In re Marriage of McLauchlan, 966 N.E.2d 1151

David C. McLauchlan and Patricia C. McLauchlan were married for over 30 years; dissolution judgment in 2001 awarded Patricia maintenance of $14,000 per month.
Marital settlement agreement authorized maintenance modification after six years only upon a material change in David’s gross income; it also waived each party’s interest in the other’s retirement plans for purposes of maintenance.
David’s income declined sharply beginning in 2006–2007; to meet maintenance he withdrew large sums from retirement accounts, which increased his reported gross income for tax purposes.
Patricia did not work during the marriage and later secured only a part-time job; she had substantial assets and limited earned income, affecting her ability to support herself.
Trial evidence showed David’s retirement withdrawals funded maintenance for several years and left him with substantial debts and dwindling assets.
The circuit court found a substantial change in circumstances and modified maintenance to 20% of David’s gross income from all sources, including retirement withdrawals, and held David in contempt for arrears.

Issue	Plaintiff's Argument	Defendant's Argument	Held
Whether maintenance should be terminated rather than modified	David: termination appropriate due to employment/financial changes.	Patricia: maintain modification rather than termination; adjust amount.	Modification, not termination; 20% of gross income affirmed with remand to recalculate arrears.
Whether retirement-withdrawals are income for maintenance purposes	David: withdrawals from retirement accounts should not be income.	Patricia: withdrawals are income under the agreement and case law.	Withdrawals cannot be treated as income for maintenance when parties waived retirement interests; remand for proper calculation excluding withdrawals.
Whether the property settlement waiver precludes counting retirement withdrawals as income	David: waiver does not bar considering withdrawals as income for maintenance.	Patricia: waiver bars considering withdrawals as income; any inclusion rewrites the property settlement.	Waiver controls; the court cannot modify the property settlement by counting retirement withdrawals as income absent fraud or coercion.

In re Marriage of Munford, 173 Ill. App. 3d 576 (1988) (waiver of retirement benefits does not automatically convert to income for maintenance)
Blum v. Koster, 235 Ill. 2d 21 (2009) (property settlement merged into judgment; deference to contract terms)
In re Marriage of Hoffman, 264 Ill. App. 3d 471 (1994) (merger of property settlement; interpretation of settlement terms)
In re Marriage of Klomps, 286 Ill. App. 3d 710 (1997) (net income for child support; broad view of income from sources)
In re Marriage of Lindman, 356 Ill. App. 3d 462 (2005) (child support context; includes retirement-derived income when applicable)
In re Marriage of Eberhardt, 387 Ill. App. 3d 226 (2008) (child support context supporting inclusion of retirement income; distinguishes maintenance)
In re Marriage of McGrath, 2011 IL App (1st) 102119 (2011) (maintenance context; interpretation of settlement terms for retirement interests)