I was in law school when the divorce law changed in California. In this county we went from San Diego Divorce fault evidence required, to Divorce No-Fault. For those who have not lived in a fault state, California divorce at one time required that the Petitioner filing for the divorce provide sufficient evidence to the divorce court proving that he/she is entitled to a divorce pursuant to the grounds for divorce as specified in the divorce law. For example, this might require proof of adultery, or abandonment, or some type of cruelty claim. San Diego Certified Family Law Specialist attorneys must regularly review changes in the law as the legal system quickly evolves.
New York State is now debating whether to change from a fault state to a no-fault state. There have been some informative articles in the New York Times as to this debate. In a recent article opposing points of view are described which accurately capture the pros and cons of the issue. Here is a summary of some of the points:
Children: A woman described her opposition to no-fault as it adversely affected children. However her argument was that it really was a disadvantage to stay at home moms who were raising children. She stated that child support and spousal support does not support the marital standard of living. The divorce would adversely affect them economically and I have witnessed this in La Jolla divorce cases.
Too Easy: Another woman expressed her fear that no-fault opened the door to adultery and children born out of wedlock and that appeared to be a step backwards morally.
Too Hard: A Catholic woman described how her Husband committed adultery however she was unable to prove the affair. The Husband could not file and she lack proof. Her Husband would have filed if he could have and her religion opposed her filing for the divorce.
Too Hard: A man described how his divorce in New York took years and he wanted a system that provided for a quick and easy divorce.
The interesting conclusion after considering all of these stories and these opinions is that all of the points of view are correct. All of the opinions are valid as they have been established by the painful experiences of the person involved. However, there is no one divorce system that fits all. Divorce is a painful process under the best of circumstances. There’s much to be said as to resolving problems and parting from a person who is poison in your life. The children are the victims although they appear to be resilient. Yet, the damage to the children often shows up later in their lives.
The San Diego child custody lawyers of the Law Office of Thomas M. Huguenor handle simple and complex family law matters.
