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When you have decided to end your marriage, you may wonder whether you should be the first to file divorce paperwork. Even when spouses make a mutual decision to separate, filing the initial petition carries certain advantages.

Consider these benefits of filing first when preparing to divorce in Georgia.

If your legal custody and parenting agreement no longer fits your family’s needs, either parent can seek a modification in Georgia. After the court approves your initial parenting plan, you can request a change in visitation or parenting time once every two years. Children older than age 14 can also make this request once every two years.

To change a custody order, however, the parent requesting the change must prove that a significant change in the circumstances of the family impacts the child’s best interest. This impact can be positive or negative.

One of the most heartbreaking reasons that people wind up ending their marriage is because of domestic violence. When you fall in love with someone, you may overlook the warning signs of a bad temper or abusive habits. Abusive people often intentionally suppress their worst impulses in the early stages of a relationship. By the time you realize how bad things are, you are probably very dependent on your ex.

These days, it is wise for every couple to create a prenuptial agreement, no matter how opposed they are to divorce or how few resources and assets they have when the marriage begins. A strong prenuptial agreement protects both parties from emotionally motivated decisions in the divorce process and can even protect spouses from each other’s debts whether divorce occurs or not.

The more assets you have accrued during your marriage, the more likely it is that you and your spouse will have a difficult time separating them in your divorce. Both of you are likely to have your own desired outcome for the asset division process. The substantial assets you have accrued during your marriage are nothing if not incentive for both of you to push harder in a divorce.

The strain of divorce affects all parents differently, and some handle the experience more gracefully than others. In the months and years following a divorce between parents, it is common for some to experience difficulty obeying a custody order, and they may test the boundaries of acceptable behavior.

Sometimes this behavior occurs because a parent finds it difficult to remain organized and does not operate on others’ schedules well. In other cases, one parent may act out to punish the other, or may use their child as leverage to get something they want.

A divorce isn’t easy when you run a business. You have to make sure that your business is able to survive, or else you need to make smart decisions about closing it. In many cases, businesses are run by both parties involved in the divorce, so there are only a few options for what you can do next.

These options might include continuing to run the business together, selling the business and splitting profits or buying out your partner. Each of these has positive aspects and negative aspects.

For the average married couple, the home that they share represents the most significant investment of their adult lives. Both parties likely spent months or even years scraping together money for the down payment. After securing a mortgage and closing on a house, a good portion of the household wages every month will go directly to a mortgage.

Divorce has a way of making people act in uncharacteristically negative or unkind manners. A desire for revenge against a former spouse, as well as a focus on winning the divorce process, can lead people to engage in truly underhanded behaviors.

If you own a business and are considering divorce, you must evaluate your situation carefully before moving forward. Depending on the specifics of your circumstances, the property division negotiations with your spouse may involve the business, which your spouse may claim is part of your marital property to divide.

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