Thirty five years.  That’s an awfully long time to be married before a divorce.

I just finished mediating the divorce of a couple who have been married thirty five years.  Everything has changed:  their financial hopes, their retirement, even their living arrangements for the next phase of their lives.  At this point, the assumptions on which they organized their expectations are changing after it is too late to adjust for them.

At least they mediated instead of litigating.  In our mediation, they divided all of their assets and debts.  They planned for their retirements.  They divided their 401k’s and their pension plans.

They accomplished all this without going to court.  Now that they have settled all their issues, I will file their divorce for approval with the court.

Divorce is never easy, but at least they accorded each other the dignity of avoiding court.  After all, it’s the least they could do after thirty five years of marriage.