, 36 Colo. Law. 17 (March 2007); Disciplining Attorneys and Other FSLA-Exempt Employees for Attendance Problems, Ill. Bar J. (Nov. 2007); Using Altman's Z-Score to Synchronize the Watches of Courts, Directors, Creditors, and Shareholders, 31 Hamline L. Rev (August 2008). Asked and Answered: Will I Lose my Stepchildren?, Ill. Bar J. (Jan. 2009).

Presentations: Surviving Divorce: Financial Implications, Money Smart Week (Illinois) (Bloomington, Illinois, April 8 and 9, 2008); Will Your Loved Ones Be Left Out, Financial and Legal Challenges Faced by the LGBT Community (Bloomington, Illinois, September 25 and 27, 2008).

I am married and have two energetic and beautiful daughters.