Economic recovery 'to boost divorce rate'

London: The end of a marriage is never a pleasant affair. But the shaky economic recovery could take a toll on many hard-pressed families, predict divorce lawyers.

'QualitySolicitors.com', a national group of 200 law firms, expects double the usual volume of monthly divorce- related enquiries -- in fact, it follows 26 per cent increase in enquiries from July to November as the downturn started to slow, the 'Daily Mail' reported.

"The volume of divorce cases dropped right across the country this year due to the credit crunch. That wasn't a sign that less families were separating, but that many couples have been biding their time conscious that to divide assets worth considerably less than they once were might not be in either of their interests.

"However, as confidence has crept back into the market in recent months we have seen that trend begin to change significantly. We now expect unparalleled levels in January as a number of people who have been holding fire now take the hard decision to seek legal advice to pursue a divorce," the Chief Executive of 'QualitySolicitors.com' said.

Member law firms report current inquiry levels are now on average 11 per cent above those in November 2008 when the economy was at its lowest ebb.

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Marriage counsellors said this was no surprise as while stagnant salaries, plummeting home values and rising unemployment created extra stress on marriages, they also made couples more financially dependent on each other.

Many who wanted to divorce could not afford the legal fees. The significant extra cost of supporting a second household if they split up also stopped many couples with children from separating.

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