STUPID DIVORCE TRICKS
I haven't done divorce work in 20 years and I surely can't top Daddy blowing up the rental building so Mommy won't get it (New York) but this incident caused me to reflect on all the self-destructive things I saw in the divorce field.
Here's the stupidest one I know: Several Million dollar estate. Young, smart, attractive people, no kids, relatively short term marriage. Most of the wealth is in multiple parcels of real estate. Huge Tax impact of liquidating devastating. Obvious solution, "One for you, one for me, one for you, on for me..." Had probably three million dollars worth of real and personal property amicably split up and the deal broke up over a lawn mower (worth no more than fifty bucks) and a cheapy shotgun (no antique, no family heirloom worth maybe, on it's best day 75 bucks). Five days of negotiation down the chute. Case was tried. Judge ordered the empire liquidated. Both of them fought with the IRS for the next six years over the taxes. Hell, they spent more time together at accountants offices and the IRS than they did at home when they were married. Fortunately for me, I was not the attorney for either one of them in the divorce but they were both my friends and it was like watching a train wreck in slow motion.
99% of the time, divorce makes smart people stupid.
posted by UMRBlog @ 07:55
6 comments
6 Comments:
Was the result so much a consequence of stupid or stubborn parties or an unqualified judge who didn't realize what impact his decision would have on the parties? In your story the judge appeared to make the IRS a party to the distribution of the marital property. Couldn't the judge have made a "one for him, one for her" type ruling?
Because of the lending structure on these properties, as I understood it (Keeping in mind I was just an observer), the only way this stuff could practically be pieced out was by consent. The lendors were not before the judge so he couldn't make them do what was best for the parties.
I guess he could have but it would have been futile.
TYFCB
Divorce turns into a power struggle. You took (insert number of years) years of my life, I'm taking everything you have including the POS lawnmower. When I got divorced, I just wanted my child and the car so I could provide for him. That's what I got and all I got. Didn't care about the rest, I was FREE again from the horrible relationship. But I've seen what you are talking about, it does make people seem "stupid".
You make an important implicit point: In any litigation, goal-setting is important. You decided where you wanted to get and got there.
Some people are so emotional and fearful, they don't set litigation outcome goals. They wander aimlessly through the process and other people end up roadmapping the rest of their lives.
Sorry for your horrible relationship.
TYFCB
Oh sure, "(s)ome people are so emotional and fearful, they don't set litigation outcome goals", but some people are so unemotional and clueless that they don't call a lawyer to arrange for a divorce until the day before the wedding.
I used to work for an attorney, who did divorces (still does), but only uncontested divorces. Late on a summer Thursday afternoon I got a call from a guy who wanted to know if he could get a divorce. I said sure, as along as it was uncontested. He said yeah, but it needed to be done by the next day because he was getting married on Saturday. This was in Rock Island County, where you couldn't magically appear the next day and get divorced.
Needless to say, it was no surprise when we saw in the local paper that the Smith-Jones wedding had been postponed.
All's well that ends well (the guy did get his divorce, eventually), but this dude was always my benchmark for what passes for legal savvy in the general public!
Yea they didnt have kids, so whatever but if you have kids you need to go to a therapy first! and theres a new law coming in 2010 forcing couples with kids to take marriage/family counseling before they seperate or divorce, thats pretty smart!!
Post a Comment
<< Home