EZRecovery Posted May 9, 2007 Share Posted May 9, 2007 An all-female law firm is turning heads in Chicago with a new billboard and a blunt message:"Life's Short. Get a Divorce.'' The billboard, sponsored by Fetman, Garland & Associates, Ltd., a firm that specializes in divorce cases, features the six-pack abs of a headless male torso and tanned female cleavage heaving forth from a black lace bra. The ad is the brainchild of Corri Fetman, who told ABC News' Law & Justice Unit, "Law firm advertising is boring?Everything's always the same. It's lawyers in libraries with a suit on and the law books behind them. They don't say anything. What, I should hire you because you have a law degree? C'mon. So we wanted to try something different." Reaction from those who work in and around Chicago's divorce courts has been less than enthusiastic. "It's grotesque,'' said John Ducanto, past president of the American Academy of Matrimonial Lawyers. "It's totally undignified and offensive." "It trivializes divorce and I think it's absolutely disgusting," Rick Tivers, a clinical social worker at the Center for Divorce Recovery in Chicago, told ABC News. "Divorce is traumatic enough without this kind of [advertising]. We try and help people go through the divorce process with as much integrity as possible. A lot of my work is helping people grieve the loss of a divorce, and their own sense of betrayal. This makes divorce seem like it's not a big deal, and it's a huge deal for many people.'' Ducanto called on the Attorney Registration and Disciplinary Committee of Supreme Court of Illinois to sanction Fetman. "I don't think they'll just let this pass,'' said Ducanto, who seemed genuinely hurt by the ad. "I have been in practice for 52 years, and I've worked my ass off to change the image of this particular area of the legal practice, and to see some punk try and pervert the whole image in the interest of lucre. ? Sure, she's got a lot of attention, but it's like a guy who spits on a table ? you got the attention, sure, but what kind of attention is it?" But the ARDC's deputy administrator James Grogan told ABC News that traditionally Illinois has been reluctant to sanction lawyers for anything short of false or misleading advertising. Source /EZ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SacrificialSoldier Posted May 9, 2007 Share Posted May 9, 2007 well its new but I think its horrible. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ThePitt Posted May 9, 2007 Share Posted May 9, 2007 "you got the attention, sure, but what kind of attention is it?" heh Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LRoling Posted May 9, 2007 Share Posted May 9, 2007 Wow, uproar over a billboard? Give me a break! It's a clever advertising scheme, I think. Sure, it gives a dumb message, but unless you are an idiot, married couples shouldn't take it seriously. And if they do, they are probably on the rocks anyways. So oh well, have a bit of fun with it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
reveek Posted May 9, 2007 Share Posted May 9, 2007 Most marriages end in divorce anyway. Some don't even last a year or to. What about that show on TV called Until Death that takes stories of one spouse killing the other and puts it on TV in a "comical" sense. That guy who does the announcing, I love his closing comments.... "I'm off to another wedding... I hope it's not yours" hahaha. I don't need a piece of paper to tell me that I"m "married" to the person I love and she feels the same way. In our eyes, we are married, even if we haven't made it official with everyone one else. Her family treats me as if I was one of their own. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LRoling Posted May 9, 2007 Share Posted May 9, 2007 Just heard an interview with John Williams on WGN Radio here in Illinois with the ladies who put the billboard up. One of them has actually received death threats, if you can believe that. They said that they thought their might be some controversy, but nothing of this nature. The billboard was taken down due to the AdSpace company not having the correct permits since it is on the side of a building, but they are trying to find out if there is a case to sue them for taking it down as censorship. The rest of the interview was aimed at the controversy, mainly they said that the bodies on the billboard without heads were to give the idea of a dream or way out of an already bad marriage if someone is having that situation. Very insightful, and the ladies definitely seemed like they were sincere in their intent for it not to be a blunt message against the establishment, but to be a bit of an advertising phrase to associate with their business, lawyers in divorce law. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Miuku. Posted May 9, 2007 Share Posted May 9, 2007 "Wife bringing you down? Solution - Smith & Wesson." If only I could make my own billboards too :p Very insightful, and the ladies definitely seemed like they were sincere I'm sure they were sincere in cashing on other peoples misery. Now that I think of it, they're almost equal to Mother Theresa. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hum Posted May 9, 2007 Share Posted May 9, 2007 Being married doesn't mean much anymore. These ads will only be noticed by those already inclined to divorcce. Probably better to split up than to stay with someone that you are not happy with. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
reveek Posted May 10, 2007 Share Posted May 10, 2007 Being married doesn't mean much anymore.These ads will only be noticed by those already inclined to divorcce. Probably better to split up than to stay with someone that you are not happy with. I agree with what you said about marriage not meaning much anymore. people just treat it like buying a new car. You don't like it anymore or it's in need of fixing, you just trade it off or get rid of it. There's not that "commitment" that there used to be back when my parents first started off together. My girlfriend and I have a huge commitment to each other without having it official. If we're happy, then why do we have to worry about making everyone else happy? Weddings seem like they are always planned to make the guests more happy than the actual bride/groom. I've talked to so many people, both male/female, and probably 8 out of 10 will tell you if they had to do it over again, they wouldn't have the big ceremony. Waste of money, time planning, and my friends who have, have already gotten divorced, some in less than 2 or 3 years. I'm not saying I won't ever make it official (by eloping) but if she's not pressuring me to further the relationship and we're both happy, why ruin it. Girls who want a wedding and make big plans..... more often than not are just wanting to wear the dress, impress and be the center of attention to their friends, etc. The older they get, the more desperate they are to be married by age 30, they'd do or say just about anything to do so. It's better in people's mind to have been married and divorced by 30 then never married at all. Nowadays, when I hear someone's getting married.... i figure, big deal, when's the divorce? I think i heard recently that more than half of the couples that get married now end up divorced. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
L3thal Veteran Posted May 10, 2007 Veteran Share Posted May 10, 2007 You are at fault, partially, if you end up divorced. That just means you didn't get to know the person well enough or you did not commit yourself enough to make it work. Many people will marry after being with someone for a year or two. I mean, can you really know someone that much after that long? Then again, it takes two to tango so if one isn't budging in anymore after marriage, the other can't make it work. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lhnz Posted May 10, 2007 Share Posted May 10, 2007 lol, so whats this suggesting. Live life to the full, dump your husband and family and run off and have lots of sex with some random man with a six pack? Charming. EDITOR'S NOTE: The billboard that is that subject of this story was taken down on Tuesday evening by the owners of a parking garage it was attached to, according to Corri Fetman, a lawyer whose firm paid for the advertisement, and witnesses who contacted ABC News when they saw the billboard being taken down. Last Updated Tuesday, 7:57 p.m EST Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LRoling Posted May 10, 2007 Share Posted May 10, 2007 Who cares if they are cashing in! They are divorce lawyers, that's how they make their money, finalizing your divorce with the least amount of horrible crap you can take. If you are getting a divorce, obviously that's what DIVORCE lawyers are in the business for, just like all lawyers, the commission. They certainly didn't sound as if they were trying to make a huge broad assumption that LIFE IS SHORT, Divorce your spouse TODAY! It wasn't as if they were making a philosophical statement that our society needs to just have fun, and not ever be married. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
theyarecomingforyou Posted May 10, 2007 Share Posted May 10, 2007 Many people will marry after being with someone for a year or two. I mean, can you really know someone that much after that long? My parents were only going out for about 3 or 4 months before getting engaged and were married not long after - they are still together. They were both married before but both of those marriages had serious breakdowns. So, marriage requires a bit of luck and a lot of work - time isn't really a big factor, though getting to know the other person is. There is no reason you should have to wait years for a marriage to be successful, though I certainly wouldn't go rushing into it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Samboini Posted May 10, 2007 Share Posted May 10, 2007 It's a shame the ###### are fake. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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