When it comes to the decision of divorce, it seems everyone has a different threshold. Some say couples should stick out their marriage no matter what. Others say that at the first instance of infidelity, it's time to pull the plug. Or maybe you're one of those people who likes to refer to your union as "my first marriage," assuming it could crumble at any minute.

Regardless of your own grounds for divorce, the Colorado Legislature has its own ideas of when it's time to untie the knot. One representative has proposed a bill that would make it more difficult for people to file for divorce. Those with minor children would be required to take a class that discusses how the decision will affect their children. They would also have to undergo a "cooling off" period.

Many family law attorneys advise those considering divorce to first undergo counseling to make sure they're ready for it and certain it's the best decision for their family. But currently, there's no law requiring couples to take this sort of personal inventory. The Republican state representative proposing the bill says he got the idea at a conference for socially conservative lawmakers. After he decided to propose the bill, he discovered that a similar bill had been proposed more than a decade ago, in 2001. That bill required parents considering divorce to undergo one year of counseling, but it died after domestic violence counselors and women's groups fought against it, pointing out that the proposal was harmful to victims of domestic abuse. The new bill makes exceptions for such cases.

Would you support a bill that asked couples to take a second look at their marriage problems before calling the whole thing off? And should the bill only apply to those with children? Many people may say that the government doesn't have the right to tell them when they can split with their spouses. Then again, many children might say that they wish their parents would give each other another chance.

Source: Denver Post, "Colorado legislator's bill seeks cooling-off period before getting divorce," Lynn Bartels, Jan. 3, 2012