Cordell & Cordell Principal Partner Joe Cordell was recently quoted in a FOX News article concerning the impact that viewing pornography can have on marital relationships.
In Utah, which has one of the nations highest rates of porn use, State Senator Todd Weiler has suggested the state is facing a public health crisis and recently introduced a resolution seeking to address the issue.
Mr. Cordell was asked how frequently pornography comes into play when couples decide to divorce. He estimated that porn viewing accounts for 10 percent of Cordell & Cordell’s clients’ marriages ending, and is primarily “the straw that breaks the marriage’s back.”
Mr. Cordell added that it is more common that “spouses are being unfaithful through memberships on dating websites and/or using social media to exchange sexual images and messages in divorce cases than pornography.”
Pornography is much more likely to be cited in settlement negotiations from a “mudslinging” perspective in an attempt to embarrass the opposing party or threaten to introduce into open court evidence of a pornography addiction. Some people have agreed to less favorable settlement terms than they would have likely received at trial to avoid the issue being raised.
Nationwide, the general consensus of Cordell & Cordell’s 200+ family law attorneys is as “no-fault” divorces become more prevalent in all states, issues such as pornography consumption do not typically factor into a judge’s decision unless it somehow impacts the children or is of illegal nature, such as child pornography.
Read the full article.
Written by Joseph E. Cordell
Joseph E. Cordell is the Principal Partner at Cordell and Cordell, P.C., which he founded in 1990 with his wife, Yvonne. Over the past 25 years, the firm has grown to include more than 100 offices in 30 states, as well as internationally in the United Kingdom. Mr. Cordell is licensed to practice in the states of Illinois and Missouri and received his LL.M. from Washington University in St. Louis, Missouri. Joseph E. Cordell was named one of the Top 10 Best Family Law Attorneys for Client Satisfaction in Missouri.
