Divorce used to be rarer in the United States and many other places for a lot of reasons. Courts often needed a specific legal reason to grant one, like adultery or deception about not being previously married. A social stigma was often exacted in small communities when people could not work out their differences.
The expense was also a problem, and it still is for some. The average divorce in America costs nearly $13,000 and that amount can be a decent chunk of annual income for most Americans. However, that cost can be seen as an advance on a new life.
Financial independence can come with its price when a married couple appears to have a lot of shared assets. These assets are either things they acquired during their marriage or that gained value during their marriage. Nebraska uses the principle of equitable distribution when it is time to divide these assets.
This means that a court is allowed to consider a lot of factors, including those without an explicit financial value while dividing assets either by assigning them to individuals or having one share the value with the other. A person may make a case that they earned some of the asset’s value by supporting a spouse or otherwise engaging in cooperative behavior that led to its acquisition or growth.
An attorney can help you better understand these issues, so it is often a good idea to talk to one even when you are not sure about the financing ahead of time. Legal representation can mean a world of difference at one of life’s most difficult times.