Disclaimer: All facts gleaned from the filings stated hereafter are only as truthful as the petitioner. The tone of this article expresses a style of writing historically employed by America’s greatest writers and, as such, is for opinion purposes only. No intentional harm is due. Do not read if the topic of divorce (even your own) causes you emotional distress. Continue at your own risk.
On a Tuesday in late May, with the wind coming off Lake Michigan unseasonably warm, Alison M. Von Tobel placed the final punctuation on a chapter she no longer wished to write. On May 21, 2025, she filed for dissolution of marriage in the Circuit Court of Cook County, seeking to end her union with Jacob Von Tobel—a marriage that began beneath the hopeful hum of August light in 2018 and, over time, gave way to irreconcilable differences that neither discussion nor distance could mend.
The petition, filed through her counsel Denise Erlich of Erlich Law Office, LLC, does not dwell in bitterness. Instead, it reads like the careful ledger of two people who once built a life together and now choose to dismantle it without rancor. Both Alison, 34, and Jacob, 33, are self-supporting professionals rooted in Chicago. They have no children, no ongoing custody entanglements, and no illusions about repair. What remains is the division of shared assets, the settling of debts, and the quiet affirmation of independence.
They have lived separately, in every way that matters, for more than six months. They are in agreement on finances. They are moving forward without pursuit of maintenance or support from each other. The end will come not with drama, but with signatures—an uncontested prove-up to mark the end of their shared narrative.
There are stories that burn out, and others that simply run out of page. For Alison and Jacob, the ink has dried, and the binding is being gently undone.
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