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American Morning
Real People, Their Money: Online Divorce
Aired November 14, 2002 - 07:44 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
BILL HEMMER, CNN ANCHOR: Breaking up with your spouse certainly can break your bank account, in some cases anyway. Some divorced celebrities found that out the very hard way.
Neil Diamond paid his ex-wife $150 million. It cost Steven Spielberg $100 million to get a divorce with Amy Irving. Michael Douglas paid his ex $60 million.
I don't know how much our next guest paid, but even if your assets are not in that league, the legal fees certainly can add up. The average divorce costs about $15,000.
In today's edition of "Real People and Their Money," meet a woman who saved a bundle with a do-it-yourself online divorce. Robbie Kribell is her name. She is live today on the West Coast in L.A.
Good morning to you. Thanks for getting up early.
ROBBIE KRIBELL, OBTAINED DIVORCE ONLINE: Good morning. Thank you.
HEMMER: How much money did you save, Robbie?
KRIBELL: Well, 11 years ago, I got a divorce, and it cost me about $3,000, and I paid 500 this time.
HEMMER: Online.
KRIBELL: Online.
HEMMER: Where did you get the idea to go online?
KRIBELL: Through a local newspaper. I was just reading it, and I saw her advertisement frequently.
HEMMER: What did you think of the experience?
KRIBELL: Very easy, painless -- very, very easy, because everything is done through the Internet. If you have a question, you just e-mail her...
HEMMER: Yes, I understand...
KRIBELL: ... and you get your documents...
HEMMER: ... in California, the average time to get all of this process done is about six months, right? Average time without going online, right?
KRIBELL: Correct.
HEMMER: And yours took how long, then?
KRIBELL: Six months from the time I filed to the court date, it was like two weeks, and my divorce was final.
HEMMER: Wow! What are the pitfalls, though, Robbie?
KRIBELL: That's a good question. I didn't really have any pitfalls, because every -- I told her exactly what I needed and what I wanted to do, because I did have a home. We didn't have any children together. So, she just sent me the appropriate paperwork, told me what I needed to fill in, gave me a checklist, and I just did what she told me to do.
HEMMER: It sounds pretty simple for you, though. But yours was pretty straightforward, right? If matters are more complicated, would it be as simple for others, do you think?
KRIBELL: Well, she does have a great Web site set up with all kinds of information. And so, since I didn't have to do the child support, I did have a home that was mine previous to the marriage. And so, I was very careful of protecting my property rights, and so she sent me the right, correct documentation to take care of that.
HEMMER: You don't like attorneys...
KRIBELL: So, when I went to...
HEMMER: You don't like attorneys, do you, Robbie?
KRIBELL: No! No. I had a bad experience the first time.
HEMMER: I got it. Listen, do you think -- there are those who say that doing this online just allows couples to separate and divorce much easier than they would have to normally, which gives the person an out in a relationship, and they say that's not necessarily the best thing for any relationship, to tough it out, stick to it and give it a second try.
You say to what on that?
KRIBELL: No, because compared to -- well, my first time, this was a lot less stressful, because I didn't have to deal with the attorney being in, not returning my calls, wanting more money. I had a set fee. I knew that's what I was going to pay. And so, it actually relieved a lot of the stress, because you're already going through a lot of stress because of the breakup of a relationship. I mean, nobody gets married to go through a divorce.
HEMMER: Thanks for talking. Robbie Kribell, she saved some money online. Thanks for getting up early too.
KRIBELL: You're welcome. HEMMER: Maybe the birds will start chirping out there soon. Thank you, Robbie.
KRIBELL: Bye-bye.
HEMMER: Bye-bye.
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com.
Aired November 14, 2002 - 07:44 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
BILL HEMMER, CNN ANCHOR: Breaking up with your spouse certainly can break your bank account, in some cases anyway. Some divorced celebrities found that out the very hard way.
Neil Diamond paid his ex-wife $150 million. It cost Steven Spielberg $100 million to get a divorce with Amy Irving. Michael Douglas paid his ex $60 million.
I don't know how much our next guest paid, but even if your assets are not in that league, the legal fees certainly can add up. The average divorce costs about $15,000.
In today's edition of "Real People and Their Money," meet a woman who saved a bundle with a do-it-yourself online divorce. Robbie Kribell is her name. She is live today on the West Coast in L.A.
Good morning to you. Thanks for getting up early.
ROBBIE KRIBELL, OBTAINED DIVORCE ONLINE: Good morning. Thank you.
HEMMER: How much money did you save, Robbie?
KRIBELL: Well, 11 years ago, I got a divorce, and it cost me about $3,000, and I paid 500 this time.
HEMMER: Online.
KRIBELL: Online.
HEMMER: Where did you get the idea to go online?
KRIBELL: Through a local newspaper. I was just reading it, and I saw her advertisement frequently.
HEMMER: What did you think of the experience?
KRIBELL: Very easy, painless -- very, very easy, because everything is done through the Internet. If you have a question, you just e-mail her...
HEMMER: Yes, I understand...
KRIBELL: ... and you get your documents...
HEMMER: ... in California, the average time to get all of this process done is about six months, right? Average time without going online, right?
KRIBELL: Correct.
HEMMER: And yours took how long, then?
KRIBELL: Six months from the time I filed to the court date, it was like two weeks, and my divorce was final.
HEMMER: Wow! What are the pitfalls, though, Robbie?
KRIBELL: That's a good question. I didn't really have any pitfalls, because every -- I told her exactly what I needed and what I wanted to do, because I did have a home. We didn't have any children together. So, she just sent me the appropriate paperwork, told me what I needed to fill in, gave me a checklist, and I just did what she told me to do.
HEMMER: It sounds pretty simple for you, though. But yours was pretty straightforward, right? If matters are more complicated, would it be as simple for others, do you think?
KRIBELL: Well, she does have a great Web site set up with all kinds of information. And so, since I didn't have to do the child support, I did have a home that was mine previous to the marriage. And so, I was very careful of protecting my property rights, and so she sent me the right, correct documentation to take care of that.
HEMMER: You don't like attorneys...
KRIBELL: So, when I went to...
HEMMER: You don't like attorneys, do you, Robbie?
KRIBELL: No! No. I had a bad experience the first time.
HEMMER: I got it. Listen, do you think -- there are those who say that doing this online just allows couples to separate and divorce much easier than they would have to normally, which gives the person an out in a relationship, and they say that's not necessarily the best thing for any relationship, to tough it out, stick to it and give it a second try.
You say to what on that?
KRIBELL: No, because compared to -- well, my first time, this was a lot less stressful, because I didn't have to deal with the attorney being in, not returning my calls, wanting more money. I had a set fee. I knew that's what I was going to pay. And so, it actually relieved a lot of the stress, because you're already going through a lot of stress because of the breakup of a relationship. I mean, nobody gets married to go through a divorce.
HEMMER: Thanks for talking. Robbie Kribell, she saved some money online. Thanks for getting up early too.
KRIBELL: You're welcome. HEMMER: Maybe the birds will start chirping out there soon. Thank you, Robbie.
KRIBELL: Bye-bye.
HEMMER: Bye-bye.
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com.
