We all saw the news, 2020 destroyed a historic number of marriages. We heard stories of couples likely reaching breaking points due to forced closeness, which could only highlight and exacerbate issues. However, a new study has found that this predicted historic surge did not actually occur.
The unexpected study
Conducted by Bowling Green State University’s Center for Family and Demographic Research, the study found that divorce rates actually plummeted last year. The researchers analyzed the data from the five states (Arizona, New Hampshire, Missouri, Oregon and Florida) that have released their divorce and marriage statistics from last year.
By the numbers
The Bowling Green State University study estimates that divorces were down by about 200,000 when compared to 2019, and even marriages were down (339,917). While this may seem surprising, it is only surprising because of news reports. Though, these numbers are actually in line with the downward trend our country has scene for decades. Indeed, our country’s divorce peak was in 1980, and it has steadily declined since that time.
Divorce tsunami hiding
Some industry experts argue that these numbers are just hiding the divorce tsunami that will happen this year. They claim that many couples made a practical decision to not divorce due to economic concerns, but as those economic concerns dissipate, divorce numbers will rise in late 2021.
For Los Angeles, California, couples thinking about divorce, contact an attorney immediately. If the predicted divorce tsunami does appear, the courts will likely be logjammed as they are still recovering from the court closures throughout 2020.