Q Solicitors

I'm an excellent housekeeper.  Every time I get a divorce, I keep the house. -Zsa Zsa Gabor

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Welcome to our first edition for 2012. The start of the New Year is often a time for making resolutions and actioning change in your life.  Sometimes that change comes in the form of separation or divorce.

This month we take a look at why January is known to have the highest divorce rates of the year and why we receive an increase in enquiries regarding separation and divorce at this time of year.

Why do more couples divorce in January?

There are a number of potential reasons that can be attributed to this trend; not least of which is the Christmas period that precedes January.  Office Christmas party indiscretions; the financial stress associated with presents and entertaining; the pressure to live up to expectations and the arguments that come with extended family gatherings are all catalysts for for couples carnage.  Combine all of this with alcohol and you have a poisonous cocktail of emotional stress that can tip a feuding couple over the edge.

The extended Christmas break can also create an "unnatural" environment in which Mum and Dad are at home together, without the guidance of their usual daily routine, which can result in toes being stepped on and nerves being tested.  Add to this scenario 2 or 3 bored kids plus a couple of interfering in-laws that have outstayed their welcome, and its a couple's melting pot of confusion, frustration and anger, just waiting to boil over.

Sometimes couples have already made the decision to separate earlier in the year, but choose to postpone the official process until January.  Reasons for this vary, however couples with young children may not want to spoil the magic of Christmas for the kids, so choose to wait until the New Year to begin the physical separation; whilst couples with older children may not want their separation process to disrupt the kids during the already stressful time of end of year exams.

Empty-nesters and couples without children, who are already separated, may see the dawn of the New Year as a chance to tie up loose ends by finalising their divorce paperwork; whilst unhappily married couples, not yet separated, may simply seize this opportunity to action the inevitable by implementing the separation process.

No matter what the cause, if you find yourself in a similar position and you need some assistance in the form of relationship counselling; advice on separation or information on divorce, then have a read through some of our Family-related publications and please feel free to contact us at anytime for a chat regarding your situation.

Kramer vs. Kramer
- a cinematic case study on the evolution of family law.

How many of you remember this Academy Award-winning 1979 movie starring a much younger-looking Dustin Hoffman and the captivating Meryl Streep (who strangely doesn't seem to have aged at all).

If you can remember the storyline, it follows the break-down of Ted Kramer (Hoffman) and Joanna Kramer's (Streep) on-screen marriage, after the birth of their only child - a scenario that rings true today, as the arrival of a first child will challenge even the most solid couples - and the bitter custody battle of Kramer vs. Kramer.

For those of you who may not have seen the movie, we won't give away the ending entirely, however it we can say it was generally considered to be a happy and just ending, with the audience left feeling as though the rights of the child had been honoured.  The final custody arrangement, however, was not the decision arrived upon by the courts - it was decided by one parent choosing to put the "best interest of the child" before their own... as difficult a decision 30 years ago, as it would be today.

During the custody battle, the definition of "the best interest of the child" is rigorously debated. The law of the courts at that time (for both the US and Australia) deemed that in most cases, the best interest of the child was to be living with the mother, regardless of any outside circumstances, and the terms often referred to were "guardianship", "custody and access" and "care and control".

It has not been until more recent times that we have seen the emergence of "shared parenting" or "joint parenting" and "blended parenting".

The shared parenting trend redefined "the best interest of the child" to be an arrangement whereby the child spends some time living with both the mother and the father, with both parents having equal rights to seeing their child.

This trend has been in place for more than 10 years now, and the results from the sociologists are not as positive as had been anticipated.  Some experts believe the reality of the shared parenting agreement can actually result in a more stressful and confusing environment, especially in "blended families" where there is the potential for "his", "hers" and "our" visiting regimes.

In light of these findings, there is now an emerging trend that sees "the best interest of the child" redefined again; this time it concentrates on the child, and it being the child's right to seeing the parent, rather than the parent's right to parenting of the child.  This approach is also focusing on a case-by-case arrangement, rather than a one-size fits all solution.

Who knows where this trend will lead us?  Perhaps we will return to a time where one parent has full custody, whilst the other parent has regular opportunities to visit and bond with the child?  How would the child support system accommodate such a change?

One thing is for certain, the divorce process will have profound and ongoing effects for all involved, especially any children.  So please, do take the time to seek out counselling for all the family, and take the time to read through our resources on divorce, life after divorce and the child support agency.

Win a DVD of Kramer vs. Kramer

For your chance to win your own DVD copy of Kramer vs. Kramer, be the 5th person to email us at enquiries@qsolicitors.com.au.

Q is for Questions      

Do you have any legal questions you would like to ask? Perhaps you would like us to discuss a particular topic in our next newsletter?  Let us know how we can help by sending an email to: enquiries@qsolicitors.com.au.

A lot of people have asked me how short I am.  Since my last divorce, I think I'm about $100,000 short. - Mickey Rooney

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Q Solicitors
9/14 Macquarie Street Teneriffe QLD 4005
Phone: 07 3358 2399
Email: enquiries@qsolicitors.com.au
Web: qsolicitors.com.au