By The Law Offices of Ronald H. Kauffman of Ronald H. Kauffman, P.A. posted in Alimony on Wednesday, November 19, 2014.
Alimony reform should be back on the table in the next legislative session now that the governor election is over. But just because alimony is available, not every client accepts it. A Forbes article explains why.
Suzan French married at 18, soon after had a daughter and found herself unhappily married. “My husband was a nice guy but worked 12 to 16 hours per day. “My marriage allowed me to stay home full-time with my daughter,” says French.
“That was a luxury – not a job. I was compensated. I had a nice home, drove a nice car, had access to a bank account. Asking for alimony would be like asking for a pension for a job I no longer did. It just didn’t seem fair.”
It took her 10 years of attending community college part-time, but eventually she graduated from University of Pennsylvania’s Wharton School. Today, she owns a public relations and marketing company, owns her home and is putting two daughters through college.
“Sometimes if you have too much of a cushion you’re not as aggressive in pursuing your dreams.”
Dana Lin was also a stay-at-home mom for most of her marriage, and like Starrick, admits there was a measure of pride in not pursuing alimony in her divorce, even though she could barely support herself. “I didn’t want anyone to say I couldn’t make it without him.”
Lin pursued her dream of being a screenwriter, today working as a script doctor and ghostwriter. Two years ago with a partner she launched Zen Life Services, which provides stress training management skills to law enforcement employees.
“Living lean taught me to be more disciplined,” she says. “Sometimes if you have too much of a cushion you’re not as aggressive in pursuing your dreams have.”
The Forbes article can be read here.