Ben Affleck, Jennifer Garner Divorce: What Their Prenup Had To Do With The Timing Of Their Split

More and more news continues to filter in on why Ben Affleck and Jennifer Garner couldn’t make their marriage work. According to the latest reports, Affleck’s work was one major reason why the couple decided to divorce after ten years of marriage.

“He’s like a ’50s dad,” an insider recently explained to People.

“He thinks work is your priority and providing money for your family is your priority, and raising the kids day to day and making a nice house is the wife’s priority.”

Affleck and Garner had been married for ten years and had three children together before recently announcing their split. Although the couple seemed to have the ideal life, especially considering Affleck’s success in Hollywood as of late, Garner revealed in a 2014 interview that they had difficulties just like any other couple.

According to Us Weekly, Garner hinted in the interview that her marriage wasn’t perfect.

“We’re in the thick of it. Our kids are little, our careers are big, our lives are huge… We just focus on what’s important, and staying friends. We have all the other stuff, too, but if you’re going long, friendship has to be at the base of it. I’m pretty happy. I look around at other couples and think, ‘We’re doing okay.’ “

Following rumors that the couple was headed for a break up, the two released a statement that confirmed those earlier reports. “After much thought and careful consideration, we have made the difficult decision to divorce,” they wrote in statement to Us.

At the same time, it might not be a coincidence that the announcement came shortly after Ben Affleck and Jennifer Garner celebrated their ten year anniversary. According to Fortune, there is a law in California that identifies a marriage that lasts longer than ten years as a long-term one. This means that a couple that separates after the ten year mark will have the option for a higher amount of alimony and longer term of duration.

“In a prenup, there can also be an agreement that, upon divorce, the higher-earning spouse will give the other a certain amount of settlement money for each year of marriage – I have seen cases range from $5,000 a year to $100,000 per year,” Marilyn Chinitz, from Blank Rome LLP, told Fortune.

“The settlement is dependent on the assets of the more wealthy spouse. In the case of Jen and Ben, they both came into the agreement with plenty and earned more.”

Ben Affleck can next be seen in Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice in March, 2016.

[Photo Courtesy: Jason Merritt / Getty Images]