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leehomrhbUID: 2806258

Irma’s CaseFacts:
l Irma Hartley comes to your office with tears in eyes. She married Myron Hartley six years ago and has two children, twins born four years ago and named Ariel and Jason. Myron is employed as an investment banker. Irma has a parttime job as a salesperson in an art gallery. Both have college degrees in liberal arts. Irma, who has never retained a lawyer before, has just decided to hire you and wants to know her rights concerning the following situation and you must present a detailed memo regarding the possible litigation.
l Irma explained that she and Myron have had marital difficulties. For the past two years, they have bickered often, and she cannot stand it when the bickering turns into shouting. On three occasions during those two years, Myron struck her, once on each occasion, in the face, at the end of a shouting match. The tension in this situation has caused Irma to drink, on average, a scotch or two a day. Myron does not drink. When the Hartleys got married, Myron owned a German Sheppard and Irma owned an Akita. Because the two dogs did not get along, Irma gave the Akita to her brother. The Sheppard remained and has been a good watchdog. Although the Sheppard has never, to Irma’s knowledge, bitten anyone, he bares his teeth and growls when Myron shouts, and this makes Irma nervous.
l During the evening last Sunday, after a weekend of bitter argument, Myron annouced that he had had enough and was leaving and packed a bag and left. Myron returned Monday evening and told Irma that he had consulted a lawyer, and that the lawyer had drafted a separation agreement that provided that Myron and Irma would live apart, beginning immediately, that they would have joint custody of the children, and that a divorce would be obtained as soon as possible. It provided that there would be no alimony, and in elaborate detail it divided up the couple’s property. The agreement provided further that it would become effective when signed by both parties. Myron had already signed it.
l The art gallery where Irma works laid off half its staff on Monday morning. Irma was able to keep her job, but when she came home from work as 6 clock, she was depressed and worried about whether the gallery would close, throwing her out of work. She had one drink when she got home and another when Myron arrived a little more than an hour later. At 7:30, she was drinking a third scotch when Myron put the agreement on the table and angrily demanded that she must sign it. The Sheppard was sitting in the corner and Irma could see him perk up and become more attentive as Myron’s voice became louder.
l Myron told Irma that if she did not sign the agreement, he would tell the court that her “artsy friends do drugs in front of Ariel and Jason”. Myron added that no one would believe her if she were to deny their accusations because it would be her word against his and he would make a much better witness than she would. Angrily and in a very loud voice, Myron said that the court would therefore take her children away from her and give her none of their property. At this point, Myron was pounding the coffee table and the Sheppard was on his feet, staring at her very attentively.

l Irma signed the agreement and asked Myron to leave immediately and take the dog with him. Myron left ten minutes later, taking his camcorder and laptop computer and the top. Irma made herself another scotch and called a friend. She asked the friend to come over and spend a few hours with her because she felt very worried.
l Irma’s friends do not do drugs. She knows nothing about divorce law, before consulting you, she had no idea whether Myron's predictions about divorce and the courts were accurate. Irma has a clear memory of what she saw and heard Monday night.
Legal rules:
l Contract Code Section 201: if a contract is voidable by one of the parties, that party need not obey the contract
l Domestic Relations Act Section 401: A separation agreement is a contract and, absent vitiating factors listed below, is binding upon the parties having signed thereto.
Your job:
l Present an objective office memo about the facts and possible outcome of the litigation. Your boss is a well-established attorney-at-law in divorce cases and a feminist keen on defending women’s rights, try to tell her whether to accept this case or not.

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