Reviewed by Joshua P. Haid, Managing Partner
Chicago Property Division Lawyers for Women
When a marriage ends, one fear surfaces fast: will I be left with nothing? You may wonder whether you will keep your home, whether your retirement is safe, or whether your spouse will quietly move money out of reach before anything is divided. Those worries are real — but the law is not designed to leave you with nothing, and the right attorney makes sure it does not.
Illinois divides property by equitable distribution under 750 ILCS 5/503. That means marital property is divided fairly — which is not the same as equally, and not the 50/50 split many people assume. Illinois is not a community property state. The court divides only marital property, generally what was acquired during the marriage, while non-marital property — what you brought into the marriage, inherited, or received as a gift — remains yours. What counts as marital, what it is truly worth, and what is fair are the questions that decide your financial future.
The Women’s Divorce & Family Law Group by Haid and Teich LLP has protected women’s financial futures in Chicago divorces for more than 15 years — the first firm in the area built around women’s and mothers’ rights, recognized as Super Lawyers from 2016 through 2025 and featured in O, The Oprah Magazine and ELLE. Managing partner Joshua P. Haid built his career on business litigation, which is exactly what it takes when a spouse tries to hide, undervalue, or move assets before they are divided. Your fair share should reflect the full, true picture — and we make sure it does.
Protect your home, your savings, and your fair share. Talk with a Chicago property division lawyer who represents women — free, confidential consultation, call 312-445-8830.
What is really at stake: your home, your savings, your security
Property division is not just paperwork — it is the financial foundation of your life after divorce. It is your home, your retirement, the savings you counted on. For a woman, the fears are specific and valid: losing the house your children have grown up in, walking away with far less retirement than you earned, or discovering too late that your spouse understated income or hid accounts. If your spouse controlled the finances, you may not even know the full picture of what you own. What is at stake is your security for years to come — which is why the classification of what is marital, the honest valuation of every asset, and the discovery of anything hidden matter so much. Our work is to make sure the division is built on the truth and that your share is genuinely fair.
How is property divided in an Illinois divorce?
Illinois uses equitable distribution (750 ILCS 5/503), meaning the court divides marital property fairly rather than automatically in half — Illinois is not a community property state. First, the court classifies each asset as marital or non-marital: marital property is generally what was acquired during the marriage, regardless of whose name is on it, while non-marital property includes what you owned before the marriage, inheritances, and gifts. Then it divides the marital estate by weighing factors such as each spouse’s contributions to the marriage, including as a homemaker, the length of the marriage, and each person’s economic circumstances. Because the standard is fairness, how your contributions and needs are presented has a direct effect on what you receive.
Who gets the house in a divorce in Illinois?
It depends on the full financial picture, and there is no automatic answer. The marital home is one of the assets divided under equitable distribution. In practice, there are usually three paths: one spouse keeps the home by buying out the other’s share, one spouse keeps it by offsetting its value with other assets like retirement accounts, or the home is sold and the proceeds divided. When children are involved, keeping them in the family home is often a priority the court will weigh, which can support a mother’s request to remain there. Which path is right depends on your finances and your goals — and it is worth planning carefully rather than fighting for a house you cannot comfortably keep.
How we protect your fair share
From the first meeting, our focus is your financial security — a division built on the truth, not on your spouse’s version of it. We identify and classify every asset, so that what is rightfully yours stays yours and the marital estate is fully accounted for. Where a spouse is self-employed, controls a business, or may be concealing assets, we use financial discovery, subpoenas, and forensic accountants to find and value what is really there — and where marital money was wasted on an affair or spent as the marriage broke down, we pursue it as dissipation under 750 ILCS 5/503(d)(2). For divorces involving significant or hard-to-value assets — business interests, stock options, deferred compensation — see our work on complex property division. Whatever your situation, our job is to make sure you walk away with the fair share you are entitled to.
Related: Chicago Divorce · Complex Property Division · Retirement & Investment Accounts · Spousal Support
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