How to Hire the Best Divorce Lawyer – Making Divorce Painless

If you are facing a marital discord and you
and your spouse have decided to part ways then hiring a divorce lawyer could be
one of the major things in your mind. A good divorce attorney can make things
hassle-free. But before you proceed, you should understand do you really need
to hire a divorce lawyer.

Table of Contents

Do You Need a Divorce Attorney?

If you have divorce in mind you might be
contemplating its expenses. Hiring an attorney is one of them. As you have done
your share of internet search where several blogs, videos and guides are
educating you about the same, you might be thinking whether you really need a
divorce lawyer. It is not a necessity as you can fight your case on your own
but there are flip sides to it. What if you don’t understand the local law and
loose due to lack of knowledge. Hiring a divorce attorney has its own benefits.

Negotiating Without an Attorney

Divorce laws are one of the most complex
laws to understand but you can easily negotiate it without the help of an
attorney. But to do this, you and your spouse should have a certain level of
understanding. You can talk about the issues like assets and property,
visitation rights, custody of child and alimony. You can also agree to maintain
a cordial relation as study has shown that a cordial relation between the
spouses is good for children. So, if you agree on most of the issues, you just
need a divorce attorney to complete the formalities.

An Attorney Know the Law Better

You may have decided to not to engage an
attorney as you are able to do it on your own. But you must face the fact that
divorce is a legal process and you are not an expert in law. You need to
understand the law and complete the paperwork that might need efforts as you
have not done it before. You should meet a few divorce attorneys to know if
they are in favor of negotiation and mediation. If they are in the favor of
litigation and trial, you should find some other attorney.

Collaborative Practice Lawyer

Different attorneys have different strong
points. Some love litigation, some mediation while some others adopt the
collaborative practice. Here both parties share information and work for a
settlement. In this process, both spouses and their attorney work together to
reach a settlement.

Major Issues in a Divorce

You are all set to hire an attorney for
your divorce. But while doing so you may have several things in mind. You
should have a proper understanding of the issues. Here we discuss major issues
in divorce.

Property and Assets

Property and assets are major issues while
getting separated or divorced. The property you have shared together is now
going to be divided. Every state has its own property law. While hearing the
dispute, the court divides the property in a fair way that may not be
necessarily equal. However, you and your spouse will be given an opportunity to
divide the property on your own. If you reach an agreement, the court will
approve your plan. If you don’t reach an agreement, the matter may be referred
to mediation or trial. The judge takes into account several things like
finances, child custody and value of the property while dividing the property.
A family attorney can handle things better.

Child Custody

Child custody is also referred to as
parental responsibility in some states. There are two types of parental
responsibilities – physical and legal. The physical responsibility is limited
to custody and visiting rights while in legal responsibility you can take
important decisions for your child. Here a court allows you to make a detail
parenting plan. If you fail to make such a parenting plan the matter may go for
trial where a judge will allocate the parental responsibilities to you. He can
also consider the opinion of the child if he finds that child is mature enough.
The judge will get into the details and issue an order which is in the best
interest of the child. Your family lawyer will better explain these things.

Child Support

Child support is different from the child’s
custody. It entails parents’ financial responsibilities towards the child. It
is largely dependent on the custodial arrangement of the child. In cases where
child support is needed, the court often grants the support in the favor of the
parent who has taken the custody of the child. However, the non- custodial
parent is not exempted from the responsibility as he has to provide financial
support to custodial parents as decided by the law. The court makes such an
arrangement as the child don’t have to suffer due to the divorce of the parent.
Seek the help of child support lawyer who will represent you in this case.

Alimony

Alimony is also referred to as spousal
maintenance. It is the amount one spouse have to pay to another so that the
other spouse can maintain his lifestyle. The court grants alimony if there is a
difference between the income of both spouses. If one spouse has given up his
career or education to raise the child, due to which their career has suffered,
the other spouse has to compensate for it. The alimony is given until the
financial status of the other spouse improves or they remarry.

How to Hire a Divorce Lawyer

The market is abuzz with divorce lawyers
and everyone claiming to be the best in business. It makes finding the right
attorney difficult. But there are certain tips following which you can find the
right divorce attorney.

Experience

Experience should be the top priority while
hiring a divorce lawyer and the same should be applied while hiring one for
your divorce. Such an attorney knows well what needs to be done. He applies his
knowledge to get decisions in your favor. So, while hiring a divorce attorney
you should prefer one that has rich experience in dealing with divorce cases.

Testimonials

Testimonials help us find about the
services of an attorney. And finding it is easy given the clients these days
are quite vocal about the services they have availed. Most of the attorneys
talk about the important clients they have served. If there is no detail given
you can ask from the attorney about the references. Once you have got the
reference you should check whether their experience was good. Are they
satisfied with the service? If you want to know if he is the right person to
represent you, check with the local bar association if there is any case
registered against him.

Accessibility

Divorce is a complicated process as more
and more issues keep coming to the fore during the course of litigation. Here
your attorney must be available to you so that the issues could be
communicated. Give preference to an attorney which remains always available to
you and pays attention to your case. You should meet with your attorney and
discuss with him whether they would be able to allocate proper time to you.
Don’t hire one who doesn’t have enough time for you.

Fee is the Major Consideration

The fee of the attorney is a major
consideration. You should know about how much they charge. Some attorneys
provide an initial consultation for free while others charge an hourly
consultation fee. You should know about the hourly consultation fee of the
attorney. You should also know about the upfront retainer fee and whether it
will be refunded if not used. While hiring an attorney, you should make it a
point that your contract should contain all terms and conditions.

Your Rapport with Attorney

While hiring a divorce attorney, you should
make sure that you have a good rapport with your attorney. A divorce lawsuit
goes through the various ups and downs and you must have confidence in your
attorney. To know this, you should make a couple of appointments with him to
work out if you can work with him for long. If you think that your attorney is
not the right person to work with, then there is no point in hiring him. Go
find some other attorney.

How
to Make the Divorce Less Expensive?

A divorce is a highly expensive affair and
apart from alimony and other settlement aspects, the litigation is also an
expensive affair. There are various aspects of it that include complication of
your case and custody of children that makes it further expensive. You should
ask your lawyer about the ways to make it less expensive. The sooner the case
gets settled the smaller will be the legal fees.

What Can You Expect from Divorce Process?

There is no well chalked about the process
for divorce as every divorce is different and has its share of technicalities.
Every divorce case has its share of difficulties and issues to be resolved and
hence no lawyer can give you a clear roadmap. However, the process is the same
and an experienced attorney can tell you about the major steps in the process.

Mediate or Trial?

There are times when you want to mediate
and your divorce attorney has set his mind on trial. In other times, you may be
looking for trial but your attorney wants mediation. Both circumstances will
impact your case. For a good result, you and your attorney must be on the same
page.

Is He Handling Lots of Cases?

There are some lawyers who are heavily
loaded with cases and are juggling from one case to another. Most of the people
think that he is busy because he is best in the business. But there is a flip
side of it. Will he be able to pay attention to your case? In all probability,
no. You should not go for such a lawyer. Instead, you should go for one who has
a manageable workload. Here your lawyer will have sufficient time to prepare
for your case and pay attention to minutest of details. Attention to details is
essentials in a divorce case.

Access to Document

Your attorney may be representing you in
court but you must have access to all the document filed in the court. There
could be document related to your lawsuit and negotiation with your spouse’s
attorney that may act as reference material. So, you should ask your attorney
whether they will be ready to provide a document as and when required.

Development Regarding Your Case

As your divorce case is important, you
might wish to know even a small development in your case. Proceedings begin,
trial start and next date is given, all these things have a bearing on your
case. So, you must ask your attorney whether they will be able to update you
regarding the development. Is there a mechanism to do so? Some divorce lawyers
do it by SMS, some by mail and still some has an application for the same.

Tips for Painless Divorce

Most
of the time divorce gets bitter, stressful and mentally draining. For sure it
is never going to be sweet. But there are certain tips following which you can
make your experience painless.

Talk to Your Spouse

Communication is a stress buster and it certainly
helps release the stress when it is the situation like divorce. You should keep
the communication lines open with your spouse. When it is a matter of hurt
feelings, you should avoid shifting the blame. By keeping the enmity and stress
out of your relations, you can better discuss matters of assets and property.
Even an experienced divorce attorney suggests the same.

Children Should be the Top Priority

A divorce where a couple has children is
far more complex than those without children. Beside being spouse, you are a
parent too. So always keep in mind that children interest should not be
compromised. You should keep them informed about what is going on. Keeping them
in dark will come as a mental shock to them and may prove harmful for their
mental health. A better idea is to make a plan together on how to break this
news to children and present it together to them. You both should convince them
that you both are there to look after them. You should keep them informed about
when they will be shifted to a new home or when one of their spouses will move
out. You can also seek the help of a counselor who will suggest your ways to
how to help children better cope with the divorce.

Looking After Yourself

Divorce is a mentally draining experience
and you shouldn’t allow it to take a toll on your wealth. You should do
everything to keep yourself physically and mentally stable. You should eat
healthily and exercise. Besides, you should also have a social network to
support you emotionally. There are several social groups that offer support and
help stay positive in this most traumatic phase of your life. You should focus
on hobbies and activities you have long ignored. Visiting courts and meeting your divorce lawyer
often is a draining experience, so you need to stay fit.

Take Help of a Psychologist

You, your spouse and children may find it
hard to emotionally adjust with the new situations. Here a psychologist can
help you adjust you to the new situations. As an experienced psychologist may
have helped several families to get out of this situation, he may help you
remain mentally stable in this dark hour of your life.

Avoid Conflict

You and your spouse should avoid conflict
in your divorce. It is better you should go for uncontested divorce where you
can reach an agreement even before litigation starts and you can save the fee
of litigation. In an uncontested divorce, you and your spouse can meet on a
mutually agreed upon date. Your divorce attorney can draft a legal agreement
for you. If there are disputes regarding assets and property there will be
mediators to support you. Following these steps, you can help minimize the pain
from your divorce. It is far more convenient than going through the trials.

Be Polite Towards Your Spouse

It might not be easy but you should behave
politely with your spouse whenever you meet him/her, particularly in the
presence of your children. Never show enmity and bitterness towards your ex as
the children might pick this habit. As you are going to set the example for your
kids, never insult or badmouth your spouse.

Convincing Children on Reuniting

Sometimes children play the biggest
icebreaker. As they want to make a choice between father and mother, they might
insist on the rethinking of a reunion. Here you must convince your children
that it is not going to happen. Any false promise given to your children will
further complicate the matter.

Understand the Financial Outcomes

Finances are one of the biggest parts of a
divorce. How much you are going to get or how much you are going to give has a
bearing on your divorce as a lot depends on it. If you are not able to
understand financial issues, then you should seek the help of a financial
advisor.

Make a Detailed Agreement

With a divorce, you are looking for peace
of mind so you should include everything right from a bank account to bills,
insurance and maintenance of your children into account. You should talk to
your attorney regarding the same.

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