March Leads all other Months in Number of Divorces
The divorce business is booming this time of year, with March leading all other months with regards to the frequency of filings. So why is there such a spike in divorce filings this time of the year?
Why do people get divorced in March?
The overall feel from industry experts is that couples tend to use the holiday season to give their relationship one last try to see if it will work. In addition, if kids are part of the equation, parents generally feel that the holiday season would not be the appropriate time to break this type of devastating news. Taxes are also a consideration for many, as couples generally enjoy the joint filing status that ends on Dec. 31st resulting in savings to their bank accounts.
According to the website FindLaw.com, searches for divorce start to rise in December as unhappy people start to lay the groundwork and investigate the process. These searches continue to increase over the following months, and culminate in March with the actual filings.
However, many times the news of a divorce in March comes as a complete and total surprise to one of the spouses. As a result, if you are the unfortunate recipient of divorce papers, there are a number of steps that you should take.
4 Steps to Take if you are served with Divorce Papers
1. Try to remain calm
While this can be an emotional atomic bomb, the best thing that you can do is to remain calm and composed if this situation should arise. There is nothing positive that can transpire if you act sporadically, so take a few deep breaths and start to formulate a game plan.
2. Immediately read the paperwork
Procrastination typically isn’t a good thing, regardless of the circumstances, but this is especially true when it comes to a legal matter such as divorce. It is vital that you understand the documents, and exactly what it expected from a legal perspective. Otherwise you may be setting yourself up for some additional unexpected surprises.
3. Make sure you understand your deadlines
There is usually a clearly set deadline for responding to your divorce paperwork. It is important that you know your time limitations so that you can act accordingly and retain the help that you need before the period that has been allotted by the court expires.
4. Schedule a meeting with an attorney
You can always represent yourself in divorce proceedings, but if you do not have experience with the matter it is typically smart to retain legal counsel to help you through this process. Divorce can be an extremely complicated endeavor, so it is vital that you find the appropriate party to help to circumvent any landmines that await you during the process. In the end, this usually helps you to retain more of your property and rights, and paves the way for a more beneficial existence after the proceedings have been finalized.
Divorce can be a nasty business, but many times it is simply unavoidable. If you happen to be in this situation, please follow the steps given above and it will undoubtedly help you as your live moves on. The attorneys of Stearns-Montgomery & Proctor specialize in this type of law. Please feel free to contact us today to schedule a consultation.
