When a person wants to divorce her or his spouse, the decision comes with a lot of ground to cover. Before discussing the matter, parties may want to take specific steps to make the legal process easier.
FamilyEducation offers a pre-divorce checklist for those dissolving their marriage. Navigating this territory involves making well-informed decisions that set families and individuals up for success.
Try mediation
Rather than a traditional split, some couples benefit from collaborative divorce, also known as divorce mediation. With collaborative divorce, a couple meets with a neutral third party to discuss legal terms and compromise on what they want. This option may prove less expensive and less antagonistic than a standard divorce.
Have a plan to tell shared children
If a couple has shared children, the parents must work together to decide what and how to tell them about the divorce. While creating a plan, it makes sense for parents to focus on keeping their children’s lives and routines as unchanged as possible. This may also present an opportunity to lay the groundwork for a viable parenting plan.
Take things slowly
While a couple or spouse may want to divorce as quickly as possible, rushing the process could do more harm than good. Blazing through a divorce at breakneck speed may lead to knee-jerk decisions that have the potential to backfire. A well-thought-out divorce settlement should lay the groundwork for healthy post-divorce lives.
Usually, divorce happens in stages. Learning those stages and how to navigate them allows couples and their children to take care of their mental, financial and physical health.
