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The War of the Roses: Lessons from Oliver and Barbara on dividing property during divorce

“A civilized divorce is a contradiction in terms.”

In an era of conscious uncouplings and gentle separations, does this line from the 1989 film The War of the Roses still hold up?

If you believe that divorce is an inherently nasty battle between ex-spouses who are reduced to fighting for their lives to claim a house, then you agree with the above quote by Gavin D’Amato (played by Danny DeVito), the film’s omniscient narrator.

Settling and valuing intellectual property assets: Things you can “learn” from celebrity couples

A house, a car, and cash are some of the assets that never escape the scrutiny of divorcing spouses and family law attorneys. It seems easy to divide them, but dividing and settling them in case of a divorce is an exact science.

On the other hand, settling intangible properties — patents, trademarks, copyrights, royalties, and the like — is something else entirely.

What the Oscar-winning film Boyhood got right about divorce

Boyhood is a remarkable, moving, and very long film about divorce. Children of divorce can relate to it, and divorcees think it’s made especially for them. It’s like a documentary about a broken family, but with incredibly good-looking actors.

We may not be giving legal advice in these pages, but we thought we’d give you some tips as to what movies get things right about divorce, child custody, child support payments, and the like.

From retail therapy to physical therapy: Slip-and-fall lawsuits against big-box stores

Many consider grocery shopping therapeutic. In fact, there are studies that prove that “retail therapy” is more than just a fun catchphrase about burning cash on shopping sprees. Really, who needs a shrink when you can stroll along the biscuit and ice cream aisles in your neighborhood Target?

As with all forms of therapy, getting injured is not something one anticipates while “undergoing therapy.

Divorcing in Washington state? Here are some terms you need to learn

Divorce is a fact of modern life. It’s like birthdays but without the cake and the song.

In a divorce, spouses will be exchanging words far removed from the poetic language they used during their nuptials. Promises “to love and to cherish” and “to honor and sustain” are traded in for “marital dissolution,” “distribution of assets,” and “child support.