Guide to Finding Divorce Attorneys

What Does a Divorce Attorney Do?

Divorce Attorneys are legal professionals who litigate over divorce filings. They are litigants who fight for their client’s possessions and estates when dissolution of marriage takes place. Divorce attorneys are effective in facilitating this fight through a precise understanding of a state’s unique divorce laws. 

Because of their utility and the facilitation offered, if you are going through a divorce, you must hire an experienced divorce attorney in your area. 

Divorce attorneys are also vital because divorce laws are complex and will vary based on jurisdiction. It is unlikely that you will understand the divorce laws that govern your particular area. Because of this, it is essential to at least communicate with a divorce attorney if you plan on filing or responding to a divorce petition. The following laws and requirements are considered generic divorce provisions:

Residency and Filing Requirements Regarding Divorce:

For a divorce attorney to successfully file a claim, residency requirements must be met for the underlying court to accept the petition. The petition will be rejected, if the court finds that the filing was made in the wrong jurisdiction. The residency requirements are as follows:

• One of the filing parties, at the time the filing is commenced, lived in the state that the petition is being filed in. 

What are the Grounds for Filing? 

The petition for divorce is required to declare the appropriate state’s grounds upon which the divorce is sought. The grounds for dissolution in most states are as follows:

• Fault and No-Fault: the marriage is broken and cannot be repaired (no-fault grounds) or the marriage is a covenant union. 

• Grounds for a Covenant marriage include:

o A spouse committed adultery

o A spouse committed a felony and is sentenced to imprisonment or death

o The spouse abandoned the domicile for at least a year 

o The spouse was sexually or physically abused 

o The spouses were living separately in a continuous fashion 

o The spouse has habitually abused alcohol or drugs

o Both the husband and wife agree to a divorce

Other Issues a Divorce Attorney Will Deal With:

In addition to filing and facilitating the divorce process, a divorce attorney may help secure child support for one of the involved parties. A state’s child support guidelines are based on the income Shares Model for calculating support. The monthly support amount will be determined by applying the calculations and then dividing the product according to each parent’s income. These figures will then name which parent will pay for support of the child. A state’s Supreme Court will establish child support payment guidelines to determine the amount of support. A state’s Supreme Court will use the following factors to determine child support:

• The financial needs and resources of the child

• The financial needs and resources of the custodial parents

• The standard of living the child would have enjoyed if the parents remained together

• The emotional and physical condition of the child and the youth’s educational needs

• The financial needs and resources of the noncustodial parent

Finding Divorce Attorneys:

If you are filing for a divorce, you must hire a divorce attorney who understands your state’s unique divorce laws. Divorce attorneys are experienced in processing claims, expediting the divorce filing and structuring a strategy to secure an equitable balance between the divorce settlement and your emotions. 

To find an experienced divorce attorney you must utilize resources. For instance, performing Internet searches is an effective means to gather a list of prospective divorce attorneys in your area. Utilizing the Internet and search engines is the most efficient way to compile a list of prospective legal aid. In addition to Internet searches, you must visit your state’s bar association to ensure that the divorce attorney is properly licensed.

Once you have gathered a list of prospective divorce attorneys you should visit internet forums and client testimonial pages to evaluate or forecast the individual’s ability. These resources will illuminate on the individual’s reputation and general effectiveness. From here, you can narrow your list of prospective divorce attorneys down to three or four.

After narrowing your list down, contact each divorce attorney to discuss your case. When talking with the attorney take note of his personality: do you connect with the individual? What is his experience with divorce filings? What is his pay scale? You should ask these questions during your first correspondence. If you like their answers, set-up a consultation or preliminary meeting to discuss the particulars of your case; the majority of divorce attorneys will charge a fee for a consultation. 

Questions for your Divorce Attorney:

During your consultation, you must ask a divorce attorney a series of questions to get a better feel for your case. It must be understood that these questions will vary depending on the particulars of your case. 

The list below represents a legitimate starting point with regards to your consultation or preliminary meeting:

• Is our state a community property state?

• Do you have experience with divorce claims similar to this?

• Are you experienced with divorce filings that involve custody matters? 

• What is the tax consequences associated with my division of assets?

• If my spouse and I own property in another state, which state’s property laws apply to my divorce filing?

• What records will I need to prove that the assets my wife claims is my separate property?

• Can I engage in this filing without the aid of a divorce attorney?

A good divorce attorney will be able to give representation to the person who hires them for a divorce case.  Divorce attorneys represent one party in the divorce case and can only give legal advice and representation to one of the parties.  There are those times, however, when the divorce is uncontested, that an uncontested divorce attorney can be used for the divorce.  The uncontested divorce attorney is one who will draw up the necessary paperwork for the other party so that they can facilitate the divorce.  These divorce attorneys can also draw up the marital settlement agreement if both parties are willing to go through with the divorce and are willing to sign the agreement.  A divorce attorney should try to get the parties to work out the specifics outside of the courtroom instead of trying to add fuel to the fire.  If you are going through a divorce, it is better to work out property rights and other financial matters before filing, if at all possible.  Using an uncontested divorce attorney can save both parties a great deal of money. 

The divorce attorney will facilitate the aspects of the dissolution of marriage in the state court.  Divorce attorneys know the laws in the states where they practice with regard to how long people have to wait in order to get divorced.  There is usually a time period that the parties have to wait before they can get divorced.  Once that period is up, the divorce attorneys can not only petition the court for the divorce, but the divorce attorney can go to the hearing.  When using an uncontested divorce attorney, one person is usually representing themselves pro se but understands their rights.  Even when using an uncontested divorce attorney, should the party not being represented have any doubts, they can always hire their own divorce attorney to represent them in this matter.