Tips for the Primary Breadwinner in a New Mexico Divorce

The divorce process is emotionally and financial difficult for both spouses because it fundamentally affects every aspect of the lives of both parties. If you are a primary breadwinner, divorce can pose unique challenges. Primary breadwinners in this situation may be faced with less than equal parenting time, child support obligations, alimony orders and more. Because primary breadwinners who have been involved in a marriage with these types of traditional roles may face special challenges during a divorce, our New Mexico divorce attorneys have provided this multi-part blog post with some suggestions for handling your marital dissolution.

Do not treat your spouse as an emotional crutch or confidant.

When you are going through the divorce process, you may be overwhelmed with fears about the future, changes in your standard of living and many other aspects of this major transitional stage in your life. While your spouse may have been the chief person you turned to for support or encouragement in the past, it is important to remember that you are now in an adversarial position with respect your spouse. Although an amicable divorce is a positive goal, you may want to avoid viewing your spouse as the appropriate person to discuss divorce-related issues.

Think before putting something in writing.

Anything you submit to your spouse will likely make its way to your spouse’s New Mexico Divorce Lawyer whether it is an admission regarding misconduct or a tongue lashing in a fit of anger or frustration. Generally, you should be very careful about submitting things in writing to your spouse without legal advice from your attorney. If you are planning to do so, you should consider how the content of the letter, note or email could be misconstrued or taken out of context to create a negative impression of you with the judge.

Avoid any types of conduct that bear on parental fitness.

This means that you should abstain from any use of drugs or excessive consumption of alcohol. It is also important not to be baited into making threats or engaging in conduct that could be misconstrued to resemble acts of domestic violence.

Do not make your children messengers or emotional sounding boards.

If you are able to insulate your children from contentious issues between you and your spouse and avoid discussing the divorce with your kids, this will make the process easier on your children. New Mexico family law judges, attorneys for minors and child custody evaluators also take an extremely dim view of a parent discussing the details of a divorce with his or her kids.

The above information is provided to illustrate general principles of law and should not be interpreted as a specific legal opinion on an individual case. You should contact experienced legal counsel to get specific legal advice that is based upon your specific circumstances.

If you have questions about the New Mexico divorce process, the Santa Fe Divorce Law Firm of Jay Goodman and Associates offers legal advice and representation in the full spectrum of family law issues. The New Mexico divorce law firm of Jay Goodman & Associates offers a free consultation in our centrally located offices in Santa Fe and Albuquerque so that we can discuss your options. Call us today to schedule your free consultation at (505) 989-8117 to learn about your rights and options.

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