good questions and this is a common situation .. that is, it isn't rare, lots of people get into this kind of blind alley, ... throwing in a mistress with a deadline adds an extra jolt of horror to it, but its not a unique situation that Gerard found himself in.. it wasn't an overnight thing, either. It took him a few years to dig himself into this ever deepening hole... he lost money, borrowed money and threw it at a losing business, and not once, but over and over again. Bigger losses, bigger borrowings, bigger debts and bigger interest. A lot of these debts were all due around the same time, too.. that is , the entire amount.. not just the payment and interest due, but the amount borrowed.
He lost money by being overconfident, and extended and enlarged his franchise ,.. riding on the friable success of one years trading, as I read it from the little bit the forensic accountant testified to at his committal , he rode on when the thing began to collapse. At this point, he borrowed big, from various sources, perhaps he didn't believe the downturn would gain momentum.. but it did.
Gerard just didn't seem capable of recognising this trajectory. Herein lies his incompetency .
If he and Alison separated, he would have been adjudged responsible for child support, but some men take that way out by declaring themselves bankrupt and unemployed.. . there is no doubt Gerard could have taken this road.. there is provision in the law for this.. of course, it then exposes Gerards status.. a bankrupt, an unemployable and unborrowable bankrupt, and perhaps this was too much for this particular ego to contemplate..
