Social media allows us to live our lives scrolling through interesting stories, including other people’s family tragedies. We log on to vent or seek advice but every now and then you find a saga that is so outrageous it blows up.
There is currently one melt down circulating that has folks divided on who the real bad guy is. Tell us what you think at the end.
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Feels Like A Betrayal
This drama began two months ago when the original poster (OP) finally made the decision to divorce her husband. Divorce is stressful but OP quickly learned that her ex had one hell of a surprise for her at court. OP’s husband didn’t hire an impartial lawyer; he hired OP’s own brother-in-law to be his solicitor.
OP couldn’t believe it when she heard the news. She totally understood why, however. Her ex was her sister’s husband’s mentor and helped him establish his career several years ago. She understood that history, but couldn’t deal with the fact that her own family member was working so closely with her ex.
It felt very conflicted and wrong to OP.
Dinner Table Fireworks
OP reached her breaking point during a dinner with her parents. OP didn’t want to go, but eventually got cornered into going. There she was, trapped sitting directly across from her brother-in-law, the man working with her ex-husband to take her to court.
Long story short, what was supposed to be a nice family dinner turned into a full-blown screaming fest. It was absolutely awful. And everyone was there, the whole fam jam. Even her nieces who are young.
OP went all in. She unloaded on him, calling him a traitor. She made him understand during dinner how pathetic his behavior was.
When the dust settled, OP felt guilty. She went online and asked if she’d crossed a line making a scene in front of the kids, or if she was justified in finally voicing what everyone else was thinking.
To her, he’s not just some lawyer doing his job. He’s family, and he took sides against her.
Online Opinions
One user, ghostforest told OP to tread very carefully.
“Do not socialize with your BIL or give him or your sister access to information about you right now. It could be used against you. I’m frankly shocked that your BIL took on this case, given the proximity of the relationship.”
And that’s exactly why everyone is so upset. Lawyers never represent their own family members in divorces, because they can’t possibly be objective. When the BIL accepted the case, he signed on more than just a client.
He destroyed OP’s ability to ever confide in her family again.
Conflict Of Interest
LouisV25 is apparently a lawyer and dropped some possible game-changing knowledge right here.
“I’m a U.S. lawyer. Here that is a conflict of interest. Call your local bar or ask your attorney if that is a conflict of interest in yoururisdiction. If it is, you can have him removed from the case WITHOUT hurting his career.”
That comment turned things around for everybody. Not only are you feeling betrayed by your family members, but now you know that your brother-in-law could possibly be breaking the law.
Lastly, user No_good_namez expressed concerns about OP’s feelings. When going through a divorce, while dealing with family matters, it can really take a toll on you emotionally.
The Verdict
This debacle really illustrates why family and courts should never mix. OP initially came to social media just wanting to know if she was wrong to lose her temper at dinner. However, once everyone chimed in, we realized this goes beyond OP blowing up at dinner.
What OP describes is a grievous violation of trust and an attorney disregarding his professional obligations just to give his buddy a break. Sometimes lessons have to be learned the hard way, and this is showing OP that when courts and family intersect, it typically burns everyone involved.
In the end, the internet community agreed with OP. No matter if it was a conflict of interest or just plain betrayal, OP was justified in her anger. Now, she has to decide if she can trust that branch of her family ever again.
What do you think? Let us know in the comments. Do you think the OP from this social media post was wrong?
