Drew Barrymore and her (third) husband have announced that they are intending to get a divorce. This comes almost right on the heels of S.H.E’s Selina Jen announcing her divorce. Do we know about these celebrity divorces only because they are “high profile” people but meanwhile, many “commoners” like us are similarly getting divorced too? Or is it that certain professions tend to come with an inherently higher risk of divorce? Also, what is the divorce procedure in Singapore like? And why are searches for “cheap divorce lawyer Singapore” and “cheapest divorce lawyer Singapore” so popular? Can a divorce even be… cheap in Singapore?
I’ve read a few articles on the web which list the jobs that are most likely to lead to divorce:
1: Business Insider’s ‘The 15 Jobs Where You’re Most Likely To Get Divorced‘ has:
Entertainers and performers in the #10 spot, ‘Nursing, psychiatric and home health aides” are at #9, massage therapists at #3, with bartenders and dancers taking the top 2 spots. Interestingly, this article quotes their source for this information as the ‘Journal of Police and Criminal Psychology’.
2: USA TODAY’s ‘5 of the worst jobs for a relationship‘:
In the top three spots are casino worker, massage therapist, and waiter / bartender.
‘Athlete, entertainer or dancer’ is in 4th place. So could it be that more casino workers than entertainers are getting divorced but we don’t read about these in the news because they aren’t as famous as the athletes, entertainers or dancers?
3: The Richest’s ‘10 Professions That Will Likely Lead You To Divorce‘ provides some explanations too:
In #7 spot is ‘Musician/Athlete/Actor‘ because “These professionals receive relationship offers from very attractive people all the time”. In #2 position is ‘Bartender‘ because “Your typical bar is the place where people go to get drunk, hit on anyone or everyone around them, lose control, and expect to go home and have sex with someone new. As much as you trust your spouse and he or she respects your marriage, bartenders will get hit on so many times and chances are that he or she will give in eventually.” And… in number 1 position is Dancer because “Dancing requires a high level of team work, time, deep emotions, and physical contact, qualities that can make dancers develop feelings for each other despite their marital status.”
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In Singapore, there are plenty of divorce lawyers ready to help you file for that divorce. It is such a competitive space that they even place ads on Google that show they are now competing on price: “Divorce from $1,400 Nett”. “Divorce – $990 (Fixed fee)”, “Divorce Cost – From $1,800. Speak To Us Now” are some of these actual ad headlines.
But do not be fooled by low advertised prices. There are basically two kinds of divorces: contested and uncontested. If you and your spouse do not have children and do not own property, and both of you have agreed to get a divorce, then things are simpler. Otherwise, divorces can be long-drawn, messy and costly affairs if you fight for custody of the kid, argue over who gets what, and both parties may even have to hire their own lawyers and fight it out in court.
In Singapore, I would think a few groups of people are at especially high risk of getting divorces:
- Celebrities (including social media celebrities)
- Politicians
- People who work long hours in high stress conditions, e.g. medical professionals
Ultimately, I think all marriages require a lot of effort, and unless you don’t mind getting divorced and remarrying, a lasting marriage is actually worth that effort.
