With people living longer with higher expectations for what a good marriage really is, more and more baby boomers are filing for divorce. In fact, according to a study that was done by Bowling Green State University, in the last 20 years the divorce rate for couples over the age of 50 has doubled. In 1990 less than one in 10 who were divorced were 50 or older. Now, out of every 10 who are divorced, four are age 50 or older.
One couple, who filed for divorce after 37 years of marriage, recently shared their story with CNN. The couple had met when they were in college and married young. However, as the years went on they started to grow apart. After the wife went to live for eight months with the couple’s son to help him and his wife who had just had a baby, she came back realizing divorce was the best option for her and her husband. The husband completely agreed.
Now, the couple is divorced, but still gets along rather well — even living right down the road from each other. At least part of the reason the two still get along is due to the fact that they chose to have a collaborative divorce, which means each had their own lawyer, but a neutral mental health professional and a financial planner to go through the divorce process. They basically came up with their agreement — with the legal help of the lawyers — and a judge signed off on the paperwork.
In a collaborative divorce, the purpose is to reach a settlement without having to go through a long and drawn-out courtroom fight. For this couple, after 37 years of marriage, choosing this route made it easier for them to go through the process of divorce, yet still have a positive relationship with each other afterwards.
Source: CNN, “Baby boomer divorce rate doubles,” Greg Clary and Athena Jones, June 24, 2012
