Does January live up to its reputation as Divorce Month?
January has been nicknamed “Divorce Month,” with many people claiming it’s the most popular month to initiate the process to dissolve a marriage. Is this true, or is it just a popular rumor?
It appears to be true. Statistics show that more people file for divorce in January than any other month. Legal professionals note that they see a serious uptick in filings as the new year begins. Some have even said that the rush of divorce filings is so significant in January that they’ll take a holiday break for the last two weeks of December, taking that time off so they can prepare for the coming onslaught of work.
If you’re looking for a specific day, some claim it is the first Monday of the month, or at least the one on which children go back to school, in years like 2018, which saw the first Monday fall on New Year’s Day itself. Some say that first week of work is bigger no matter what.
The reasons provided do vary from one couple to another, but they often talk about wanting to get through Christmas for the children. Some say they even see the holidays as a last-ditch effort to save the marriage. Still others point to New Year’s resolutions and lump starting fresh in love in relationships in with all of the other fresh starts they desire. People don’t always get to January and realize they want to get divorced, but it can be the catalyst that gets them to go through with it.
If you and your spouse are ending your marriage this year, take the time to look into all of the legal issues you’ll need to address, such as child support, child custody, division of assets and alimony.
Source: Huffington Post, “January: More Divorces Than Any Other Month?,” Meghan Beresford, accessed Jan. 05, 2018