Here's what nobody tells you: A "fair" settlement can still leave you struggling.
50/50 sounds equal. But if you take the house and your spouse takes the 401(k), only one of you has retirement income. A pension isn't cash. Tax treatment turns "half" into 40% or 60% depending on which half you take.
Your lawyer knows the law. They don't know what you'll live on for the next 30 years.
Most people sign their settlement while still in emotional shock. The brain is in survival mode — the prefrontal cortex that makes rational decisions is literally offline. By the time the fog lifts, the settlement is final.
You need someone whose only job is protecting your financial future — not billable hours, not legal posturing. Someone who can show you exactly what different settlement scenarios mean for your life 5, 10, 25 years from now.
When you can't trust anyone else in this process, you can trust me.
If you're over 50 and facing divorce in Illinois, you're in a state with extreme Chicago-area wealth concentration. Your divorce likely isn't about custody battles—your children are grown and independent. Instead, your divorce centers on dividing Chicago North Shore estates, CME/CBOE trading fortunes, corporate pensions, and substantial retirement accounts under Illinois's equitable distribution with maintenance guidelines.
What makes Illinois unique: IL features Chicago North Shore (Winnetka, Kenilworth, Lake Forest) among America's wealthiest suburbs, CME/CBOE trading wealth, major corporate headquarters (Boeing, McDonald's, Abbott, others), 2015 maintenance reform with durational guidelines, and DuPage County professional affluence.
Illinois combines Chicago finance industry wealth with North Shore luxury estates—unique gray divorce financial planning.
For gray divorce: Trading wealth and corporate pensions create complex division scenarios requiring expert planning.
Illinois uses equitable distribution—property divided "fairly" based on multiple factors (NOT automatic 50/50):
Marital property (subject to division):
Separate property (not divided):
Illinois adopted maintenance guidelines in 2015:
Chicago concentrates finance industry:
Trading bonuses and carried interest earned during marriage are marital property.
North Shore suburbs feature extreme luxury:
Chicago area concentrates major corporations:
Winnetka, Kenilworth, Lake Forest ultra-wealth, $1M-$10M+ estates, CME/CBOE traders, old-money Chicago.
Learn more →Oak Brook, Naperville, Hinsdale professional affluence, corporate headquarters, $500K-$2M+ homes.
Learn more →Frank Lloyd Wright architecture, diverse professionals, urban sophistication, $400K-$1M+ homes.
Learn more →In a divorce, dividing assets is only step one. This helps you understand how those assets will actually support your life.
Calculate your real post-divorce income — including spousal support, assets, and earning potential — so you negotiate from facts, not fear.
Document gathering checklists tell you exactly what to bring to your attorney — so you walk in prepared, not panicked.
Map out your real expenses as a single person — before you fight for something you can't actually maintain.
The asset identification system helps you find accounts and property you might not even know exist.
22-page guide + video tutorials + checklists + templates
$97
Instant access. 100% money-back guarantee.
Slow This Down Before It's Final — $97Illinois's combination of Chicago finance wealth, North Shore estates, and corporate headquarters requires expert planning for 50+ divorces.
Before You Agree to Anything — $97Slow This Down →