Mark J. Bamberger, Esq., Owner/Attorney at Law
The Mark Bamberger Co., LLC
Offices in Tipp City, West Chester, Enon, and Spring Valley, Ohio

(PRBuzz) June 1, 2012 -- Clients come into the offices of The Mark Bamberger Company for different reasons. Some need to discuss a potential bankruptcy filing, some need criminal defense, some have an employer who they may need to sue, and others want to discuss some environmental or animal law litigation issue. Yet, in many cases, the most disturbing discussions relate to a potential dissolution or divorce. In some cases, we deal with 20- to 25-year marriages that are ending. In some cases, after one year, someone is ready to "move on". All cases are sad, but having gone through the process myself, I know that the pain gets worse and then fades with time. Time does in fact "heal all wounds".

When counseling divorce clients, I do far more than simply discuss their legal options; be it dissolution, non-contested divorce, or contested divorce. I also talk to them about non-legal ramifications like financial concerns and the best interest of any children. Although they do not offer psychology classes in law school, they should. To be honest, a surprisingly high percentage of my job is non-legal. I need to know the law, to be sure, but I also need to be empathetic to the client's plight, their emotional state, their personal safety situation, their financial situation, and the best interest of any minor children involved. I keep a stocked box of tissues in my office at all times.

It is not uncommon for a separation to also implicate a potential bankruptcy. In some cases, bankruptcy is a smart way to allow the client/s to "move on". In some cases, the married couple's debts are so intermingled that it makes sense for them to remain together long enough to file a Chapter 7 bankruptcy in order to clear those joint unsecured debts; then finalize the divorce. In fact, legally a bankruptcy filing puts an "automatic stay" on any and all other legal proceedings, so either the bankruptcy case has to be closed before the divorce is finalized or else relief from that stay must be recommended by the trustee and ordered by the bankruptcy court.

When considering divorce, people are usually wise to "...go with their gut". If they are in physical or emotional danger, they need to separate themselves and/or their children as soon as possible. As I tell clients in that situation, "...the first call should be to '911', the second to their county's Children's Services (if and where appropriate), and the final call should then be to me". All in all, people do survive divorce. In most cases, it's my experience that spouses (and their children) are happier after the legal filing is completed and the pain fades.