Sunday, March 02, 2008

Military Divorce - In the News

The March 2, 2008 Associated Press story "Military Divorce Rate Holds Steady" is an excellent article. See the entire article at http://www.azstarnet.com/allheadlines/227749.php The article states that the divorce rate in the armed forces has held steady at 3.3 percent. What was even more interesting were the programs the military sponsors to help marriages including a workshop to teach couples to manage conflict, solve problems and communicate better. This is very similar to what we offer when we do Marital Mediation. It would be wonderful if civilian couples took advantage of these type of programs as well.
In the event the marriage can’t be saved and there is a divorce it is important to be aware of the special issues raised by a Military Divorce. We learned more about Military Divorce when we attended the State Bar of Arizona’s Advanced Family Law seminar in November. Tucson Attorney Patricia A. Green presented an excellent session on Military Divorce issues. She advised of a helpful book by Mark E. Sullivan entitled "The Military Divorce Handbook: A Practical Guide to Representing Military Personnel and Their Families." This issues are particularly important with the recent changes in the Servicemembers Civil Relief Act. We are all proud of all of our men and women in the military. They deserve all of our support whether it is of a military or personal nature. As always, you can post a comment about this blog, Divorce Mediation, or Tucson Arizona by following the directions at the right in the green column or at the bottom of this website or participate in our Presidential poll located at the below the directions. WM 3/2/08