Romance Is No Excuse for Financial Naivety in Marriage and Divorce

A Hebrew opinion-style legal article argues that marriage should be treated as a financial contract, not just a romantic commitment. Published on June 15, 2026 at 08:00, it says Israel’s family courts are increasingly seeing lawsuits by women seeking so-called rehabilitative alimony, a monthly payment or lump-sum support meant to offset career losses after divorce. The piece warns that such claims usually lead to humiliating, expensive and drawn-out litigation.

The author says that with divorce rates close to 50%, entering marriage without a detailed prenuptial agreement is not romantic, but negligent. The article describes a common pattern, men continue building careers in high-paying fields while women often reduce work hours for childrearing and household demands, especially during years marked by the father’s reserve service and family pressures. At separation, the man may leave with strong earning power, contacts and income, while the woman may face years of professional lag and a weaker pension base.

To address that imbalance, courts have developed a trend of awarding “rehabilitative alimony,” but the article says the process can be degrading because women are required to prove financial dependency and low employability. Attorney and mediator Tal Miron says, “People do not change in divorce, they just become a more extreme version of themselves,” and warns that turning career assets into a court battle often triggers a costly contest involving actuaries, accountants, investigators and valuation experts.

The article urges couples to sign a comprehensive prenuptial agreement during the “pink days” of a relationship, while love and goodwill still prevail, and to specify in advance how compensation, assets and rights will be handled if one spouse sacrifices a career. If no agreement exists and the marriage is ending, it argues for an intensive mediation marathon rather than a courtroom war, saying that negotiations can produce tailored solutions within days and spare the family years of legal attrition.