Category: Tampa Family Attorney

An article recently featured in TIME magazine highlights why it is so important for couples to address certain issues in pre-and post-nuptial agreements, including pet custody issues, in order to avoid expensive, lengthy court battles later on. The article highlights just how important pets are becoming to us and how one individual spent close to $40,000 in legal fees fighting for custody over dogs in their divorce because the custody issue was not addressed in a prenuptial agreement.

Pets are becoming just as important as children for more and more people each day. In fact, according to a survey by the American Veterinary Medical Association, 80 percent of pet owners view their pets as family members. More and more pets are also adopted rather than purchased and described as mixed breeds, indicating that their value comes from something other than what they cost. In fact, of the more than 1,000 millennial pet owners surveyed in 2018, almost 70 percent indicated they would actually take work leave to care for a new pet if possible, and 60 percent of men and 80 percent of women considered their pets to be their “fur babies.”

In contemplating whether or not you want to get a divorce, the experts suggest not only asking yourself what your goal is and whether divorce is your best option to achieve it, but to analyze a number of potential red flags, as opposed to just one. Below, we discuss 12 that you may want to take a close look at:

You are no longer eating together

While this may seem like a minor issue, it may be a sign of something more major—i.e. that the two of you are disjointed and lacking in that connection time.

They are suffering from addiction and refuse to get help

This not only applies to issues such as alcohol, drugs or gambling, but severe mental health issues as well, especially any that are endangering you or others.

You are only still together because of your children

If this is the case, it could be a sign that the connection between the two of you has suffered or that you have put so much energy into your children that the relationship has suffered. Keep in mind that in some circumstances, it can be more difficult on your children to wait to divorce until they are older or leave home for college if there are unhealthy behaviors associated with staying together.