Families Divorcing During the Pandemic
Families in the middle of a divorce are living in difficult times. In addition to the stress of the pandemic, they are dealing with another major life change that is being put on hold.
The courts are generally only hearing emergency cases, and deadlines are being extended for other types of cases. With discovery deadlines being extended, many trial dates are being postponed until late fall or winter. So there is little recourse to request a Judge for assistance when one party is acting irresponsibly.
One other consideration causing stress is that marital assets are decreasing in value- some as much as 50 percent. Therefore ongoing negotiations about dividing marital assets will have to be reexamined, including getting new appraisals, and business valuations.
What can you do? The reality is that courts may not hear divorce cases for many months. So parties should really think about settling as much as they can during this time. Try to work together to come up with a solution that both parties can live with. Otherwise, everyone loses to the waiting game.