“On the day the divorce decree was signed, she showed up and broke every piece, put it in a box and mailed it to him.”

"The fight wasn’t about who would get them; it was over who had to take them. Neither wanted custody.

“Her future ex had taken everything out of all of their accounts. He remortgaged the house and drained their HELOC so that she had no access to any money. He cancelled her credit cards, too. She had nothing. She was a stay-at-home mum and couldn’t buy food for her two and eight-year-old. They were still living in the same house together, and he would bring food home for himself but nothing for anyone else.”

"On the day the divorce decree was signed, she showed up and broke every piece, put it in a box and mailed it to him.”

"Then he turned around and found an apartment back in my town (which is how I know), moved back, and filed for divorce. When I asked him why he did that, he said that he didn’t want them around and this was the cheapest way to get rid of them.”

"Fortunately for her and the dog, the dog was already our patient, and our policy was not to do any treatment without at least verbal consent from the client on the pet’s chart. She was the only one who’d ever brought the dog in before that and hadn’t put her husband’s name on the paperwork, so after he checked in, the technician called the owner on file to speak with her about why her slightly old but apparently healthy dog was being brought in for euthanasia.

Turned out he’d stopped by the house earlier that day and stolen the dog from the garden. She’d had no idea where they were until we called. Police were involved, and ultimately the dog made it back home safely.”

"This was 20ish years ago in Virginia. I did not represent mum or dad. There was a procedural error in the adoption to such an extent that the adoption was invalid—similar to a marriage void ab initio.”

"I had to go through and shred documents from old cases. I’ll never forget the case of two divorcing lesbians fighting over who got to keep the mobile home and the collection of Cabbage Patch dolls.

Not the worst thing in a divorce by a long shot, but certainly memorable.”

"He cleaned out all the bank accounts, moved it all overseas into his parents’ name, and walked out. Left mum holding the bag for the mortgage, the bills, the school tuition, everything, with empty accounts.

She knuckled up, got a (not well-paying) job, and started figuring things out. He tried to sell the house out from under her, it didn’t work. He tried to sell her car, it didn’t work. She got security cameras, they all ended up ‘mysteriously shot up with an air rifle’, but not a ‘real gun’, so the cops wouldn’t investigate.

He started showing up at the house and screaming at them in the middle of the night from the street. She got a DV protection order. He tried to pick the kids up from school; we obeyed the order, and he punched a teacher in the face. Cops refused to charge him because ‘he was provoked’. He started stalking the school head for denying him his kids. Cops did nothing until he slashed her tyres on camera.

Divorce took two years. Mum never got her half of the savings… Community property, but ‘no proof she hadn’t consented to the 'gift' to his family’.

Dad got joint custody — all his actions proved ‘he was dedicated to his kids’.

"Ripped every door off its hinges, including the kitchen cupboards and bathroom vanities. Took every picture and mirror off the walls and smashed them. Took a knife to all the furniture. Pulled all the dishes from the cupboards and smashed them. Pissed and shit on her bed. Dumped paint on the carpeting and vinegar on the hardwood floors. Took an axe to the appliances, walls and ceilings. 

He then threw canned goods through all the windows. Another neighbour heard that and called the police. They wouldn’t do anything about it because he was still technically an owner, even though he didn’t live there. Her insurance wouldn’t do anything for the same reason. Luckily, she was able to get a permanent restraining order, and local contractors and community volunteers came to her rescue. Within two months, her home was restored.”

"In mediation, she says she also wants child support because she’s flat broke. I ask her what about the $100k. It all went to her team of divorce lawyers to fight over these contempt motions.

The whole time we were mediating, her three(!) lawyers were leaning over to her to say, ‘You can’t let (your ex) get away with this,’ and ‘(Your ex) is so disgusting.’ Winding her up and telling her the only way forward is to fight.

She could have had a soft landing, led a dignified life, and never seen the inside of the family court again. Her lawyers manipulated her into fighting over every little thing so they could convert her alimony into their alimony.”

Additional thumbnail credits: CBS, Fox Searchlight Pictures