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A Word About Therapy

 

Anyone who goes through the tremendous life upheaval of a divorce can benefit from (and quite possibly, needs) emotional and psychological counseling from professionals.  Plus, therapists can be a great resource, in addition to your friends, to help you process the many decisions and steps in a divorce.

 

You Wouldn’t Believe What He/She Did Now!

 

Your spouse may be mean or disgustingly sweet.  Regardless, how they behave and what they do is not a reflection of who you are or your worth.  That comes from a much Higher Source.  It’s difficult to remember this after you’ve spent so many years listening to their opinion.  That is why it is important to remind yourself every day of your own self-worth, separate and distinct from your spouse.

 

I Don’t Want a Divorce!

 

Anger, Depression and Resentment are normal in this situation.

 

However, times have changed since the days of, "I'll never give you a divorce."  Be assured, if your spouse wants a divorce, the court will give it to him/her.

 

So, you can make attorneys rich by making the process ugly, or you can try to be reasonably assertive in the settlement negotiations, work through the mourning process of the death of a love, and keep more of your money (and your sanity).

 

 

Children in Divorce

 

If you and your spouse have children, you obviously have many more reasons to be amicable.

 

Remember, your children are probably mad at both of you for getting a divorce (regardless of which one of you is at fault or initiated it).  They have no voice in the process, no lawyer – thus, they have a myriad of strong emotions.  Despite the unraveling of your major life foundation, your children need you to be calm and stable more than ever.

 

 

Amicable v. Ugly Divorces

 

No one wins in a divorce.  Even if you get more assets, alimony, and child support than you ever dreamed possible, it will usually cost you dearly to get that result – it will cost you money, time, emotion and perhaps your health.

 

On the other hand, amicable does NOT mean asking for nothing and giving your spouse everything.

 

Amicable means working out a reasonable solution that is best for everyone, given the situation, and lets both of you move on with your lives.

 

 

 

What Are My Rights in a Divorce?

 

You may have the right to equity in the house, alimony, child support, parenting time, joint custody, etc.  The outcome of a divorce trial is determined by how the judge applies the case law and statutes to your particular set of facts.

 

Given the time, expense and uncertainty of trial, as well as the Court’s general disregard of the issue of “fault” when making equitable distribution (in NJ and some other states) and support decisions, it is often not worth it to go to trial.

 

Rather, the settlement process is one of measuring the settlement proposals against the likelihood of obtaining your desired result at trial.