5 Mistakes People Make When Divorcing. Nobody wants to divorce, but these tips can help.
Chances are when you said, “I do,” you didn’t expect a divorce was in your future. Unfortunately, divorce plagues millions of American relationships. Once the divorce proceedings begin, the goal for most couples is to get through it as quickly and as painless as possible. We’re going to break down five mistakes people make when divorcing that you should avoid if you want the divorce to go smoothly. Learn more in our guide below.
Not Giving Professional Help a Try First
Far too many couples realize they have differences but neglect trying to fix them and rush into a divorce. Marriage is a beautiful thing and getting a divorce should be your last resort. Before divorcing, you and your partner should try working things out with a professional marriage counselor. Getting a divorce is costly and emotionally draining, and you should do everything you can to protect your marriage.
Not Getting an Attorney Involved Early Enough
If professional help didn’t work, some people file for divorce before getting a personal attorney involved. For whatever reason, there are individuals who believe divorce is merely signing some papers and moving on; they couldn’t be more wrong. You should involve an attorney as soon as you can to ensure you get what you deserve.
Hiring the Wrong Attorney
Similar to the previous point, some people get an attorney involved right away but it’s the wrong attorney. Obviously, divorce is a hurtful and emotional time and some individuals want to hire an antagonistic attorney in an attempt to “punish” their partner. The problem with combative attorneys is that they don’t usually settle and end up costing you a lot more money than necessary.
Trying To Hide Your Assets
Believe it or not, some individuals actively try to hide finances, investments, and other assets to keep their partners from getting any portion. While it’s understandable that people are hurt during a divorce and don’t want their partner to get anything that’s not theirs, it’s unrealistic. When you got married, both you and your spouse’s assets became one, and hiding assets is illegal and only going to get you in legal trouble.
Going Into the Divorce With a Winning in Mind
You’ve probably heard it before, but there’s no such thing as winning a divorce. You and your spouse will have to compromise somewhere. Of course, “winning” means something different to everyone, so you might get some of what you want and consider it a win. To prevent disappointment, you should let go of thinking you’re going to win and get everything you want, otherwise you’ll waste a lot of money trying to get it.
In addition to these five mistakes people make when divorcing, you should also make sure you’re aware of the typical divorce misconceptions. Again, avoiding the mistakes and understanding the fallacies will only make your life and the divorce easier.