A Real Life Case of Second Life Divorce

Many divorces these days are fairly straightforward, no-fault divorces with both partners agreeing to go their separate ways due to the irretrievable breakdown of the marriage for one reason or another. Wherever you are in the world, the chances are that couples will be getting divorced on any given day, and if not divorcing they will be reaching annulments. However, it is rare that you will find a no-fault, no-contest divorce case in the newspapers, because they do not throw up such interesting questions. The fault-based divorce cases, wherever they happen, are the ones that get tongues wagging. Although marital infidelity is a chief reason in most fault divorce cases, there are certainly other reasons why marriages go wrong. Violence, anger, unreasonable behavior… and these are just the beginning.

The online virtual game Second Life is a place where people can be who they want to be. If real life has grown a little bit boring, or they have a desire to stop being a chef for a day and try being a professional windsurfer, people can live out those fantasies in their Second Life.

British couple Amy Taylor and David Pollard have separated in real life and are facing a divorce after Taylor found her husband's character chatting and flirting with another female avatar. Having previously had her affections tested while they were merely boyfriend and girlfriend when she witnessed his character having sex with a prostitute, Taylor nearly ended the relationship earlier, but instead dumped him in Second Life. When she sent a virtual private eye to spy on his character and found him to be true to her, she allowed the characters to reunite, and later married the real David Pollard.

So it was strange indeed that when she later witnessed her husband's character simply chatting to another female avatar, Taylor made the decision to end their real-life marriage. Perhaps aware, having met online in Second Life before they met in real life, of how the game could foreshadow reality, Taylor decided that her husband was not true to her in terms of affection. The couple are divorcing in real life, having already divorced online, and David is already engaged to be married to American Linda Brinkley - in real life. They are already married in the game. The story may very well sound bizarre but, as far as David Pollard, Amy Taylor and Linda Brinkley are concerned, it is all perfectly real.

And the grounds for this divorce? It may seem natural to assume that she is divorcing him on the grounds of adultery, but as video game evidence is yet to reach the point where it holds equal sway to real life, Amy has returned to reality for just long enough to figure out that such a case may be impossible to prove, and is instead citing unreasonable behavior.

Every single word of the above is true. So when you hear of a couple divorcing because one of them likes to eat cookies in bed, please realize that there are times when the truth really is stranger than fiction.

Disclaimer: This article is for informational and entertainment purposes only, and should not be construed as legal advice on any subject matter.

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