I stay well away from family law cases to the extent possible. The emotions are far too high and of an ugly nature compared to the resources typically available to compensate me for dealing with those emotions. However, I did want to flag an article in the Fort Wayne Journal Gazette that highlights some interesting issues as well as reinforcing the notion from a previous post that, frequently when you pass up a reasonable settlement offer, you’re going to end up losing.
The case is the divorce case of the former New Jersey Governor who resigned and admitted being gay. He offered his ex-wife $300,000 as a settlement early on in the case. She was mad and refused. She ended up getting $110,000. The four year case ended up generating $1 million in legal fees.
It also raised interesting questions about the implications of gay partnerships in places where gays aren’t allowed to get married. For example, should the income of McGreevey’s partner be considered in determining how much child support McGreevey is able to pay?
Anyway, once again, refusal of a reasonable settlement offer results in nobody winning but the lawyers.
How does the system determine a value on pain and suffering?
I worry that all of the commercials, billboards, etc. give people the idea that lawsuits are the easy way to make a lot of money… and that after paying the bills, they end up (as in this case) far worse off.