Separation and First Decisions Posted onNovember 25, 2012August 12, 2020/ Devry Smith Frank LLP Podcast #1 – Separation and First Decisions. This episode, hosted by John Schuman, the head of the Family Law Group at Devry Smith Frank LLP (DSF), discusses how spouses know they are separated and what steps they have to take first. It explores some of the initial issues that spouses, or unmarried partners, face at the end of their relationship. Those first decisions after separating can have a profound impact on the rest of the lives of each spouse – and the lives of their children. It can even affect how much money everyone will have at the end of it all.