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.

The crisp mid-January air of 2025 carried with it the weight of endings and beginnings as Lisa Mistretta Sellen, a 66-year-old homemaker from Wilmette, Illinois, filed a petition for the dissolution of her marriage to John E. Sellen on January 14, 2025. The filing, submitted to the Circuit Court of Cook County, Illinois, marked the formal unraveling of a union that began on January 8, 2016, in Sausalito, California. Represented by the Law Offices of Leslie L. Veon, Lisa’s petition painted a picture of a marriage fractured by irreconcilable differences, with efforts at reconciliation deemed futile and impracticable. The couple, now living separate lives for over six months, sought to part ways under the terms of a premarital agreement signed before their vows.

The petition detailed the division of marital and non-marital property, as well as the allocation of debts, all governed by the premarital agreement. Lisa, who described herself as a homemaker, requested that the court award her share of the marital property and her non-marital assets, free from any claims by John, a 67-year-old self-employed resident of Sonoma, California. The absence of children simplified the proceedings, but the emotional gravity of the dissolution lingered. Lisa’s attorney, Leslie L. Veon, emphasized the validity and enforceability of the premarital agreement, ensuring that the terms would guide the court’s decisions on maintenance and property division.

As the petition made its way through the court, it stood as a testament to the quiet yet profound shifts that accompany the end of a shared journey. Filed at the dawn of a new year, it underscored the complexities of love, loss, and the legal mechanisms that formalize both.

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