January weather is nasty – divorce doesn’t need to be

January is the time of year when people vow to eat healthier, exercise more, and stop to take stock of their lives. Sadly, January also has a reputation as the time of year when many couples seek a divorce. In a recent interview with CTV news, Marion Korn, a Toronto lawyer, explained that there is more than one reason why January has a higher than normal divorce rate.

Korn says that many couples want to hold off starting the process of a divorce until after the holidays and find that the extra time they spend out of their normal routine firms up their resolve to seek a separation. Financial pressures when holiday bills start flooding in can also add to existing stress on a marriage.

One of Korn’s comments that seemed particularly insightful was that divorce is a process and not an event. Even though many couples decide to separate in January, it isn’t the kind of decision that happens overnight, which is why Korn encourages couples entering the year with thoughts of divorce to resist rushing off into court.

In fact, she promotes out-of-court options like mediation or collaborative practice. Obviously, we also recommend collaborative law and agree that while a couple might have reached a breaking point, and litigation is one way to end a marriage, couples need to be thinking about the larger picture and about how their divorce process will affect their family’s ability to cooperate as they move forward.

In her interview with CTV News, Marion Korn offers four pieces of wisdom to couples thinking about divorce in 2014. Each one of these points reinforces the idea that your legal method will significantly impact your family’s future.

1. Divorce is sad. It doesn’t have to be bad.
2. Individuals don’t divorce. Couples do.
3. Divorce is about the future, not the past.
4. Stay focused on making certain everyone will be okay.

Every couple has the ability to choose their own divorce. As collaborative professionals, we truly believe that approaching separation with hope for a functional and cooperative future will produce better results for your family. Please visit What is Collaborative Practice? to learn more about the method or search for a collaborative professional near you to get started.