People have many fears in life. I know my biggest fear is death. According to Kevin McDonald, "Death is the final stage of life, something we all must face. But many people go through another kind of death well before the coffin. It's divorce."Divorce is death of a marital relationship. "Divorce is big business in the United States. According to maritalstatus.com, a Web site geared toward divorce and remarriage, divorce is a $28 billion-a-year industry with an average cost of about $20,000." When a divorce is final, most couples hire an attorney to make sure that assets, child support, alimony and other aspects are handled fairly. The legal fees are generally lower than a mediated or contested divorce. Here's a general rule of thumb: "The more complicated and emotional the div
orce, the more expensive it will be, according to several attorneys nationwide."Most lawyers charge an hourly rate, so expect to pay between $100 and $450 an hour, says Jan Warner of Columbia, S.C., a divorce attorney for 30 years. "Some lawyers may charge as little as $75 an hour, according to maritalstatus.com, with an up-front retainer of $500 to $10,000."
A retainer is the initial fee you pay the lawyer. The attorney's hourly rate is then deducted from the retainer. Once the money is gone, you pay additional money to keep the attorney on your case.
California divorce attorney Marilyn S. Slifman says many couples can't afford to hire a lawyer and are forced to look for other ways to settle matters. Some couples hire an attorney only for certain services. The choice is yours! "Separate the finances from the emotions. Think about the divorce as a business deal and what is best for you. Formulate goals and work toward them," says Wall.
Images are from flikr.
I saw that you and other people have commented on my blog about the swine flu. I found out over the weekend that 160,000 schools were closed nationwide this past week. I was watching on ABC world news. In my Human Sexual Behavior class we were talking about this topic of divorce and marriage. In my class we were discussion some reasons why people get divorced in the first place on a psychological level. In my book Our Sexuality it talks about how when couples who first live together for 5 years and then decide to get married are more likely to get a divorce than couples who do not live together at all and then get married. The reason for this is because the couples have lack of communication, personality clashes, and are just growing apart.
ReplyDeleteI completely agree with you. Just wish that was the case for my parents. I mean they did have their differences, but it went above and beyond what it should have been. See you in class!
ReplyDelete