Welcome back and thanks for coming back to continue this discussion about going to court for your divorce. As we explained in the previous article, not only is court NOT required for your divorce, but most couples actually choose to settle out of court. There are many reasons for why this could be a better choice, and each divorce’s decisions will need to be made with that unique situation in mind, but there are some definite ‘pros’ to avoiding divorce court.

Dividing assets is best done by the people who love those items

Aside from child custody, another difficult issue is asset division. Why? Because dividing up the things you’re attached to can be very challenging. For most people, there are emotional ties to many of the objects they own, and giving things up can be difficult. If your divorce ends up in court, a judge will try their very best to divide your marital assets in a way that is fair. However, they obviously don’t know your family’s history, and they have no sentimental investment in the items being divvied up. So doing it yourself often makes more sense.

Sometimes something means more to one person than another, even though it’s financial value may not reflect that. This means that a division made by a Michigan court might not take into account personal preferences. Do you see where we’re headed? Yes, that’s right – leave asset division to the court and you may lose out on some very precious and sentimentally important items. we almost always recommend that the attorneys and parties work through their issues without need for the family court judge.

Settlements can sometime be much quicker than court hearings.

When you and your spouse can’t come to an agreement, and you have to rely on the court to step in, you’re at the mercy of their schedule. Court’s are very busy and you may have to wait a long time between hearings. In many cases, divorces that go to court drag out for months. In some situations, where the conflict is serious, the divorce can take years to be finalized!

Because court drags the divorce out over many months, sometimes even longer than a year, the effect it has on your children is to drag out a painful process even more. As a result, the healing process can be stilted. Also, because divorce court pits you against your spouse, creates an adversarial dynamic between you two, your children tend to suffer as a result. Choosing divorce court may result in a longer, more conflicted divorce, which can have negative effects on all of you. Settling might be faster and far less conflicted.

Having a good attorney can make all the difference to the process!

We understand the appeal of letting a family law judge make hard decisions. However, the truth is, while the judge might make them, it’s you that has to live with them. Wouldn’t you rather have more of a say in the outcome of your divorce? If so, we suggest you consider settling and not going to divorce court.

Either way, whatever your choice, we’re here to help you make the best of a difficult situation. If you’re considering divorce in Michigan, and are curious about your options, contact us at 866 766 5245. The skilled family law attorneys at The Kronzek Firm have decades of experience helping families navigate the complexities of divorce. We can help you too. If this feels like a crisis, please remember that we have attorneys available 24/7 for emergencies.