Divorce Corp
***1/2
Picture it: 1969. California Governor Ronald Reagan signs a new law that makes divorce a whole lot easier. Instead of having to prove fault, an unhappy couple can just choose to part ways without the state’s permission.
Thank you, Mr. Reagan. America’s most beloved divorced dude struck a huge blow for freedom. Finally, the crushing stigma of divorce was reduced. Finally, poorly matched couples were free to split amicably and embark on new paths of personal fulfillment.
Am I hyping no-fault divorce? Heck yeah! Two years ago I thought that my miserable union could only end with death. Now I’m a contented man living with a girlfriend who truly loves me and shares my values and life goals.
My marriage had a happy ending. But that’s only because neither my ex-wife nor I ever called a lawyer.
The depressing documentary “Divorce Corp” reveals how terrible and ridiculous things get for the poor saps who decide to bring lawyers and judges into their divorce proceedings.
If you want to get more money and you ask a lawyer for help, it’s like showing up to Dracula’s blood bank and hoping for a transfusion. The exact opposite of what you want is probably going to happen.
Because they get paid by the hour, lawyers naturally want your divorce to drag on as long as possible. Director Joseph Sorge explains how lawyers drive a wedge between couples and encourage their clients to make cruel accusations about each other in court. The nastier the better. To the lawyers, acrimony is just another word that kinda rhymes with money.
One of the most destructive rules of family court is that whoever loses has to pay the winner’s legal bills. This not only ensures that at least one party will leave the divorce impoverished, it forces both partners to fight each other ruthlessly because the stakes are so high.
And who decides the winner in the court case of your life? A jury of your peers like the Constitution promises? Nope. Family court cases are decided by one elected judge.
The reason why we use trial by jury in the United States is that having cases decided by a single judge leads to corruption. According to “Divorce Corp,” that’s just what happens. A Texas divorcee recounts the nightmarish experience of losing her money and her children in court. Then she discovered that her ex-husband’s lawyer was a former law partner of the deciding judge and a major contributor to the judge’s election campaign.
Sorge’s solution is to abolish Family Court.
I would take it a step further and get Uncle Sam out of the marriage game altogether. Let’s finally separate church and state completely. Marriage should be between a person and his partner, his family, and his God. The government shouldn’t even know about it. Married couples should file their taxes separately and keep their finances separate. This will make it so a divorce will simply break your heart instead of ruining your life.
Now, I’m not going to go so far as to quote Shakespeare’s famous line about lawyers from Henry VI. But I am going to encourage you to never give a single penny to a divorce lawyer. It will make your life – and our country – a whole lot better.