Conflict in a Divorce

Chris Hobson Family Law

When it’s needed, and when it just gets in the way.

A certain level of conflict in a divorce is expected; issues, stresses and feelings that originally caused the divorce tend to spill over into the divorce process. However, it’s important to understand that regardless of your feelings for your spouse, Georgia’s family law courts encourage cooperation. Not only do they encourage it, but in cases involving shared custody of minor children they more or less demand it. Refusing to work towards an amicable solution with your ex-spouse creates unnecessary expense, takes up valuable time, and complicates the entire divorce process.

Best Interest of the Children

While you and your spouse have decided to no longer be in a marital relationship, to protect the well-being of your children, you are going to need to maintain some functional level of communication and mutual consideration. The family law courts in Georgia (as throughout the US) use the “best interest of the children” standard to guide most of their decisions. While we certainly want to make sure that your financial interests are protected, we also want to avoid conflict when we can to ensure that the entire divorce process is as smooth, short, and cost-effective as possible.

When Conflict IS Needed

It’s important to remember that there is a cost to conflict. Some of the costs are very tangible, like lawyers fees driven up as a result of extra hours spent arguing on your behalf. Other costs can be much more subtle, like the emotional toll of a long and messy divorce on you, your spouse, and most importantly, your children. That said, there are times when conflict is needed. “Conflict” really doesn’t need to mean arguing or fighting. More often than not, it’s simply not accepting or agreeing to the terms presented, and giving a good reason why not.

There are a lot of marriages where one spouse is VERY in tuned to the financial situation, and the other is not. In some of these cases, the spouse with less familiarity with the finances can end up settling for far less than they are entitled too. This can be done by simply understating or not disclosing income or savings, or by not including retirement assets like IRAs and 401(k) accounts. In these cases, we will aggressively pursue your interests and ensure that all assets, real estate and financial statements are disclosed, inventoried and distributed properly.

Call Us For a Consultation

If you are facing a divorce and are worried about conflict, take advantage of a consultation with an experienced family law attorney today. While you hear a lot about conflict in a divorce, our aim as your lawyer is to keep you protected from it as much as possible and focus on getting the best possible outcome for you and your family.