Oftentimes people want a divorce so bad that they will give up things (or custody of children) in order to get the other party to agree to divorce. This falls under the concept of "divorce blackmail" which exists in Mississippi because our law requires people to have "grounds" for divorce in order to force a divorce. This situation was made evident in the recent decision of West v. West, No. 2008-CA-00190-COA (Ct App. 2009) where the court affirmed a Chancellor’s refusal to reduce an award of support. With the approval of the Court of Appeals, the Chancellor found he "really believe[d] that Mr. West made a deal...that was not in his best interests" but could not change it. All persons who enter into divorce agreements are cautioned not to agree to something, just to get it overwith, if they cannot comply or if it is a bad deal. The Courts will not be able to change it, even if they agree you made a bad deal.
