Divorce is one of those things to which public relations spin is hard to apply. Whether the divorce is between the spouses of an average Pennsylvania couple or involves someone who's high profile, the reality is that splits in which the spouses and their attorneys battle over every detail of the divorce wind up generating waves of anger and upset, not to mention skyrocking expenses. That plays out publicly no matter what.

In contrast, there is the no-fault, uncontested divorce in which issues are ironed out between the parties without the expensive, time-consuming intervention of lawyers, before the dissolution is submitted to the court for finalization. When the bones of contention are removed, there is no field over which a court battle can be waged and no reason to have to manage the public fallout.  Fortunately for those able to file their divorce in Pennsylvania, the courts do NOT require that any of the details of the settlement be made part of the court record. Once real estate and personal property (which is everything that is not real estate) are divided and the divorce thereafter becomes final, neither party can successfully claim any property titled to and/or in the possession of the other.  This renders the additional expense of a lawyer-prepared agreement a waste of time and money.  Only if something is promised by one party to the other to be given or performed AFTER the divorce is a written agreement necessary.

Such efforts tend not to work anyway, as football great Deion Sanders is coming to learn. He appears to be on track for a messy divorce from his estranged wife Pilar, despite his public claims on radio made earlier this month that the two are still friends.

Evidence of the depth of their rift is in court papers that TMZ.com says were filed by Pilar in Texas. In them, she reportedly accuses Sanders of having had many affairs during their 12 years of marriage. The documents also accuse him of being a narcissistic bully who inflicted physical and mental abuse on her.

The news report says she is looking to spike the prenuptial agreement they signed, which would open the door to considerations of alimony. She also is said to be seeking sole custody of the couple's three children.

With that kind of information apparently available in the public record, it's likely to be hard for Sanders to convince the public that there's any feeling of friendship remaining.

Source: USA Today, "Deion Sanders' divorce takes a contentious turn," Tom Weir, Jan. 18, 2012