What kind of attorney should you hire for your divorce?
Becoming a divorce lawyer takes seven years of formal higher education, including a four-year bachelor’s degree and a three-year law degree. Read on to learn more about required education, skills and career statistics. Is becoming a lawyer difficult? 1. The challenging years of law school. The process of becoming a lawyer isn’t for the ...
No, you don’t need to hire an attorney to get a divorce. You do have the right to represent yourself. You do have the right to represent yourself. It’s called a Pro Se (on your own behalf) divorce, it’s a matter of completing all the required paperwork, paying the filing fee or asking for a fee waiver so you don’t pay the court costs such as filling and process of services, all of which you can do yourself.
You need someone who can take the following actions on your behalf:
Lawyers can provide a wide range of services to their clients. Some lawyers handle many different types of cases. Some lawyers specialize in one or two types, such as family and divorce law.
It is important in divorce cases for an individual to have a family lawyer representing them to ensure their rights are protected.
Even in transactional civil matters, such as drafting a contract, a lawyer can be very helpful. A lawyer can make sure contracts are drafted correctly and avoid problems at a later date. A real estate purchase, business purchase, and/or creation of a trademark or copyright will most likely involve a lawyer.
A lawyer is an individual who is licensed to practice law in a state. Lawyers are also known as attorneys or an attorney at law. Some lawyers are licensed in multiple states. Some lawyers are admitted to practice at the Federal level as well.
It is important to remember that, in most cases, when an individual cannot afford a criminal lawyer, the court will appoint one to represent them. It is also important to keep in mind that if an individual is sentenced to jail time, they will not be able to earn an income and may lose a job.
Criminal law is the body of laws that pertain to crimes. Crimes are actions or behaviors prohibited by state or federal laws. Crimes are punishable by fines, probation, and/or imprisonment. Usually, crimes are categorized as misdemeanors or felonies.
Jennifer joined LegalMatch in 2020 as a Legal Writer. She holds a J.D. from Cumberland School of Law and has been a member of the Alabama State Bar since 2012. She is a certified mediator and guardian ad litem. She holds a B.A. in Criminology and Criminal Justice and a B.A. in Spanish, both from Auburn University. Jennifer’s favorite part of legal work is research and writing. Jennifer enjoyed being a Law Clerk for a distinguished Circuit Judge in Alabama. She is a stay-at-home mom and homeschool teacher of three children. She enjoys reading and long evening walks with her ...
There are some tasks that your lawyer will take care of, including drafting paperwork, filing documents, and keeping track of deadlines. You aren’t expected to know the laws of your state or handle the logistics of your case—that’s why people hire divorce lawyers in the first place. An experienced attorney will take charge of your divorce, ...
A good lawyer will explain the strategy or “game plan” for your case. Some people want an attorney to take an aggressive lead, while other people want to play a bigger role in the divorce process and work alongside the lawyer. It’s important not only to find a lawyer who’s qualified to handle your divorce; you also need an attorney who will work the case on your terms.
Your first divorce consultation will be at your lawyer’s office. At the initial meeting, your attorney will ask lots of questions, listen to the details of your case, and walk you through the divorce process. Most attorneys will provide their clients with divorce forms to fill out during (or after) the first meeting — be ready for a few divorce-related homework assignments.
Divorce is often a slow and sometimes frustrating process, but don't be too quick to blame your lawyer for delays. Many things are out of your attorney's control, such as the court's calendar, how long your divorce trial might take, or your spouse’s inability or even refusal to cooperate. Remember to be patient through the process, but keep an eye on what you attorney is doing.
Pay attention to the small details from the beginning: Does your lawyer return phone calls and emails within a reasonable amount of time? Is their administrative staff friendly and patient when you interact with them? Is the location of the office convenient for you so that you don’t have to drive hours and pay for parking and tolls each time you need to meet with them? Does the lawyer listen to all your questions and clarify in a friendly (not condescending) way when there are points you haven’t understood? Does he or she seem dismissive of what you have to say about your upcoming divorce? If so, choose another lawyer.
Key points to look for when searching for a good divorce lawyer-. 1. Understand your lawyer’s role. The goal of using a lawyer to help in your divorce process is to move the dissolution of your marriage forward in a fair and equitable manner. The main points of discussion when meeting with a lawyer should focus on money, ...
Find out by checking with agencies such as the Better Business Bureau which lawyers have had complaints registered against them or their practice. Use the ABA, the American Bar Association, to identify a list of lawyers and their specialties who practice in your area. Most counties will have a professional association of lawyers. In addition, often times, this group can tell you which lawyers specialize in divorce.
You’ll want to retain a lawyer who has at least three to five years’ experience doing family law. You don’t want somebody fresh out of law school with no real experience. This is not the time to hire your cousin who just passed the bar exam. An experienced lawyer can also give you better insights into the timeline of the divorce, the judge who will make the final judgment, and many other details which only experience can bring to the divorce process.
Finding the right lawyer could end up saving you time and money, and help you avoid long, drawn-out battles with your ex-spouse to be. Remember, your divorce will shape the rest of your life, so choose your lawyer wisely. Spending time to do the necessary research from the outset will truly be time well-spent.
You want to get a sense of different approaches so it is important to meet with several lawyers in order to decide on one who would be the right lawyer for your unique situation. Often times, you can get a sense of what a lawyer is like from your first phone call to their practice.
If they don’t specialize in family law exclusively, find out what percentage of the practice is devoted to family law; it should be at least 50% of their caseload. Depending on your financial situation, you may want to seek a lawyer who also has expertise in finance and property laws. It is important to get a good “fit”. You should feel comfortable with your choice of lawyer.
When you and your spouse decide to divorce, if you can communicate, try to talk about each of your ideal outcomes for child custody, visitation, child support, property division, and alimony. It's no surprise that children fare much better after a divorce if the parents can continue to facilitate a quality relationship with the child and each other. If you find that you're on the same page and are both willing to put your agreement in writing, you might be able to save time and money by not hiring an attorney to go to trial for your case. However, even the most agreeable couples can hit roadblocks during the settlement process, so be prepared to consider mediation and/or hire an attorney if that happens.
It's important to understand that when you agree to the terms of the divorce, and a judge signs your judgment, you will be bound by that agreement and court order.
Nolo.com also provides legal information about divorce and offers low-cost products, such as books on divorce, that can help you understand the process and allow you to download useful forms.
Depending on where you live, divorce can cost more than $25,000 when you hire an attorney. If you can't afford an attorney, you can call your local legal aid office to see if you qualify for assistance. Most legal aid programs have limited resources, so you might only have the opportunity to speak with an attorney over the phone. In some cases, especially those involving domestic violence, legal aid can furnish an attorney to work with you for the entirety of your case.
In collaborative practice, both sides agree to share information voluntarily and work towards a settlement. In order to use this process, your spouse will need to agree to a collaborative divorce and hire a collaborative lawyer as well.
If you think you entered into a bad deal or agreed to something you didn't understand, your only recourse will be to go back to court to try and change your final order. But undoing a divorce agreement is difficult and generally only allowed under very limited circumstances. For this reason, it's wise to hire a divorce lawyer to review your settlement agreement before you sign it.
Do yourself a favor, hire an attorney and level the playing field. Although no divorce is pleasant, some are outright unbearable, especially if the other party in your case is hiding assets, destroying property, wasting marital funds, or threatening you with physical or financial ruin for filing for divorce.
A lawyer can make sure that your divorce settlement addresses every issue pertinent to your situation, both big and small. During a do-it-yourself divorce process, people often overlook issues like future college costs for children, tax issues, division of retirement assets, parenting plan contingencies, proper allocation of debts, and other concerns. A divorce lawyer will be able to identify and ensure that your divorce settlement addresses all the issues.
Divorce is a process that, at the end of the day, dissolves a legal partnership between two people. The kind of legal representation you need when faced with a divorce depends on the complexity of that partnership.
Often, the " quickie" or cheap, do-it-yourself divorces you see advertised can result in a settlement agreement that you may not fully understand. If you've agreed to something unknowingly, divorce settlements and parenting plans can be difficult and expensive to modify after the divorce is final, and you'll end up having to hire a lawyer anyway.
While divorce lawyers are not therapists, there is a reason why lawyers are called “counselors.” They can listen to your complaints, help you formulate your goals, and make a legal strategy that will help you achieve your goals in your case. If you are so upset, angry or emotional that you can’t move forward toward your goals productively, they can do it for you. But, when you have no lawyer, there’s no one there to catch you if you mis-step.
If you have children, you are going to need a parenting plan and a parenting schedule. You will have to determine who will have legal custody of your children. (In Illinois, instead of “custody” you need to figure out who will make major decisions for your children post-divorce.) You also need to figure out where your children will live, and set some basic post-divorce parenting ground rules.
To get an amicable divorce, you and your spouse have to agree about how you will deal with each and every issue in your divorce. Then you have to write down all of the terms of your agreement in a form that the court will accept. Then you have to go through the court process, present your documents to the judge, get the judge to approve them, and finalize your divorce.
If someone isn’t willing to provide the financial information you need to understand what’s at stake in your case, you’re divorce is going to be an uphill battle. You can’t divide what you don’t know exists. To find out what exists from a spouse who isn’t willing to come clean with financial information, you need a divorce lawyer.
Divorce touches upon every major area of your life. It profoundly affects your finances, your family, your lifestyle, your home, and your psyche. To get through your divorce well, even with a lawyer, requires you to have your head together (at least a little bit). When you don’t have a lawyer AND you’re an emotional wreck, you risk making a wreck of your life.
If you and your spouse agree on everything in your divorce, then maybe you can manage to get divorced without a lawyer. (I say maybe because you still have to consider how complicated everything else is in your case. If you and your spouse are both multi-millionaires, and you own several businesses and multiple homes, you are going to need lawyers even if everything in your divorce is agreed!)
The laws surrounding spousal support/maintenance/alimony are anything but clear. Not only do you have to figure out if you or your spouse will be entitled to receive support, but you also have to determine how much support will be paid, and how long it will last. Each one of those determinations requires you to thoroughly understand the divorce law in your state, and to know how the law will apply to the specific facts of your case.