The old joke is that divorces are expensive because they are worth it. Nevertheless, some people insist on making their case as absolutely expensive as possible. Here are five ways to drastically increase the costs of your divorce.
Overcommit
financially – Often people under stress deal with that stress with a little
“retail therapy.” They continue spending
as though nothing has changed, or worse, they spend even more than during the
marriage. They shower the children with
new gifts trying to buy their affection or they overcommit to the lease or
purchase of a new home. While it is
perfectly reasonable to want nice things and provide a lovely home for your
family, you have to keep in mind your current (and future) financial situation.
Involve your lawyer
in every decision – You should definitely consult your lawyer when
necessary about your case, but I have had clients who asked me to give them
advice on dating. Definitely not money
well spent. I heard the story in USA
Today about a woman who would call her lawyer every day to ask him to speak
with her parrot thinking that her husband would eventually have to pay the huge
legal fees. She was wrong and had to pay
her own $70,000 legal bill
Demand an absolute
even split down to the penny - Marital finances never work out that way
neither do divorce finances. Keep in
mind the statute requires a “just” division of property not an equal one. When you are fighting over the value of a TV
or a sofa, keep in mind that the amount spent in lawyer fees will likely not make
the difference in values worth fighting over.
Insist on fighting
over everything - Not saying that you have to roll over by any stretch of
the imagination, but I mediated a case one time where two seemingly intelligent
people were arguing over everything right down to the Post-it notes in
the house. Some things simply are not
worth it especially when you compare what you gain to what you will pay in time
and litigation costs.
Do something stupid
that results in criminal charges - In divorce cases, there is a lot of
stress and conflict. I have seen
otherwise normally reasonable people flip out and do things that they would
never otherwise think of doing. Before
they know it, they have criminal charges against them for things like criminal
mischief (property damage), animal cruelty, stalking, driving under the
influence, and assault/domestic violence.
Then they are not only having to pay legal fees to defend those charges,
but, most likely, fines and court costs as well.
These are just a few ways you can make your divorce more expensive. The two key words of advice that will help control your costs more than anything else? "Be reasonable."
Labels: attorney, attorney-client relationship, communication, conflict, divorce costs, fees
