LOS ANGELES--Divorce can be hell, but it can be even more hellish if the husband and wife work together.

A perfect example of this is the drama publicly unfolding between the estranged couple that ran the Los Angeles Dodgers together, team owner Frank McCourt and his wife and former team CEO Jamie McCourt.

The husband fired the wife last month. She went to court to get her job back but lost her bid to be reinstated Thursday during a hearing in the couple's messy divorce proceedings.

But it’s not all doom and gloom for life partners who also want to be work partners.

Making it work

Max Dobens works for his wife, Jacky Teplitzky, who runs one of Prudential Douglass Elliman’s top real estate businesses in New York City.

Dobens, who had worked in the hotel industry and for a dotcom but ended up getting laid off from both jobs, was asked by his wife to join her real estate team. He accepted after passing the real estate exam in 2001.

He had heard dire warnings about what might happen if he worked with his wife, but he was so sick of corporate politics that he took a chance, and is happy he did.

Dividing up responsibilities

Indeed, experts say it’s a good idea to separate responsibilities because one of the major issues husband-and-wife co-workers deal with is the power struggle, especially if one is the boss of another. (Source: MSNBC)

Story Date: November 11, 2009