Divorce is a $50 Billion a Year U.S. Industry. $50 BILLION!

By Wes Stevenson

On January 10, 2014, “Divorce Corp” the movie was released and I got to watch it recently.

Divorce Corp . highlights how litigation works in too many cases. Who knows what the outcome is going to be when you end up in court? Unfortunately, it’s only in hindsight that you get a clear picture of what happened.

The long-held belief that divorcing people need each a lawyer to be “protected,” is seriously questioned. There is still the belief that divorcing couples will not get their fair share if they don’t have each a lawyer on the payroll, and this belief is promulgated by the entire traditional system.

At Kelowna Divorce Mediation Services, we often hear from prospective clients that they’d like to try divorce mediation, but they’re afraid that they won’t receive adequate protection. Our question in return is always, “ What do you wish to be protected from ?” Divorce Corp. raises this exact question. Judge Marjorie Steinberg says the average L.A. divorce costs in the neighborhood of $100,000. So, who and what are we trying to protect ?

Most divorcing couples are angry, fearful and riding an emotional roller coaster. They fear the unknown outcome and their emotions prevent them from making solid, wise decisions. So, when a divorce lawyer says, “Don’t worry, I’ll take care of it”, most believe their story. The lawyer’s intentions may be admirable, but divorce is still just a business, and lawyers still need to feed their families – even when their clients run out of money. And most do !

In the past month we have helped 2 couples negotiate the terms of their separation. In each case, the outcome was not 100% perfect for each side. However, each one of these four people ended up far better off than if they’d each paid lawyers’ fees and settled in front of a judge! After all, who wants someone to tell them how to live the rest of their lives ?

One cannot paint the entire legal profession with the same brush. There are bad apples in any profession, including lawyers, judges, and child evaluators. But why place your future, and your children’s futures, in front of people who don’t know you, nor your unique circumstances?

I encourage all divorcing/separating couples to try mediation before throwing their issues before a lawyer. Keep control of your process, and your outcome . Don’t become one of the 40% of individuals falling below the poverty line after divorce. Money spent getting mad, or getting even, is money wasted .