Covid Effects and Divorce in Jamaica West Indies
COVID-19 has affected yet another aspect of people’s personal lives – marriage. With couples having more time spent at home, rates of conflicts and divorce are increasing as the year goes on. In Jamaica alone, more married couples are starting to seek for divorce discussions.
Effects of the Pandemic on Today’s Married Couples
There are several reasons why the number of divorces is increasing in the country. One is that there is more time spent at home which increases the likelihood for couples to get into misunderstandings and conflicts. A simple conflict may arise from assigning who does the laundry or who gets to take care of the baby when someone’s in a meeting. They may not seem like big issues, but constant frictions like these can lead to big arguments. The next thing to consider is that married couples now have time to express themselves to each other. While the workload of doing the chores and taking care of the kids increased as everyone stays at home, couples have more time now to talk to each other. Compare this to mismatched hours due to traffic and meetings held outside. Couples today are able to eat together and even sleep together. The pandemic has also become a catalyst for couples to express their deep-seated grievances with their partner. Most partners in Jamaica are almost at the “breaking point” because of too much time spent with their other half. Unlike before, where couples can easily escape to work or to the shopping centre, couples now are forced to talk to each other regarding their misunderstandings. Lastly, married couples learn to discover a lot of things about their partner. It can be their traits, behaviours, and character. While this can also be a good thing especially when couples compromise and understand one another, it can also reveal disadvantages. For one thing, it may make the other partner annoyed especially when the traits cannot be reconciled with them. The pandemic has brought about a lot of conflict between couples and sometimes, these conflicts are only solved when both parties have finalized their divorce.
Divorce Procedures in Jamaica West Indies
Divorce will always be an available option for married couples in Jamaica. It doesn’t require that both persons want to get a divorce. In fact, one party may already request a divorce agreement so that all the due diligence can start. Once a party expresses their decision to get a divorce, the parties and their attorneys may start their discussions. The whole process formally starts when one party has filed a petition to dissolve the marriage. It then goes through a discussion between parties and the application of their agreement. There’s also another application to make everything absolute. However, it doesn’t end there. Parties will have to discuss custody, maintenance, and substitute services. Going through a divorce is difficult, and most couples often have more complicated discussions when the actual applications start. However, Jamaican laws allow divorce, and this has been a viable solution for both parties to be able to live better lives.