Jacksonville Divorce Lawyer Blog
Around fourteen million Brits use Facebook and other social networking sites to keep up with old friends or make new ones. A group of British divorce lawyers are claiming that social networking sites like Facebook are tempting people to cheat on their spouses – and the website has been cited in 20% of recent divorce cases. According to the attorneys, people are being caught having inappropriate sexual chats with people who are not their spouse, and in the electronic age it is just too easy for their spouse to catch them at it. Flirty emails and messages have been reported, as well as evidence of actual affairs.
In one case a woman discovered that her husband was planning to divorce her when she read his public status update on Facebook. In another case, a woman divorced her husband after learning he was carrying on a virtual affair with a woman he met on Second Life, a virtual world where people are able to reinvent themselves.
Some software companies are cashing in on the trend by developing applications that let suspicious spouses spy on their partner’s online activities. Read more about how social networking can ruin a marriage at Facebook fuelling divorce, research claims.
The holidays are supposed to be the happiest time of the year. But sometimes this joyous season can make people realize that they are not happy with their spouse. The holiday affect is presumed to be the culprit behind the fact that January is often the busiest month of the year for divorce attorneys. But what is it exactly that pushes marriages over the edge in December?
For children of divorce, all too often the holidays are not a time of happiness – they are filled with dread, turmoil and chaos. Divorced parents are forced to navigate a range of issues, but it is possible for parents to help reduce conflict and confusion to make the holidays enjoyable for everyone. 
Mechelle Seals had very low self esteem and very little experience with men when she met her first husband. After a year of marriage, however, a fight ended in the man throwing Ms. Seals to the ground and threatening their four month old daughter with a gun. Her second husband verbally abused her, and was convicted of sexually abusing her mentally handicapped daughter.
Famous actor Charlie Sheen was arrested on Christmas day for an alleged assault on his wife, Brooke Mueller. But Sheen’s manager has told reporters that the couple is working out their differences amicably and has no plans to divorce. Other sources have reported that Mueller wants a separation. She has taken out a restraining order against her husband, and was recently seen vacationing without him. But she is also reportedly under a lot of pressure to change her story of the events on Christmas day; Sheen has a lot to lose and could face prison time if convicted.
A London law firm is offering an unusual gift option this year; interested parties may purchase Christmas gift vouchers, good toward a half hour consultation with one of the firm’s divorce lawyers. Lloyd, Platt & Company usually charges 325 pounds an hour, but is offering the gift vouchers at a discounted rate of 125 pounds for a half hour. The firm reports that they have been swamped with inquiries since they announced the gift vouchers in mid December. They have sold more than sixty. A firm spokesperson said they were amazed at the huge response to the vouchers. 
Last June, South Carolina Governor Jim Sanford made national headlines when he took off for a secret rendezvous with his Argentinean mistress while telling staff he was hiking in the Appalachian Mountains. His wife of twenty years, Jenny Sanford, reports that she has actually been aware of the affair since last January, when she discovered a letter her husband had written to his mistress. Sanford then repeatedly asked his wife for permission to visit the other woman in Argentina. 
Many people wonder why an abused woman would return to her abusive partner after leaving. According to therapists who treat such couples, reconciliation is quite common. Steve Stosny, the founder of CompassionPower, an anger and violence management program that treats individuals convicted of domestic abuse, discussed the phenomenon in an interview recently.