The spouse who files for divorce in Illinois gets to choose the location – or the “venue” – of the divorce. This means that, by filing in a particular county’s circuit court, he or she decides where the divorce will take place. However, if your spouse has decided to file for divorce in a certain venue and you do not want the divorce to be handled there, you actually have the right to contest their choice of venue. 

When a couple knows the marriage is over, divorce is inevitable. However, before couples can divorce, Illinois law requires them to meet a legal standard that shows they have irreconcilable differences, that past attempts at fixing the marriage have failed, and that future attempts would fail as well.