Here are some recent statistics from a seminar which I attended that paint a disturbing picture of the divorce process and should give any lawyer pause before filing their next divorce case:
Children of Divorce are:
-twice as likely to drop out of school as those from intact homes
-three time as apt to have a baby out of wedlock
-five times more likely to be in poverty
-twelve times more likely to be incarcerated
(McManus: Ethics & Religion Sept. 12, 204 Column #1,203)
I understand that there is a distinct difference between causation and correlation, but the societal costs of divorce are tremendous. Ironically, I happened to be reading an article in the most recent edition of the Family Law Quarterly which supports the same premise. Another Inconvenient Truth by Patrick Parkinson reiterates the same point on a global scale. I’m not saying that we should stop being family lawyers, I’m just saying that we need to be aware of our client’s issues. They may have a lot more going on at home than just their divorce action. As a real world example, all one needs to do is volunteer at Attorney-for-the-Day in Probate Court. These statistics are a sobering reminder of the struggles that our potential clients may face. I just recently came across a website to help with post-divorce issues which I recommend to anyone dealing with post-divorce issues so that we can put a dent in some of these sobering statistics: http://www.freshstartafterdivorce.com/blog/.
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