April 16, 2017
“The World of Divorce Law”
To Readers of My Blog,
Last month RJ Media Group published my first monthly column in its Cheshire Citizen newspaper. Reprinted below, with some minor editorial changes, is the column.
Enjoy!
Lisa
The World of Divorce Law
By Lisa J. Cappalli, Esq.
I’ve practiced divorce and family law for over 30 years. I’ve seen a lot. But there are things that still make me shake my head in wonder. Here is one of them.
I was representing the wife, Jane, who was divorcing her husband, Jim. The names are changed for obvious reasons. As sometimes happens, either or both spouses begin new relationships before the divorce is started. That is what happened here. As the case proceeded, it came out that Jane had a romantic relationship with Steve and Jim had a romantic relationship with Sandra. So what, you say. Well, it seems that Jane and Sandra were sisters and Jim and Steve were brothers. In addition then to the usual complexities, each sibling swapped his or her spouse with the other sibling. I can only imagine what family Thanksgiving dinners were like – both before and after the facts came out. And what about the children? It’s always difficult to explain to the children that Mom and Dad are getting divorced. But how do you explain to your daughter, that her sister is now also her step-sister and, I guess, her cousin? As Mark Twain observed: “It’s no wonder that truth is stranger than fiction. Fiction has to make sense.”
The unusual aside, divorce is very serious and has profound effects not only on the divorcing couple but also, as demonstrated by the case I described, on their family and friends. Practicing divorce law gives me the chance to be, at the same time, my client’s ally, advocate and advisor to help them through a crucial life-altering time of life. The objective is for my client to move forward in life with the most positive experience possible.
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