You Can Afford Divorce

Experts urge anyone who is in an abusive situation to not succumb to the temptation to stay, especially in bad economic times. Financial stress can make a bad relationship even worse

2013-04-22

PLYMOUTH, MA, April 22, 2013 (Press-News.org) It turns out that in lieu of divorce, many couples simply choose to live apart. The reason: They believe they cannot afford to divorce. A recent longitudinal study conducted at Ohio State University shows that couples who separate but don't divorce primarily do so for financial reasons. The role of religion, often thought to play a role in separations, turns out to be less important.

This explains why divorce filings go down during a recession, according to the American Academy of Matrimonial Lawyers. Moreover, in the current very slow economic recovery, many houses remain underwater, forcing couples to remain living together under the same roof.

Experts urge anyone who is in an abusive situation to not succumb to the temptation to stay, especially in bad economic times. Financial stress can make a bad relationship even worse, according to Nancy Molitor, an Illinois clinical psychologist and couples therapist. Do whatever you have to do to go somewhere else - stay with friends or relatives, barter in return for rent or offer to babysit.

However, if you and your spouse can safely live under the same roof, you need to plan everything out. Who will cook, and when? How will your financial lives be arranged? It's especially important to untangle your finances before you decide to separate (but not move) if you share a checkbook and other accounts. You need to lay down the ground rules - in detail.
What if you can't live with your soon-to-be ex and want to divorce, but don't think you can afford it? There are things you can do to minimize the effect of divorce on your pocketbook.

- Fill out the forms yourself rather than have your lawyer do it for you based on the records you provide.

- Do your own investigation before your spouse moves out. Look for bank books, go through the mail and look at the phone bill. Don't worry about feeling creepy; your spouse may be doing the same thing to you.

- Figure out the child support to be paid or received. Massachusetts has an online calculator that can help with this.

- Get your assets valued yourself. Get a Realtor to do a "comp" of the marital home and a business evaluator to estimate the current - and future - value of a company owned by either of you.

- Don't ask your lawyer for marital advice - get a therapist or counselor. These professionals are usually less expensive.

- Make your own copies of pertinent documents. It's almost always cheaper than relying on your lawyer's office.

- Use alternative dispute resolution techniques if you and your spouse are able to work together.

- Find an attorney who offers flat-fee divorce so that you know how much it will cost you before you start.

- Use a lawyer who offers a free initial consultation. Use that time to figure out how much it will cost you and whether he or she offers a flat-fee option.

- Determine whether your attorney offers payment plans. Many people cannot afford a large lump sum payment, but could if they can make multiple payments over months or even years.

The best way to avoid the grim picture of mounting legal expenses is to try to resolve as many issues as possible together. This will reduce your lawyer's billable hours and your overall expense. Although this is a challenge for many couples, it can be done. And often, the outcome is actually better than having a judge do it for you.

The Massachusetts Family Law Group
124 Long Pond Road
Plymouth, MA 02360
Phone: 203-776-0535
Web: www.thebostondivorcelawyer.com

[Attachments] See images for this press release:

ELSE PRESS RELEASES FROM THIS DATE:

Nicaragua Within the Top Apparel Suppliers to the US

2013-04-22

Nicaragua ranked among the 11th largest apparel supplying countries to the United States in terms of volume and the 12th largest in value in 2012, thus becoming an important player in the global textile and apparel industry, according to the U.S. Department of Commerce, Office of Textiles and Apparel (OTEXA). Nicaragua's Textile & Apparel industry is an important development engine for the national economy, as it accounted for nearly 59 percent of total free zones exports in 2012 with US$1,368 million and employed 69,000 people by the end of 2012. That same year, ...

Stopping a Bad Hair Day....A True Head Scratcher

2013-04-22

An impressive product line hit the market aimed at repelling head lice is now being bought for beneficial purposes with amazing results. From fostering hair growth to calming split ends, the Emu and Argan oils found in the Head Hunters Naturals Lemon Heads Repellant Shampoo and Conditioner have people flocking to buy their products. Parents initially began using Head Hunters Naturals Products to repel head lice, alleviate itching and repair the scalp. However, after noticing how shiny and healthy the hair on their children became, a surprising number of "moms" ...

Ice Age and Pompeii Exhibitions at the British Museum Draw Crowds to Bloomsbury This Summer

2013-04-22

Renowned for its literary associations, the Bloomsbury area boasts three first class cultural institutions - the British Museum, the British Library, and the Wellcome Collection - all of which are putting on a series of exhibitions, talks, tours and events which draw hundreds of thousands of visitors to the area this summer. A highlight of the cultural calendar in London 2013 is the British Museum's exhibition on Life and Death in Pompeii and Herculaneum. Items which have never left Italy before are included in this British Museum exhibition which continues until Sunday ...

2 days of staging as effective as 4 for high-altitude climbs

2013-04-21

BOSTON–Afghanistan's geography is dominated by a collection of craggy peaks, the highest—a mountain known as Noshaq—has been measured to 7,492 meters. Consequently, the soldiers on duty in this mountainous terrain must often ascend to great heights as part of their duty. However, quick climbs without adapting to altitude can lead to a condition called acute mountain sickness (AMS), marked by headache, fatigue, gastrointestinal distress, nausea, and insomnia. Conventional knowledge suggests that to avoid AMS, climbers need to "stage," or set up camp, at a lower altitude ...

Sniffing out solutions for millions of Americans with smell loss

2013-04-21

BOSTON — Snot. It's not something most of us spend a lot of time thinking about, but, for a team of researchers in Washington, D.C., it's front and center. Robert I. Henkin, founder of the Taste and Smell Clinic in is charmingly self-deprecating. He says with a chuckle that he's often called a "spit and snot doctor," but he knows all too well that for his patients – those who no longer can appreciate the fragrance of fresh-cut grass or the intricacies of an herb-infused sauce – such loss is no laughing matter. "You might think: 'Oh well, you can still hear. You can ...

New dietary analysis tool for athletes debuts

2013-04-21

Boston, MA— A new website application for athletes called Dietary Analysis Tool for Athletes (D.A.T.A.) has been validated as accurately recording dietary intake based on the 24-hour recall method. "This tool offers sports dietitians and health professionals a new, quick alternative to analyze athletes' dietary intake," said Lindsay Baker, PhD, Principal Scientist, Gatorade Sports Science Institute. To confirm the accuracy of the tool, Baker and colleagues compared D.A.T.A. with the USDA 5-step multiple-pass method. A total of 56 athletes ages 14-20 participated in the ...

More evidence berries have health-promoting properties

2013-04-21

Boston, MA—Adding more color to your diet in the form of berries is encouraged by many nutrition experts. The protective effect of berries against inflammation has been documented in many studies. Diets supplemented with blueberries and strawberries have also been shown to improve behavior and cognitive functions in stressed young rats. To evaluate the protective effects of berries on brain function, specifically the ability of the brain to clear toxic accumulation, researchers from the Human Nutrition Research Center on Aging at Tufts University and University of Maryland ...

A noninvasive avenue for Parkinson's disease gene therapy

2013-04-21

BOSTON — Researchers at Northeastern University in Boston have developed a gene therapy approach that may one day stop Parkinson's disease (PD) in it tracks, preventing disease progression and reversing its symptoms. The novelty of the approach lies in the nasal route of administration and nanoparticles containing a gene capable of rescuing dying neurons in the brain. Parkinson's is a devastating neurodegenerative disorder caused by the death of dopamine neurons in a key motor area of the brain, the substantia nigra (SN). Loss of these neurons leads to the characteristic ...

Development of novel therapies for endothelial damage may heal atherosclerotic plaques

2013-04-21

BOSTON — Heart disease and approximately half of all strokes are the results of advanced atherosclerosis with damaged endothelium, the inner lining of blood vessels. In 2009, the direct and indirect annual cost of heart disease and stroke was approximately $312.6 billion. Projections are for the total cost of heart disease to increase from $523 to $1.126 billion from 2013 to 2030. And by 2030, it is expected that there will be more than 148 million of the US population would have heart disease. Development of new technologies for assessing and treating endothelium damage ...

Intranasal neuropeptide Y may offer therapeutic potential for post-traumatic stress disorder

2013-04-21

BOSTON — Stress triggered neuropsychiatric disorders take an enormous personal, social and economic toll on society. In the US more than half of adults are exposed to at least one traumatic event throughout their lives. Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is a debilitating anxiety disorder associated with exposure to a traumatic event outside the range of normal human experience. PTSD typically follows a chronic, often lifelong, course. Patients have diminished quality of life, are more likely to manifest other psychiatric disorders such as depression and six times more ...

You Can Afford Divorce

ELSE PRESS RELEASES FROM THIS DATE:

LAST 30 PRESS RELEASES: