According to a polling firm based in Virginia, couples are fighting more than usual about politics since the last presidential election. The firm conducted a survey of 1,000 people during one week in April and found that around 10 percent of all couples and 22 percent of millennial couples reported ending relationships because of political disagreements.
A divorce attorney in New York reported a similar anecdotal experience, saying that she had not seen so many divorces arise from political disagreements in her previous 35 years in her field of practice. More than 20 percent of people in the Wakefield survey said they knew another couple for whom the election had a direct, negative effect on their relationship.
Almost a quarter of couples said that since the election of President Trump, they were fighting more than they ever had before. Money is a major point of contention for most couples, but over one in five couples said that in the previous six months, they had fought more about policies of the Trump administration than about finances.
Whether people split up over politics or other disagreements, they may find it difficult to effectively negotiate property division and child custody. In many cases, it is worth giving these negotiations a try because a couple may not have recourse if they are unhappy with the judge’s decision in litigation. However, a situation may require litigation if one person refuses to cooperate in negotiations. It may be particularly important for a lower-earning spouse to ensure financial security, or one spouse might attempt to hide assets. A spouse may be abusive or struggle with an addiction, and if there are children involved, the other parent might be concerned about the child’s safety. A person may want to share these concerns with an attorney.
