New Year, New Beginnings
As 2016 comes to a close, you may find yourself dissatisfied with the current state of your life. Perhaps you’re hoping to make some changes in the new year that will increase your quality of life—find a new job, begin a healthy new diet, or even end a failing relationship. If you’re considering filing for divorce in the new year, you aren’t alone. Read on to learn about why January is one of the most common months for couples to file for divorce, and speak with an experienced New York family law attorney if you’re considering a divorce filing.
Couples “tough it out” through the holidays, knowing a split is coming.
Troubled married couples will often realize before the end of the year that the relationship is not built to last, but they choose to stay together until the new year for the sake of their families or children. Few couples want to have difficult conversations announcing their breakup over a holiday meal with relatives they only see once a year, and no parent would want to cause their children to forever associate the holiday season with their parents’ divorce. That said, if you’re finding it impossible to be around your spouse without starting a fight, you might want to reconsider staying together through the holidays. Many adult children of divorce have vivid and unpleasant memories of bitterness and tension between their parents in the holiday season before their divorce.
Couples take the opportunity afforded by a new year to make a completely fresh start.
It seems instinctive to use the start of a new year to take stock of what you like about your life and what you wish to change. Often, when we take steps to improve our quality of life in one area, such as by starting a new exercise regime or more fulfilling job, we’re more likely to be motivated to change other facets of our life that aren’t working the way we would like, such as by ending a failed relationship.
Couples have practical reasons for staying together through the holidays.
Finally, some couples may have financial or other practical reasons to stay together until the new year. Some people wait to receive a year-end bonus before filing for divorce, using that bonus as a deposit on a new, separate apartment or to secure representation by a skilled family law attorney. Others may wish to remain married through the end of the year for tax purposes.
Whatever the reason, don’t resign yourself to remaining in a marriage that isn’t working. Use the new year as an opportunity to work things out with your spouse or as a chance to make a fresh start.
If you’re considering filing for divorce in New York, contact the knowledgeable, experienced, and dedicated Hudson Valley family law attorneys at Rusk, Wadlin, Heppner & Martuscello, LLP for a consultation, at 845-331-4100 (Kingston), or 845-236-4411 (Marlboro).
