Divorce Helper

If you are frugal about hiring a divorce attorney, then you could pay for your cheapness later. Whilst it might seem sensible to get attorney ‘A’ who is half the price of lawyer ‘B’ on an hourly basis, you’ve really should be asking yourself why there is such a price differential.

Experience

Sometimes – okay, a lot of the time – an attorney will be charged out based on his or her experience level. Yes, there are some very, very good attorneys who are simply inexperienced. They may just charge less for another, innocent reason. The majority of the time, though, you will probably get what you pay for.

In the divorce game, experience can play a huge role, especially if there is complex negotiations to carry out.

Work Ethic

Attorney A – he’s half the price of attorney B – might take on twice the number of clients to make sure he’s billing as much per month as his more expensive colleague. Fine, but will he have time for you and your case? Or will you be another cheap trick? Another ‘lesson’ on the way to being a ‘real attorney’?

This is not to say that the more expensive lawyer will be harder working or more diligent on your behalf, but the sensible money would be on her being just that. Again, you likely get what you pay for.

Return On Investment

It might be strange to think of a return on investment when we are dealing with an emotive subject like divorce, but that’s exactly what you should be thinking about. If you invest $5,000 in attorney ‘A’ and he comes back with a settlement of $20,000 then you’ve got back four times what you paid, or $15,000 more than your outlay. Not bad! Good job attorney A!

If, on the other hand, you pay $20,000 to attorney B and she comes back with a monster settlement of $100,000? That’s five times what you paid, and $80,000 more than your initial outlay. Wow.

Obviously attorney B is the better deal. These figures are a little way out, and there are probably very few situations where you will get such a big differential, but they serve to illustrate the point.

Difficult

Now if only you knew these figures before you chose the attorney that was going to represent you. Everything would be just fine and dandy. You can’t, though, and it’s never going to be that easy.

Choosing a divorce attorney is never going to be easy, but just don’t be tempted to go for the cheapest option just because the bill looks like it will be smaller. By all means assess this attorney on his merits, but don’t be swayed too much by those $$ signs.

A good divorce attorney can be expensive. A good divorce attorney can be worth their weight in gold, bringing you benefits – or saving you money – that is worth many more times their fees. There are a few ways to engage your divorce attorney, and while the final choice will be down to you and influence heavily by your personal situation, there are some methods of engagement that are better than others.

Flat Fee Engagement

A flat fee arrangement with your divorce attorney might seem like an attractive proposition: you know where you stand, and there is unlikely to be any hidden surprises in the bills.

However, beware this approach. The things that your divorce attorney will and will not do for this flat fee will likely be set out quite strictly, and in actual fact you might find that the surprises in the bills are down to things that you thought you had paid for. Even if your attorney is not going to charge you for ’surprise’ items, then bear in mind that they have little or no motivation to do any more than is absolutely necessary.

What is to stop a divorce attorney taking on 200 clients in a month, all on a flat fee basis? Will the attorney be able to handle all of these divorces properly? Of course not! Of course a good professional shouldn’t be influenced by the way he or she is paid, but in reality there will be at least some (perhaps unconcious) reaction resulting from it.

If you want to go down this route then make sure you have a written agreement setting out what exactly you will get for your money. And monitor it.

Pay By The Hour

Paying by the hour – the alternative to a flat fee price – introduces its own pitfalls: what if your attorney charges time for things that you thought were covered? Will they charge for any phone calls you make into the office? Writing letters to you or your spouse? Traveling time from their office to the courts? What else?

A divorce attorney lying about the hours spent on a case would be acting fraudulently, and it is unlikely that they will risk their careers for a few extra dollars an hour. But setting out in writing what you will and will not be charged for will save any embarrassments later.

Retainer

Many attorneys will ask for a retainer upfront. Your fees (if you are paying by hour) will be taken out of this retain until there is nothing left. Any further costs will be chargeable separately. A retainer is fairly common practice, but make sure you’re made aware if it – and the size of this retainer – before you start. You don’t want to be hit with a bill for $20,000.00 before anything kicks off if you’re struggling to pay for the groceries. Check if the retainer can be refunded, too.

Quotation

Getting an accurate quotation – or an estimate – is a difficult proposition. Unless your case is a very simple one, then the attorney cannot know what surprises lurk around the corner. If something unexpected crops up, or if the other party is being deliberately difficult, or if the financial affairs are hidden or are particularly complex, then the estimate can soon be gone.

A lawyer who gives an estimate is likely to be setting him or herself up for a no-win situation: hit the estimate and it’s not more than you expect; miss it by a few thousand dollars and they’ve got a seriously annoyed client on their hands.

If you do get an estimate then remember that it is only a rough estimate of the work as seen at the time the estimate was given. Divorce attorneys are good, but they cannot see into the future.

Written Terms

Make sure all terms of our agreement are written down. It doesn’t take long to set these things out on paper, and it can save a lot of problems later. If your divorce attorney is reluctant to sign a contract agreeing to the terms then it’s time to find another one.

The divorce attorney is seen by many as a necessary evil in the unfortunate process of divorce; some people just see them as plain evil. Divorce attorneys can be very expensive, but they can also make their fees back ten-fold.

Given that they are expensive, though, don’t waste their time! Your divorce attorney is not your therapist.

Shoulder To Cry On

Divorces are stressful and it is very comforting to have a shoulder to cry on. Sometimes this shoulder just isn’t easy to find. Your spouse clearly isn’t the best place to start, and any mutual friends you have might not want to get involved in what is undoubtedly a messy situation. You may feel uncomfortable telling friends and family your innermost feelings about that person that you married.

In many cases, the only shoulder husbands and wives have had for the years of their marriage is that of their partner. Now this shoulder is gone, they just don’t know where to go to for sympathy.

So when this distraught person is in the divorce attorney’s office, opening their heart and soul to someone that they trust – and, what’s more, that person appears to be listening to them! – then it is only natural that that person will feel the urge to just let go and tell all. Don’t fall into the temptation.

Lose Lose Situation

There are two things that could happen when you start using your divorce attorney as your therapist:

• they could tell you to stop wasting their time; or
• they could listen with sympathy, pass the tissues, and charge you $300/hour for the privilege. Most likely an actual therapist will be much cheaper

Either way you’re going to lose. Either you’ll feel bad when your attorney tells you to shut it, or you’ll feel even worse when you get the bill.

Be Prepared

Time is money, so being prepared before you visit (or just talk to) your divorce attorney is always the sensible thing to do. Having something focussed to discussed should also prevent you from wandering into the realms of self-despair and anguish.

Be honest, be prepared, be clear, and listen attentively. Your divorce attorney is there to help you, but he or she is not your friend; just as you wouldn’t expect good legal advice from a friend, there’s no reason you should expect sympathy from a legal professional.

If you’re heading into a divorce situation then there’s a good possibility that you’re going to need some serious professional help. Good divorce attorneys are hard to find, and they certainly come at a price, but if there’s a lot of money, property, or some children at stake, then you should get the best help you can afford. A good attorney will pay for himself or herself in a very short time. Think: this could severely effect the future of your children. Don’t go for the cheap option or take any shortcuts.

The Selection Process

Actually selecting the right divorce attorney is a stressful experience in itself, but if you pick the right person then you can hand most of the stress over to them. Knowing that your affairs are in capable hands will allow you to relax a little.

Before you select a lawyer, find out what you are dealing with: if you think you and your ex-partner will be fighting to the bitter end, then you’ll most likely end up having a court decide on the matter. In cases where there isn’t so much of a gap in opinions, you might be able to get by with a dispute resolution process such as mediation. Different divorce attorney specialize in different aspects of the dispute, so picking the right one will be crucial. If you go to a larger firm of attorneys then there will likely be a specialist for everything, meaning that if the divorce doesn’t go the way you want it to (highly likely!) then there is expertise available to back you up.

The best way to get someone that you trust is to ask around. In this day an age, where the divorce rate in the States is hovering around 50%, everyone knows someone that has gone through a divorce. Ask around and get some solid recommendations from friends, family and colleagues.

Online research will play a big part in finding someone capable. Nearly all law firms have a web site you can look at. Outside of this direct approach there may be articles, news reports or even others telling the world about their experience with this attorney. All of these can be useful in getting a handle on the man or woman you are going to hire.

Finally, make sure you interview the prospective attorney. Interview others, too. Call around and chat with as many as you can. Part of the reason behind the success of so many attorneys is the way the listen and deal with you, the client. If you don’t like someone then don’t, under any circumstances, work with them.

The Consultation Process

Divorce Attorneys can be expensive. Be prepared when you talk to any of them. Bring notes, prepare your documentation, and think about the areas you want to talk to them about. The quicker you both get to the point, the cheaper and more efficiently the whole mess will be cleared up. If you’re doing this with a few attorneys around town then you want to be doubly prepared. Don’t waste their time and they won’t waste yours.

You have to be prepared to be brutally honest during any consultation with your attorney. You might have to divulge things that you would prefer to keep private; unfortunately, secrets are not an option. Remember this: your attorney has most likely seen it all before, and he or she is on your side.

Checking Out The Office…

When you pay for an attorney’s time, you’re also paying for the support they get from their office. Some attorneys are one-man-bands, and their prices should reflect that. On the other hand some of the bigger offices provide many more assistants for each attorney, and their improved systems may mean that they can do the same work in a fraction of the time. These are just rules of thumb, though, and the lawyer on his own could in fact be more efficient than the one in the large office…. Yes, you’re right, it’s not easy.

If the attorney does work on his own, then you should check his workload. If he’s brimming with clients then be aware that he might not give your case the time it deserves (and on the other hand this popularity might be because that divorce attorney is so good at his or her job!).

Be Comfortable And Get It Right

As noted earlier, the best divorce attorney is the one that you feel most comfortable with. If you hit it off with someone then they are more likely to do their best by you.

Your selection of a divorce attorney can mean a huge difference to the rest of your life (and potentially to the rest of your children’s lives, too). Take some time and make the right choice.

Divorce attorneys are some of the best paid people in the country. Given that they can mean the difference of millions of dollars to wealthy ex-partners, it is no surprise that they can command astronomical pay packets from their clients. Unfortunately divorce is one of those regrettable necessities in life, and ever since the invention of the institution of marriage, there has been a need to ‘undo’ the knot that is tied.

When negotiation fails; when all other avenues are exhausted and when the spouses fail to reconcile their differences; this is when the divorce attorney steps in, usually as an advocate of one side or the other, and tries to make the best of a bad situation for his client.

Annulment

A good divorce attorney may first seek an annulment to the marriage. This is possible where either party can show that there was some fundamental defect present in the contractual agreement under which the marriage is made. The requirements to satisfy annulments to a voidable marriage are strict; your attorney will be able to tell you whether this is a potential route or not.

A divorce proper recognises that the institution of marriage is valid, and that one or both parties want to break from the agreement. If only one party wants the divorce then there must be some grounds for divorce: adultery, behaviour, or previous separation are all legitimate grounds for divorce. Once again, a divorce attorney will be able to tell you whether you have grounds or not.

Property And Money

The lion’s share of the time required by a divorce attorney is in the splitting of the couple’s property. A likely scenario will have both sides represented by an attorney, both of which are fighting to get the most for the person – or people – that they represent. The general rule of thumb is that each person will get 50% of the assets acquired during the marriage; this includes assets and debts.

Alimony payments stem from the situation where one party is unable to maintain themselves. In this case the husband or wife will support the other’s lifestyle for a period of time after the split.

Custody

The custody of children is a complex subject that we will not deal with here. Suffice to say that this is a big area in which a good divorce attorney can help.

Is It Worth It?

Hiring a divorce attorney can be a very expensive proposition; the more that is at stake, the more the cost of the support becomes worth it. A good divorce attorney can be worth their weight in gold.