Tim (not his real name) and his live-in girlfriend come to meet me. Jamie wants to get married, “We’ve been living together for five years and it’s time!” she says. “I have been more than patient, but ...

Explore legal separation: a court-ordered way for couples to live apart. Learn about its types, benefits, requirements, and ...

For better or worse, not all marriages go smoothly enough to warrant their continued existence, sometimes necessitating legal action such as divorce. There are, however, instances where divorce may ...

Legal separation in Arizona is often misunderstood as a softer alternative to divorce, but in practice, it functions almost identically. Under Arizona law, a court may enter a Decree of Legal ...

Julia Kagan is a financial/consumer journalist and former senior editor, personal finance, of Investopedia. Erika Rasure is globally-recognized as a leading consumer economics subject matter expert, ...

Before terminating a marriage, many married couples elect to physically separate. In this context, physical separation often includes moving out of a shared residence, winding up joint bank and debt ...

Ending a relationship is rarely just an emotional decision. It carries financial consequences, parenting questions, and legal obligations that many people do not fully understand at first. In growing ...

Many couples prefer to separate but avoid making their split final with a divorce, or at least not right away. But maintaining separated status for a prolonged period, sometimes for years after ...

Forbes contributors publish independent expert analyses and insights. I write about relationships, personality, and everyday psychology. Divorce is far more complex than signing a piece of paper. It’s ...