Originally posted by OrleansLawyer
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It is not uncommon to see Form 13.1s in family court with pre-existing debt well beyond reason in the family. Judges often comment on the massive marital debt and that financial consulting for both parents would be more appropriate than a court order.
Most marriages breakdown due to financial expectations especially when children are involved. It isn't uncommon to hear a negative advocate lawyer try to argue "but parent X makes so much money" and a justice to respond in kind stating "but, your client spent so much of it and has unrealistic expectations"...
My view is consistent with the reporting from Statistics Canada on the average debt that Canadian house holds are taking on. It is more similar to the debt crisis issue in the US that caused the financial melt down in that nation. Canadians are not that different than our next door neighbors these days on our debt holdings.
Trying to litigate a better life style through spousal support and child support is a common truism. The reality being though that income and employment are not guarenteed and spousal support and child support are not intended to be "lifestyle insurance" for parents or their children.
What someone makes today may not be the same the next day. People on average change careers 3 times in their life time. It doesn't mean that they always make more money with these changes in career.
I further hypothesize that many people who get married have an unrealistic expectation of what it takes financially to support a family. Their unrealistic financial expectations can reek havoc in Family Law situations.
Originally posted by OrleansLawyer
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"It isn't about how much money you make... But, about how much money you have. A millionaire isn't defined by making a million dollars a year but, actually having a million dollars in the bank saved up."
To add to this... A million dollars isn't much money in today's society really... It isn't enough to sustain a life style of say, living in the city, travelling all over the globe with your children and having what I like to call the "Friends" life style...
Friends Lifestyle: Friends Rent Control - Television Tropes & Idioms
If Monica or Chandler's apartment on Friends had been realistic for their income and New York City's high cost of living, it'd be a single room with maybe a kitchenette and a bathroom. Doing a scene with all six main characters would have been a total nightmare for the cast and crew. Also, especially in sitcoms, indoor sets usually have one completely blank "wall" where the crew and studio audience are, requiring the rest of the set to take up a lot more space than is needed to fit in all the requisite furniture and appliances.
To emphasize, this isn't just about having a large or open plane home for the characters. It is about the correlation between typical price of living, financial stability of the characters, the quality of the place and its surrounding neighborhood, and then the actual size. Having a large home wouldn't be too expensive if it's in a "quaint" neighborhood, Suburbia, and/or smaller cities like Pittsburgh or Milwaukee which have low costs of living. And a steady day-job tends to be more lucrative than a wish-fulfillment career.
To emphasize, this isn't just about having a large or open plane home for the characters. It is about the correlation between typical price of living, financial stability of the characters, the quality of the place and its surrounding neighborhood, and then the actual size. Having a large home wouldn't be too expensive if it's in a "quaint" neighborhood, Suburbia, and/or smaller cities like Pittsburgh or Milwaukee which have low costs of living. And a steady day-job tends to be more lucrative than a wish-fulfillment career.
Originally posted by OrleansLawyer
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Everyone in our society will require medical services some time in their life. In comparison only a small fraction of individuals will need to leverage the family law system. We as members of society have to realize exactly what you pointed out... We live in a society with limited resources. We all need to live well within our means for our society to succeed and to improve our society.
Originally posted by OrleansLawyer
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Originally posted by OrleansLawyer
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Good Luck!
Tayken
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