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.

Late in the afternoon of August 22, 2025, a petition was filed in Cook County that marked the unraveling of a marriage that had endured for nearly nineteen years. At 4:59 p.m., the clerk of the Circuit Court stamped the documents that bore the name of Shmuel Worch, 41, who—through his attorneys at Kulek, Hakimi & Katz, LLC—sought to dissolve his union with his wife, 40-year-old Brittney Lee Worch.

The couple’s story began in Chicago on February 1, 2007, when their marriage was registered in Cook County. Over time, four children were born into the household, now aged sixteen, fifteen, eleven, and eight. Their upbringing remains central to this petition, as both parents recognize the need for an allocation of parenting time that serves the best interests of the children.

In his filing, Shmuel pointed to irreconcilable differences that, despite past efforts, have proved insurmountable. Attempts at reconciliation, the petition notes, have failed, leaving no viable path forward for the marriage. He asked the court to divide the couple’s marital property equitably, while allowing each to retain their respective non-marital assets, retirement accounts, and bank accounts.

The petition does not speak in bitterness so much as resignation—an acknowledgment that a long-shared life has reached its natural end. It asks the court not only for dissolution, but for balance: the fair division of property, the safeguarding of parental responsibilities, and the hope that the disentangling of two lives might proceed with as little harm as possible to those still growing in its shadow.

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