Jordan Bowne

A House Divided – The Intersection of Divorce and Politics


Another uneventful election year is in the books. Well, almost uneventful . . . In reality, it was (is?) as contentious a political battle as we have seen in a very long time. In many ways, the nation’s political divide is analogous to a common divorce theme – each party has completely disparate views and priorities on a variety of issues which can lead to some (ahem) “irreconcilable differences.” Perhaps for some of you out there, opposing political views within your household may even be a cause that leads to a divorce. Regardless of the reason for the divide within the household (remember, Massachusetts is a “no-fault” divorce state after all), it is important to follow what happens next in the political process, as divorce and politics are always going to be intertwined, and no time is that principle more apparent than after an election year.

Without getting too deep into a fifth grade civics lesson, the three branches of government (Executive, Legislative, and Judiciary) on both the state and federal levels create, implement, interpret, and contextualize the laws and policies which have a direct and indirect impact on the divorce process. Divorce is fundamentally governed by each state’s … Keep reading

Demystifying Myths About Dividing Assets in Divorce: Part 3 – The Contribution Factor – Celebrity Edition


Perhaps growing up in Los Angeles took some of the fun out of celebrity gossip, but I never understood the fascination with stories about what is in the shopping cart of the (often shorter than advertised) celebrity standing in front of me at the grocery store.  One aspect of celebrity gossip that has piqued my interest in recent years has been celebrity divorces, or more specifically, the public’s reaction to celebrity divorces and how it mirrors a lot of the same misconceptions we hear as divorce practitioners.

The fairly recent divorce between Amazon founder (and the reason most celebrities no longer go to the grocery store), Jeff Bezos, and his now ex-wife, MacKenzie Scott, comes to mind as a situation in which everyone seemed to have a “hot take” about the couples’ divorce financials.  Given the staggering wealth being divided in the divorce, one of the comments I regularly saw on social media was “what did she do to deserve that much of his money?”  Despite the misguided gender stereotypes being at an all-time high, the short response (as confirmed by Mr. Bezos, himself) was “a lot.”

In the third edition of this series about demystifying myths on dividing … Keep reading

Demystifying Myths About Dividing Assets in Divorce: Part 2 – The Treatment of “Personal” Assets


“What’s mine is . . . yours?” 

Welcome back to the long-awaited second part of my series on demystifying myths about asset division in divorce.  I started this incredible year by addressing the most common of misconceptions about the divorce process – the impact of an extramarital affair in asset division.  Since then, the world has seemingly turned upside-down.  So for those of you yearning for simpler times, go back and check out the first part of this series before diving into Part 2.

In this second part of the series, we consider another of the common misconceptions about dividing assets in the divorce process, what happens to “personal” assets?  By “personal” assets, I am generally referring to those premarital assets (including real estate) titled in one spouse’s name, inherited assets received by one spouse prior to or during the marriage, personal business interests, and those investment and retirement accounts that you worked so hard to grow over time.  Basically, anything you would think of as “mine” instead of “ours.”  As you can imagine, the divorce process heightens this sense of personal ownership of these assets, which makes what I am about to say next all the more painful … Keep reading

With Chaos, Comes Opportunity – Court Initiatives During COVID-19 That Hopefully Will Continue to be Implemented for Years to Come


As someone who has repeatedly sought to bring some levity to my articles on the topic of divorce, an objectively life-altering event, I find myself contemplating how the current COVID-19 pandemic will shape our lives, most importantly, but also the divorce process in the years to come. Despite working for four years as a public health professional in bioterrorism and emergency preparedness for my native Los Angeles County, I am far from qualified to dispense advice on the long-term impact of the pandemic on our lives, so I will focus this article on the divorce side of things.

Sun Tzu famously wrote in The Art of War, “in the midst of chaos, there is opportunity.” As a quick aside, I think that I once used that quote as an away message on my AOL Instant Messenger account, probably in reference to a fizzled high school romance or something. See, levity. Anyway, while I usually reserve famous quotes for ironic and/or comedic purposes in lighter times, I think the quote well-encapsulates the glimmer of hope for positive change and adaptation in the middle of this incredible public health crisis.

The Family Law Bar (not the place selling $5 pitchers … Keep reading

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First of all, to our past, present, and future readers, we want to thank you for reading and wish you all a very Happy New Year!  We hope that our articles provide you with some new insight and perspective, as well as the occasional levity to the often challenging (but always interesting) divorce process.  In this “fake news” era, I thought it would be helpful to start the year by dispelling some “myths” and “misconceptions” of the divorce process, specifically, as they apply to the ubiquitous issue of dividing assets in a divorce.  I hope you enjoy.

Divorce practitioners are very familiar with our clients’ “friend” who was awarded all of the assets in the divorce because [insert divorce myth here].  The topic of these unscathed friends comes up frequently in the context of the initial intake meeting in which we discuss goals and expectations in the divorce process with our prospective clients.  Truth is, everyone going through the divorce process (for the first time) will inevitably have certain expectations about how the marital assets will be divided at the end of the divorce.  Often times, the expectations are rooted in someone else’s prior experience with the process.  As … Keep reading


First of all, to our past, present, and future readers, we want to thank you for reading and wish you all a very Happy New Year!  We hope that our articles provide you with some new insight and perspective, as well as the occasional levity to the often challenging (but always interesting) divorce process.  In this “fake news” era, I thought it would be helpful to start the year by dispelling some “myths” and “misconceptions” of the divorce process, specifically, as they apply to the ubiquitous issue of dividing assets in a divorce.  I hope you enjoy.

Divorce practitioners are very familiar with our clients’ “friend” who was awarded all of the assets in the divorce because [insert divorce myth here].  The topic of these unscathed friends comes up frequently in the context of the initial intake meeting in which we discuss goals and expectations in the divorce process with our prospective clients.  Truth is, everyone going through the divorce process (for the first time) will inevitably have certain expectations about how the marital assets will be divided at the end of the divorce.  Often times, the expectations are rooted in someone else’s prior experience with the process.  As … Keep reading

Twelve Months in Mass. – Establishing Residency Before Filing for Divorce


“Massachusetts Welcomes You” is a sign that greets you as you make your way into the Bay State, regardless of whether you are just passing through or sticking around for a while.  In addition to Massachusetts being a tourist destination, many people (myself included) decide to relocate to Massachusetts from lands near and far for a variety of reasons. So what happens if you move to Massachusetts and decide to get divorced?  How long do you have to be in Massachusetts before its Probate and Family Court “Welcomes You”?

As we become a more migratory society, issues regarding which state (or even country) has jurisdiction over a divorce have become more common. Based on each state/country having its own laws on the issue, the answer is not always clear as to which jurisdiction is the appropriate one to file a divorce after a recent move or if you are frequently on the move.

Under Massachusetts law, the Probate and Family Court can assert subject matter jurisdiction over a divorce only if: (1) the spouses previously lived together in Massachusetts, and one of them lived here when the cause of the divorce occurred; (2) the plaintiff filing the divorce action … Keep reading

Holding Onto The House– The Buy or Sell Dilemma in Divorce


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Ah, home sweet home.  Home is your happy place where you can rest and unwind.  It is the place you selected to start your family and where you and your family make memories. There is justifiably so much sentimental value tied up in the marital home, which is why deciding on the final disposition of the home is one of the most daunting, but important decisions to make during the divorce process.

If you’ve owned a home in Massachusetts for more than a few days, chances are that it has gone up in value since you purchased it.  Massachusetts has seen its median sale price for homes skyrocket by over twenty percent in the past five years, with total appreciation rates of nearly thirty percent during that same period.  So, in addition to that sentimental value, it is also likely that your home has a lot of market value, which can be both a gift and a curse in the context of a divorce proceeding. Sure, more money is great, particularly when each party is (in)voluntarily reducing her/his total net worth by roughly half in the divorce, but these high values of real estate often dwarf the rest of … Keep reading

Allocation of College Expenses in Divorce


Saving for education

To the recent high school graduates from the class of 2019, congratulations!  For the parents (particularly divorced or divorcing parents) of the recent high school graduates from the class of 2019, I hope you’ve saved some money.

High school graduates are going off to college at increasingly high rates.  Unfortunately for parents and students, the cost of tuition, room, and board for colleges and universities has skyrocketed within the past decade.  Some schools are now topping out at a whopping $70,000 per year for these costs.  I apologize in advance to our readers who expected a quip about the recent college bribery scandal; as a proud alum of the University of Southern California (was not on the crew team), I will limit this discussion to the publicized retail cost of colleges and universities. Go Trojans!

For family law attorneys, the issue of college costs is invariably at the forefront of our minds when dealing with any case involving children of college age and younger.  Even divorce agreements in which a child is only a toddler will often mention at least some aspirational language regarding the parents’ mutual desire. Such as for little Jimmy to “have the opportunity to attend … Keep reading

Discovering Digital “Dollars” in Divorce, Part 2


Part 1 of this two-part series covered a basic overview of virtual or “crypto” currencies, such as Bitcoin, and the rise and significance of the currency as an asset, subject to division, within the divorce context. In this installment, we will explore the tools divorcing spouses and attorneys can utilize to discover these virtual currencies during the divorce process.

Let’s imagine that, during a divorce proceeding, you suspect or learn that your spouse has a “digital wallet” as large as George Costanza’s infamous wallet in Seinfeld. What should you do? Well, despite the recent creation of these virtual currencies (more recent than the Seinfeld reference), many of the established techniques to gather information and documentation during a divorce proceeding can be effective in learning more about a spouse’s virtual currency portfolio.

Per the Supplemental Probate and Family Court Rules, within 45 days of the commencement of a contested divorce in Massachusetts, each spouse is supposed to provide the other with a Rule 401 Financial Statement completely and accurately declaring all of her/his income, expenses, assets, and liabilities, as well as an initial exchange of relevant financial documentation, commonly known as Rule 410 documents. This initial information and documentation can … Keep reading