Remaining Judgment-Free During Divorce

by Alisa Peskin-Shepherd | Jul 31, 2023 | Family Law

The very name Transitions Legal on my law firm door makes a statement that we remain judgment-free during divorce.

When a client walks in our door or calls on the phone, we don’t form an opinion. We listen. We take notes. We ask questions. We hear what the client wants to have happen. We compile information, do research, ask more questions, form a case.

Judgment never factors into our divorces. We are here to do a job – help a client achieve a desired outcome. We are here to guide people legally through the process of divorce and other family law situations.

We are not here to judge or offer personal opinion on anyone’s relationships. We remain judgment-free.

There used to be an automatic nose-wrinkling judgment in America (and elsewhere) when people admitted to being divorced. We are fortunate to live in a time when divorce is acceptable. And possible.

It wasn’t long ago, though, when you’d say you were divorced, and the automatic response would be, “I’m sorry.”

Well, no! What if the divorce was a good thing? It often is.

Photo by Tim Gouw on Unsplash

Divorce happens when a relationship has run its course or is no longer healthy for the people within it. Divorce is a legal option to end a marriage that isn’t working, or which causes more strife than support.

Divorce is an answer to a situation, a resolution, a way out. Neither good nor bad.

Which is why we insist on remaining judgment-free during divorce, and express this value in the name of the law firm, in our marketing messaging and mission statement, and in the way we discuss cases with clients and team members.

Think about what happens when you judge a situation: you assign your values to what is happening. You like it, you don’t like it, you pity a person, you champion them. You don’t notice and wonder, and you miss the opportunity to learn and offer support in a meaningful way.

Judgment changes from person to person, informed by their own background and belief system.

Which means judgment is subjective, always. And thus, it’s never truth.