Divorces more agreeable when money is tight

EDINBURG - Wounded hearts have grown fonder this recession, or at least less vindictive.

With money tight and homes losing their value, more couples are ending marriages amicably. The steep cost of fighting for the house or the children is too much in this tumultuous economy, local lawyers said.

It's a social phenomenon that some said reveals a rather disturbing truth about Americans. It took money problems to make couples agreeable, not consideration for their children's wellbeing.

Official sources of data are outdated and have not recorded the decline in contested divorces. But several lawyers recalled easily dissuading clients from fighting after quoting a dollar figure.

"It was different a year ago," said Antonio Peña, an attorney based in Edinburg. "It just happened so gradually I've just kind of accepted it now."

Peña charges a flat fee of $500 for a non-contested divorce. Additional filing fees put the cost of dissolving the marriage upward of $1,000. Taking the split to the jury costs thousands of dollars more.

"Ultimately, it's very expensive to fight for your property and kids," said Marcus Barrera, a McAllen-based lawyer. "The easiest way to get things done is to try and agree; however, if your spouse is being totally unreasonable and it's completely unfair, then you should fight it out."

Barrera recalled how his friend represented a fractured couple who spent nearly $400,000 fighting for custody of their children. The judge eventually awarded custody to the mother and visitation rights to the father, a standard ruling that could have been agreed upon without a costly fight.

"You're burning family money and that's not what you want to do," Barrera said. "I've had several clients that I've represented work amicably on a divorce and the kids are much better off because of it."

Luis Garcia, 28, gave custody of his two children to his ex-wife without a fight in 2005 after the couple could not reconcile the strain his service in the U.S. Navy placed on their relationship.

He wishes he could see his children more often, but he gets to see his now 4-year-old boy and 6-year-old girl two weekends a month and one full month in the summer. And he doesn't regret avoiding the custody battle.

"People have a tendency to just get selfish and try to be vindictive to their spouse ... and they use the children against one another," he said.

"That's the worst thing they can do."

 Hidalgo County Divorces:

2008 - 2,916

2007 - 2,899

Divorce Rate in 2007:

Texas - 3.3 per 1,000 people

United States - 3.6 per 1,000 people