The Divorcerer Speaks: Top 5 Reasons to Hire a Divorce Attorney
Often times, friends and prospective clients alike ask the question, “Why do I need to hire a divorce attorney?” In these instances the parties are usually amicable and have worked out the settlement terms of their divorce on their own and feel like since there are unlimited resources online, including forms, books and documents that they could be in a position finalize the entire divorce process without an attorney.
Here are the top 5 reasons to hire a divorce attorney:
- Professional education of the law – it is a J.D. degree, after all. Knowing the details of the law, which can include local, state and federal statutes, supreme court rules, county laws and filing processes and procedures can be very helpful in mitigating the risks and spotting the issues that will most likely come up down the line. An attorney should also know the right questions to ask in order to provide legal guidance and clarifications in regards to the settlement terms reached and how they can be implemented and subsequently enforced.
- Experience and expertise in family law. Having an attorney draft the documents, including the settlement terms, incident to the divorce should allow clients to avoid pitfalls in court filings, legal processes and procedures.
- Engagement Letters and Ethics. Attorneys are under very specific ethical guidelines and at the commencement of the attorney-client relationship, you should expect an engagement letter or contract that outlines all of the aspects of the representation, including fee structures, that you should read and understand, with signatures. In Illinois, you should also receive a “Client’s Rights and Responsibilities” document outlining additional information for consideration in representation. This contract and document allows for a clear understanding of the rights, responsibilities and obligations of each party as it pertains to the representation and should allow for a smooth management of your case since both parties have an understanding at the onset of the case.
- Less Stress Usually Means Less Conflict. When you are uncertain of laws, procedures, guidelines or realistic outcomes from settlement, it can be added stress to an already difficult time – the breakdown of the marriage itself. When turning over the legal aspects of the dissolution of marriage to a professional in the field, you should be selecting someone that you trust who also understands your goals and plans in order to implement a strategy that will work for you. This should create less stress, which often time leads to less conflict in other aspects of your life.
- Not having a lawyer can actually cost you more. Many cases are brought to my office after-the-fact, where the level of conflict due to poor drafting, misunderstanding, misinterpretation and countless other issues that arise now creates a case where court intervention is imminent and will be costly. Often times there were drafting mistakes, items left off or forgotten, vague language, unknown tax ramifications or other well-known pitfalls that will now cost more in time and money to hire an attorney to remedy. Often times, the issues could have been handled easily at the onset with professional, legal guidance.
I never knew that failure to have a divorce attorney could actually be more expensive. Like you said, mistakes about taxes and items forgotten would be costly to fix, so it’s best to hire an attorney in the first place. A friend of mine will actually be getting a divorce because her husband has been using their assets in a wrong way, plus she caught him cheating a couple of times. She tried to make it work, but her husband wouldn’t change, so she thinks that it’s best to go separate ways. Thanks!
Thank you for the comment, as it may be helpful for those contemplating divorce and representation.
Divorces are stressful times as it is, so having to deal with the case and legal issues will only add to this. For this reason, getting a attorney seems like the best option if I were in this situation. This way you can get help and not have to do all the work on your own.
Thank you for pointing out that if you are unsure of certain laws and procedures it can make the situation stressful which can lead to more conflict, and a lawyer can help prevent this. My sister is currently going through a divorce and I think a lawyer would be great for her. I’ll have to look into some in our area that could help her out.
It’s great that this article mentioned that hiring an attorney will help you feel less stressed, as they can help you understand the law more fully. My friend’s husband was cheating on her, so she’s been wanting to get a divorce. These tips will help her find a great attorney, so I’ll be certain to bring them up with her.
Hi Jennifer, I found it interesting when you said that hiring a divorce would mean a less stress and less conflict situation. This why my brother wants to find one for his case. He wants to file a divorce case with his wife.
You made a good point in hiring a divorce attorney in making sure that you get legal representation in court while allowing a professional prepare the divorce and settlement papers to avert loopholes in the filing process. Come to think of it, this reduces the person’s stress besides dealing with their emotions in the event that he is going to be separated from his partner. My husband and I had no marital problems but in case things don’t end up well, I will be sure to get a hold of a reputable divorce attorney who will help me cope with possible stress and turmoils that this will cause me.
My sister and her husband decided to separate after five years of being together. It was discussed here that when looking for a divorce attorney, they should be experienced. Moreover, it’s advisable to have a divorce lawyer when planning to separate.
My sister is getting a divorce and is wanting to hire an attorney to help her. Thank you for pointing out that these attorneys have experience and expertise. This seems like a great reason to hire them. Hopefully, she can find someone in her area that can help her out.
My brother is going through a divorce at the moment and it’s not going smoothly. Hopefully hiring a lawyer will lessen the stress on him and give him time to devote to his kids and work again. I really appreciate the information that hiring a divorce attorney will also help us draft the agreement in a way to prevent misunderstanding so that we won’t have to go back to court.
It got me when you said that letting professionals will be able to lessen the stress because they will be handling the legal matters in their hands. With that in mind, I will be hiring an attorney for this case since I can’t afford to be stressed because my health is not good. I just need to go separate ways from my husband since he hasn’t really been of help with the relationship. He even had the courage to cheat on me.
I never knew that not having a lawyer can cost you more. This is a big deal when you are trying to make sure that your family is taken care of. My cousin might like knowing this as she looks into a family law attorney.
It got me when you said that hiring a lawyer will prevent you from spending a lot due to the mistakes that you can do by processing it on your own. I will share this information with my best friend since she wanted to save money that is why she doesn’t consider hiring an attorney. However, she might spend more if she misses anything. She just has a limited budget because she recently paid a debt that her husband had which is the reason why she can’t take it anymore.
I like how you said that hiring a lawyer could mean less stress for you and therefore less conflict. I think that is so interesting- yet makes a lot of sense. I will have to remember this if I ever need to get a divorce.
It is surprising to read that when you select a lawyer, they implement a plan that works best for you which results in less stress. Less stress leads to less conflict with those around you. I think that this is so true. My sister has been talking to her husband about divorce the last couple of weeks, and she has been so stressed about it. Next time I see her, I will let her know that she should hire an alimony lawyer because it will help her feel less anxious.