San Diego Divorce Attorney Blog

Recently I had lunch with a client who is a very successful businessman who develops innovative businesses, starts them up, then sells them for a very nice profit. We talked about divorces where the Husband and the Wife battle each other to the point that their marital estate is devastated. We discussed why do people allow emotional decisions to cause economic destruction.

As a San Diego Certified Family Law Specialist attorney I've seen divorces where will quickly compromise and settle, or, in the alternative, act out of emotion and hurt themselves regarding their property and children. Typically I hear that the family law lawyers are to blame; however this is not always, or even mostly, the case.

Two news stories come to mind. One involved a very bitter, angry and devastating divorce as reported in detail by journalist Lisa Kroll for Forbes. She summarizes the story of Mr. Blixseth, who was worth 1.3 billion in 2007 then became engaged in a 2008 divorce that became a battle royal over money and businesses. This battle set off a chain reaction of bankruptcy, investigations and other problems which all had their Genesis with the divorce. Then there was another story of Eva Longoria's divorce (which was covered by this Blog), which was wrapped up in a timely fashion with little, if any, economic damage. Ms. Longoria (Desperate Housewives) filed for a divorce and claimed that her professional basketball Husband was having an affair.

Continue reading "Reports of Two Divorces" »

The San Diego Union Tribune reports that a well known couple, married for more than 20 years, has filed for divorce. The couple is rock singer Nancy Wilson and director Cameron Crowe. The purpose of this blog will be to discuss the actual Petition for Dissolution of Marriage filed by Nancy on September 16, 2010, and the raised issue of filing for a divorce in a cooperative way leading to mutual resolution rather than resolving the case in court on a contested basis.

As a San Diego Certified Family Law Specialist attorney for more than 30 years, I have resolved cases out of court (for example, through mediation) and through the contested process involving trial. I have recently posted blogs on mediation and vigorously contested divorces (for example, here) and there is no question that resolving a case on an uncontested basis is the best way to go for most divorcing couples. However, here is the math for California divorce: It takes two to marry (so far in the State of California), one to dissolve the marriage, and two to dissolve the marriage in an uncontested fashion.

The Petition in this case indicates that Nancy has hired an attorney who does not engage in divorce litigation. Specifically, the attorney describes himself as a "collaborative law" attorney. "Collaborative law" definitions are somewhat in dispute however the phrase is generally defined as an attorney who will resolve the case on an uncontested basis and involve other professionals, as needed, such as CPAs or psychologists, to address the issues in the specific case. Most of the cases in my office are resolved by mutual agreement. It is our belief that resolving a case with a Marital Settlement Agreement is preferable for our clients; however, there are also situations when it is in the client's best legal interest to litigate.

While the Petition was filed just recently, the Petition states that the date of separation was on 6/15/2008. The date of separation is a significant event in Family Law as it signifies a change as to the characterization of money and property (for example, money earned after the date of separation is generally the separate property of the earning spouse). The Petition lists two children. (This blog does not discuss the names and ages of children involved in divorce cases.) Later in the Petition, Nancy requests "joint" legal and physical custody of the children. This means that the parties intend to "co-parent" the children. It does not necessarily mean a 50/50 sharing of custody.

Continue reading "San Diego Divorce Report of Celebrity Filing" »