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Lake Toback DiDomenico DiDomenico Attorneys Announces Victory in Comprehensive Illinois Family Law Case

Lake Toback DiDomenico DiDomenico Attorneys are happy to announce the firm’s victory in a recent family law matter, which made it up to the Illinois Second District Appellate Court.

RELEASED: May 28, 2014

CHICAGO—

Lake Toback DiDomenico DiDomenico Attorneys would like to congratulate Michael G. DiDomenico and Sean M. Hamann on an impressive win in  In re Marriage of Iqbal (2014 IL App (2d) 131306), a published opinion recently released by the Illinois Second District Appellate Court. Iqbal represents an important decision on a number of critical family law issues that were previously unsettled.

In Iqbal, the husband appealed the trial court’s determination that a postnuptial agreement entered into by the parties was unenforceable; that custody was wrongly decided; and that the division of assets and award of maintenance was inequitable. Lake Toback DiDomenico DiDomenico Attorneys represented the opposing wife in the matter.

Thanks to the well-reasoned arguments presented by DiDomenico and Hamann, the Second District held that the postnuptial agreement, which prohibited the wife from filing an “unreasonable” divorce or she would lose her rights to custody, maintenance and property, was against public policy. Specifically, the agreement defined custody rights without any consideration of the best interests of the children; improperly substituted the role of the courts for a third-party religious leader; and the unenforceable aspects of the agreement were not severable from the remainder of the agreement. The Court also found the agreement to be substantively unconscionable (something only found once previously in a reported decision) and impermissibly vague.

With respect to the remaining arguments, the Court agreed that the trial court did not abuse its discretion with regards to its denial of husband’s request to appoint a custody evaluator pursuant to Section 604.5. This is because the husband had forfeited the right to argue this point for the first time on appeal. Similarly, the Court held that the grant of sole custody to the wife was not against the manifest weight of the evidence, and neither the award of maintenance nor the property distribution was an abuse of discretion.

The ruling was a special victory for the professionals at Lake Toback DiDomenico DiDomenico Attorneys. According to partner and attorney Alan J. Toback, “While we take pride in all of our victories, this was particularly impressive, as it dealt with virtually every issue that could be raised on an appeal of a divorce.”

About Lake Toback DiDomenico DiDomenico Attorneys

With over 75 years of combined legal experience, Lake Toback DiDomenico DiDomenico Attorneys holds a reputation as one of the best family law firms in Illinois. The practice is known for representing high net worth individuals; however, the lawyers also advocate on behalf of individuals from all walks of life. The dynamic team of attorneys is committed to providing superior legal assistance to every client.

Lake Toback DiDomenico DiDomenico Attorneys is situated in the heart of Chicago’s Loop. If you are in need of reliable and trustworthy legal representation for your family law matter, contact our attorneys at Lake Toback DiDomenico DiDomenico, call 312-288-8985 or contact us by email.

Keywords: Divorce, family law, custody, support