Many couples divorce without drama or bloodshed. They agree on property division and custody arrangements, sign the papers and move on with their lives. However, this is not always the case. In a high-conflict divorce, every single detail, no matter how small, can be a battle.
One spouse may be adamantly against the divorce. Sometimes, one or both partners feel so badly betrayed that they want to make the other’s life unbearable. The weapons these couples use against each other usually involve assets and child custody.
High conflict
Divorce is rarely painless and involves a wide range of emotions from despair to rage and everything in between. Most people can experience these emotions without allowing them to interfere with the divorce process or make it harder than it has to be. For some, though, the need to inflict damage outweighs their desire to move toward a new and happier life.
Custody
Texas courts believe that children benefit from having a relationship with both of their parents in most cases. Of course, that is not true where there is potential for abuse, neglect or endangerment. In a high conflict divorce, one or both parents may believe they should have sole custody, if only as a way of punishing the other.
Warning signs
The refusal to negotiate asset division or child custody, not being transparent about the existence of assets, or making false accusations about one another are some of the signs that the road to divorce is going to be a bumpy one.
It is important to recognize the signs of an impending high conflict divorce before a war breaks out and while there is still time for professionals to step in and get the process back on track.