Is there one best time of the year to file divorce? There’s not one good, easy answer to this. On one hand, divorce is a lengthy, life-changing process that can be disruptive while it’s going on. It requires changes in where people live and how people go about their lives – all while trying to maintain as much of a routine for the children as possible.
But on the other hand, it’s a change that people make with the idea that they’ll be happier out of a marriage than in a marriage – so perhaps the answer to this question is “whenever you’re ready to make that change.”
Divorce isn’t a spur-of-the-moment decision for most of the people who do it, but rather, one that people move into slowly, step by step. It’s not surprising, then, that the end of the school year and the end of the calendar year might prompt some to want to make a change – and move from thinking about divorce to actually going forward with it.
In our experience, it’s the end of the year that really sets people into motion – we get a spike in calls in late January or early February. And, of course, we don’t get that many calls during Christmas and Hanukkah season itself. What happens for a number of people initiating the divorce process is they want to get through winter break, and not have the introduction of divorce spoil the holidays. But once the new year is started, and people are thinking about change – reinforced by talk of New Year’s resolutions – they’re ready to make that change.
We also tend to get fewer calls in April, May, and June – likely having to do with parents trying to get to the end-of-the-school-year finish line before concentrating on the idea of divorce. Though summer brings vacations and escapes and time away from your routines, it also brings weeks where the kids are at summer camp and where you might have opportunities to prepare for divorce that you wouldn’t have at other times of the year.
One of the first things you’ll need to do in preparing a divorce is get financial papers in order – all of the assets and debts you have individually and as a couple will need to be included in the divorce decree. If you know you’re moving toward a divorce, having those papers in order and at the ready will help move the process forward. It can also make your divorce less expensive to do that – our legal team has the ability to help you prepare that paperwork and nudge that along, but that will add to your bill in the end.
An initial consultation with one of our experienced lawyers at the Law Office of Lisa A. Vance can help you determine whether it’s the right time for divorce, as well as what type of divorce best works with you, your spouse, and what you’re trying to get out of the divorce decree. Whenever you believe it to be the best time to file a divorce, we’re here to help you confirm that for yourself and to move forward.