What does a career as a divorce attorney teach people about marriage and life? originally appeared on Quora – the knowledge sharing network where compelling questions are answered by people with unique insights.

Answer by Matthew Breddan, Family Law Attorney, on Quora:

A career as a divorce attorney has taught me many lessons.

1. There are AT LEAST two sides to every story.

2. What constitutes an “emergency” depends on your perspective and which side of the battle you are on.

3. Most (not all) family law litigants think the other side is unreasonable; uncooperative and overall “bad.”

4. Most (again, not all) family law litigants forget what and why they initially fell in love with the other person.

5. Most (still again, not all) family law litigants forget or lose sight of the fact that the ones they purport to be protecting (the children) are the ones who get hurt the most in the fight.

6. Marriage is a lot of work.

7. Life is fragile; marriage is even more so.

8. Throughout all of this, though, there are still a lot of strong, enduring marriages and there are a lot of good, kind people.