Couples sometimes grow apart over time after marrying or experience sudden events that damage their relationship. In either scenario, it may be impossible to continue sharing lives with one another.
Many couples choose to divorce when circumstances damage their marital connection. However, California also allows people to legally separate. Legal separation involves a careful division of shared assets and debts, as well as establishing arrangements for shared custody if the spouses share minor children.
People have to negotiate many of the same issues in a legal separation as they do in a divorce. If that is the case, why legally separate instead of actually ending a marriage?
1. Retaining benefits
Health insurance benefit eligibility typically ends when spouses divorce. Legal separation helps ensure continued access to employment benefits.
2. Religious or moral concerns
Some people belong to religions that do not recognize divorce in all but the most egregious scenarios. Even cases of adultery or abuse may not be enough to divorce without risking expulsion from a religious community. Legal separation is a way to move on without violating religious precepts.
3. A desire to reconcile
Sometimes, a change in dynamic or catastrophic events can do significant damage to a marital relationship. However, the spouses may hold out hope that they could eventually reconcile in the future. Legal separation is a way to protect oneself while simultaneously leaving the door to reconciliation open.
Those considering a legal separation instead of a divorce may need help negotiating disagreements and working to settle their disputes, and that’s okay. Following the right procedures can allow people to protect themselves legally and financially when a marriage becomes unsustainable.