DIVORCE HEADQUARTERS NEWSLETTER       Issue #26           August 2002 Know someone else going through the process? If you think they could benefit from this newsletter feel free to pass it on in it's entirety to them. "The art of being wise is the art of knowing what to overlook"     -William James Don't forget to mention DivorceHQ.com when contacting the divorce professionals listed on the site. In this Issue: Back to School Spending Divorce, Family Law and the Legal Process -     by Ted Harvatin, Esquire Divorce Humor 1.Back to School Spending According to a survey by the NRF, overall, consumers with school age children said they will spend an average of $442 per household on back-to-school shopping in 2002, relatively unchanged from last year's average of $457 per household. However, it appears that low-income households (earning $25,000 or less per year) will use a greater portion of their income on back-to-school shopping. Here are some shopping tips to keep you from breaking the bank: Stick to the basic colors. Mix and match colors to make your child's wardrobe go farther. This is really easy to do with younger children. Buy primary colors for the boys, with black and blue jeans and shorts to go with everything. Olive green and khaki are also boy favorites, and fairly neutral. Work out a budget and stick to it. If you have older kids make them aware of the budget they have to work with. You may be suprised at how they can work within a budget when they know you mean it. If they manage their own clothing budget, they may have a better understanding of why you are always saying, "that's too expensive." Let them know that whatever they buy has to last them an entire school year, and that they are stuck with their choices. This may make them think twice before buying that "must have" item. If they decide to get it and are stuck wearing it for the whole school year, you can bet they will have learned a lesson. Make them pay for extravagant things that they just "have to have." You may have to clothe them till they're 18, but that doesn't mean you have to pay for the $100 pair of shoes or the Starter jacket that your child wants because everyone else has them. If they are pld enough they can get a part time job and spend their own money on these things. Perhaps they will think long and hard about buying the shoes if they realize how much effort goes into affording them. These are life lessons. Your teen still may decide to go ahead and buy the expensive item, but at least they earned it on their own. By planning ahead and working with your children, everyone can be happy with their wardrobes without spending a ton of money. The following is an excerpt from an article submitted by one of our professional members. For full text of all articles visit http://Divorcehq.com/articles.html 2. Divorce, Family Law and the Legal Process -         Ted Harvatin, Esquire Exploring settlement: Part of a lawyer's job obviously is to know the law, but only with experience can a lawyer understand the legal process. While individual cases may vary, there are some general concepts that we think you might find helpful to understanding what happens in a typical case. Parties have the opportunity to avoid, or at least minimize, the unpleasantness, stress and expenses associated with drawn out litigation. This can be accomplished through early negotiations between the parties and/or their attorneys. Skilled attorneys recognize that clients rarely benefit from jumping into court without first attempting to determine if there is some middle ground that will satisfy both sides. We also inform clients of the risks and benefits of trial versus settlement. Clients can consequently reach decisions on an informed basis. If settlement fails: Sometimes differences cannot be settled without resorting to the courts. A lawsuit starts by one side (the plaintiff) filing papers (known as a complaint or a petition) at the circuit clerk's office. The circuit clerk is responsible for maintaining all the papers that will eventually be presented to the judge. The plaintiff or someone representing the plaintiff is responsible for serving a copy of those papers on the party against whom the plaintiff is bringing the case (the defendant or respondent). In a few instances, these papers can be served by certified mail, but most typically service is accomplished through a private process server or a member of the county sheriff's staff. After being served: The defendant has a certain amount of time, usually 30 days, but sometimes slightly more or less, to file a written response to the complaint. Both the complaint and the response (or answer) are general in content. They are simply intended to provide the court and the parties with a very broad outline of the issues. Discovery: After the complaint and answer are on file, each side is entitled to engage in pre-trial fact-finding (known as discovery) to determine the strengths and weaknesses of the other side's case and to review any relevant documents that might be in the other side's possession or in the possession of third parties. Very rarely do trials operate with surprise witnesses or witness stand confessions or some of the other dramatics that one might observe from watching television or movies. By the time discovery has been completed, each side should have a good understanding of the other side's evidence. There are two general types of discovery, written and spoken. One form of written discovery is done through the use of interrogatories, which are written questions each side submits to the other for response. Written discovery also includes requests directed to the other side to produce specified documents. Oral (non-written) discovery is accomplished by way of depositions. The party who is to be deposed (questioned) is put under oath and the questions posed and the answers given are recorded by a stenographer and later typed up. This process occurs outside the courtroom with the stenographer, the attorneys and the people involved in the lawsuit being the only ones present. Before the case is ready for trial, there are other steps in which the attorneys may engage from time to time such as filing motions asking the judge for some sort of relief. In most instances, only the attorneys attend motion hearings. Whenever a lawyer wishes to present a motion (request) to the judge, other than during the actual trial, the attorney must contact the judge to obtain a hearing date. A reasonable time before the hearing, the attorney is required to provide the opposing attorney with written notice of the date and time that the attorney intends to present the matter to the judge. It is improper for an attorney to contact a judge and ask for relief without giving the other side advanced notice and an opportunity to present a response. Since court hearings should be coordinated with the schedules of all the attorneys as well as the judge, there is often a delay before a matter can be presented to the judge. ABOUT THE AUTHOR Theodore J. Harvatin is an established attorney in Springfield, Illinois. A graduate of the University of Illinois College of Law, Mr. Harvatin was admitted to the Illinois Bar in 1981. Mr. Harvatin is available to serve clients throughout central Illinois. 3. HUMOR A man tells his wife of 15 years that it feels like they've only been married for 5 minutes. The wife says thats so sweet and he says yeah, 5 minutes under water.        --- Mark